Blancpain and Breguet are slightly quiet luxurious watch manufacturers, that we hear about, however not that usually.
The Vallee de Joux-based Swiss corporations — headquartered simply down the highway from each other — are successfully the co-flagship watch manufacturers of the Swatch Group.
Following the quartz disaster, the Swatch Group acquired many watch manufacturers at opportune occasions. Whereas the offers might have been good, not all manufacturers mesh properly, as a correct watch motion’s gears should.
Swatch has executed a great job of differentiating Blancpain and Breguet. The conundrum is that the 2 manufacturers’ timepieces and value factors typically overlap, comparable to with the brand new Blancpain Air Command Flyback Camouflage Inexperienced Restricted Version and the newest Breguet Sort XX Chronograph 2067. Each are 42 mm in diameter, characteristic in-house chronographs, and price roughly $20K on a strap.
As a lot as I just like the Sort XX, at nearly the identical value, it will be exhausting for me to select that over the brand new Blancpain Air Command Flyback Camouflage Inexperienced Restricted Version, or different trendy Air Command fashions. And it makes me surprise what the Hayeks would say in the event you requested them what the highest model at Swatch is Breguet or Blancpain.
Breguet has an superior historical past but receives far too little promotion and communication, doubtless as a result of assets are unfold so skinny between the 2 manufacturers. Let’s say hypothetically on the prime you’ve gotten a $10 million annual promotional finances between the 2 manufacturers ($5 million apiece). But, in the event that they have been one model, that might be $10 million in direction of one unified advertising and marketing program, which theoretically, needs to be twice as efficient.
Curiously, Blancpain beforehand took over Frederique Piguet and Breguet took over Lemania, so that they have already got intensive expertise merging these precise watch manufacturers.
As an organization that’s publicly traded, would it not be a good suggestion to promote one of many two manufacturers, or to merge them and lower prices? I don’t know the reply however I feel mainstream shoppers, who most likely learn about manufacturers like Omega, Patek Philippe, and Rolex — don’t know a lot about these two enigmatic Swatch-owned manufacturers.
Inside each the Breguet Sort XX and the Blancpain Air Command are in-house 5Hz (excessive frequency) flyback chronograph actions, which can share R&D prices, which might negate a few of the prices to function the 2 watch manufacturers.
The Air Command Flyback Restricted Version on a strap is now out there with a restricted 200-piece run for a retail value of $21,800 and the Breguet Sort XX 2067 on a strap is $19,100.
I’d take the Blancpain over the Bregeut as a result of it’s sportier, has a titanium case, and maybe most significantly as a client, it retains worth higher than Breguet. This brings up the query once more: what’s the flagship watch model of the Swatch Group?
Images by Blancpain and Breguet.
