Watches of Switzerland: US market lifts group sales December 5, 2024 Watches of Switzerland has reported an uptick in revenue growth due to growing demand in the US market despite luxury watch sales stagnating in the UK and Europe. In a trading update to markets today, the luxury watch firm said group revenue for the 26 weeks ending 27 October was up 4 per cent year-on [...]
Rolex becomes title sponsor of major sport league November 21, 2024 Legacy watch brand Rolex has today been announced as title sponsor of SailGP, with the Formula 1 of water now known as the Rolex SailGP Championship. The luxury brand joins the likes of Chanel (The Boat Race) in venturing into title sponsorship agreements in sport. The watchmaker has been associated with SailGP since 2019. The [...]
Falling Rolex prices are fuelling a sales boom November 12, 2024 The holiday season has always been pivotal for luxury watch sales, and this year brings a particularly promising outlook. Contrary to the usual holiday price hikes in many markets, the secondary watch market has seen notable price declines. Over the past year, prices for iconic brands like Rolex have dropped by an average of five [...]
Analysts split over US listing for Watches of Switzerland following activist investor campaign October 23, 2024 London-listed Watches of Switzerland has come under pressure from activist investor Gatemore Capital Management to ditch its UK listing for the US, with analysts split over whether the decision would be beneficial for the firm. The UK’s biggest Rolex seller, which runs 221 stores globally, listed in London in 2019 and is currently a member [...]
Apple Watch Ultra 2 is the brightest and best October 23, 2024 We write a lot about watches at Morning Wire. Watches that have been up as far as the moon. Watches that have been down as low as the Mariana Trench. The versions of these trail-blazing timepieces that end up being sold to the likes of you and I enjoy a rather less salubrious fate, adorning [...]
When it comes to luxury watches, the 1990s are back, baby! October 20, 2024 It’s an observation likely to provoke a torrent of below-the-line abuse in watch nerd circles. But here we go: luxury watches as we know and love them owe their existence to a surprisingly modern confluence of circumstances. While the mechanics inside still tick to the tune of 200-year-old technology something happened in the decade that’s [...]
The latest watch news from Swatch, Saint Laurent and more October 20, 2024 The latest goings-on in the world of haute horlogerie, from a back-to-the-future 1970s LED digital to Swatch’s new Mission on Earth range and an actually-futuristic LED analogue DIODE TO JOY In the early 1970s, Girard-Perregaux took it upon itself to develop (at huge cost) its own battery-powered movement, the Calibre 350. Appropriately, the 350 launched [...]
The reinvention of watch firm Hublot, from sci-fi artistry timepieces to sapphire and titanium October 19, 2024 Introducing brave new disciplines to Hublot’s universe is the sci-fi artistry of Daniel Arsham, reports Alex Doak This issue’s ‘Watching the Watchmen’ feature charts the 1990s multi-pronged reinvention of the ’luxury timepiece’ as we know it, and Hublot is a key player. Admittedly, its porthole case and rubber strap was a tough sell on launch [...]
Rolex: Sales at luxury watch maker rise time after time October 10, 2024 Sales at the UK arm of Rolex rose by almost £80m during 2023, for the 17th consecutive year. The London-headquartered division has reported a turnover of £685.2m for the 12 months, up from the £608.1m it achieved in 2022. Newly-filed accounts with Companies House also show that its pre-tax profit increased from £59.4m to £65.8m [...]
Far East sales sparkle at diamond jeweller and luxury watchmaker Graff September 18, 2024 A surge in Far East sales more than offset a decline in US revenue at diamond jeweller and luxury watchmaker Graff during its latest financial year, it has been revealed. The London-headquartered business has reported a revenue of $842.2m (£637.5m) for 2023, up from the $724.8m (£523.6m) it posted for 2022, newly-filed accounts with Companies [...]