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Production at full moonDespite the hype, there will be even fewer Gold Moonswatches
The hype surrounding the limited Swatch watch never stops. Nevertheless, Swatch will produce fewer copies on the next date on April 6th, as CEO Nick Hayek says.
For the gold Moonswatch Mission to Moonshine, collectors queued for hours last week. The Moonshine was only available in Zurich, London, Milan and Tokyo.
20min/Taddeo Cerletti
It is not yet known where they will be available for purchase next time, said CEO Nick Hayek.
20 minutes
That’s what it’s about
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Swatch’s business is booming thanks to the Moonswatch hype.
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This year could be a record year.
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The Gold Edition will be available again on April 6th.
People stand in line for hours in front of the Swatch stores when the limited Moonswatch models are on sale. The hype surrounding the collaboration between sister companies Omega and Swatch continues.
In Zurich alone, around 500 people thronged the store last week when the gold edition Moonshine was available for the first time, as Swatch Group boss Nick Hayek said at the balance sheet media conference on Thursday. Apart from Zurich, the watch was only available in London, Tokyo and Milan.
The clock will be back on the next full moons. Swatch only produces and sells the Moonshine, as Hayek assured. “The moon has powers, causes the tides to ebb and flow, and some people do weird things when the moon is full. That’s why we had the idea that we would only produce the watch then,” says Hayek.
1 Million Moonswatches
The watch is correspondingly scarce. “It’s a natural limitation. You also have to wait for truffles in the restaurant,” says Hayek. He did not say how many moonshines Swatch produces on such a day. But the next full moon is on April 6th, one day before Good Friday. “We’ll stop working earlier,” says Hayek.
Then there will be even fewer copies. It is not yet known where the watch will be available for purchase, said the Swatch boss. He also didn’t say how much the company makes from the more than one million Moonswatches sold so far.
That’s what Hayek says about the CS crisis and the Jelmoli closure
At the Swatch Group’s balance sheet media conference, CEO Nick Hayek not only spoke about the Moonswatch hype, but also about inflation, CS and their own car batteries.
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Inflation: “Swatch increased prices by four percent in February”. The company expects three to five percent higher expenses due to higher wages, energy and rental costs.
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Shortage of skilled workers: “We don’t have an acute shortage of skilled workers. There is only a shortage in the areas where people make demands for working from home. But if someone wants to do their work from their home office, I can also hire someone in India, where it costs me less.”
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Swatch stores: “We want to invest in the basic business, people come back. People like it spacious in the shops, we push that.”
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Jelmoli: “The department store has a proud history. Unfortunately, it decided to close at a time when tourism was starting up again. Closing is always bad. It’s suboptimal when banks and insurance companies try to influence consumption.”
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Swatch car batteries: “It’s a fascinating field, but you’ll have to wait a few more years before we have the finished battery.”
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Return to the SMI: “It’s of no value to us. Have you ever seen people buy something because of an SMI logo? The only good thing about the SMI is that we are no longer on it. We will do everything to prevent a return.”
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CS Crisis: «CS has always supported Swiss industry. It is therefore important that it is stabilized. We didn’t withdraw our money from CS, there’s no reason for that.”
It is clear that business is going well. Thanks to the hype surrounding the limited watch, the entire watch industry benefits, says Hayek. The Swatch Group also grew last year, increasing sales by 2.5 percent to CHF 7.5 billion and profits by eleven percent to CHF 823 million.
According to Hayek, a record year with 15 percent growth is even possible this year. The group is growing from the entry-level to the luxury segment. “Interest in traditional watches has increased everywhere,” said the Swatch boss.
According to Hayek, no one could have imagined a collaboration between Swatch and another brand a year ago. People have crazy expectations now. «They ask if we make a watch with Patek Philippe or Rolex. We have created a new market,” says Hayek. However, he did not want to say whether there will be such cooperations.
Why is the watch only available in stores? “People should get used to the fact that if they want something they have to go out and do something for it. Sitting at home and comfortably pressing a button is simply not enough,” says Hayek.