Swatch Group or affordable luxury

The Swatch brand continues to partner with luxury brands from the Swatch Group. After Omega’s MoonSwatch last year, it’s Blancpain’s turn to be offered in a bioceramic version with its FiftyFathoms. The price of 375 francs is in the range of what is known in the jargon as “affordable luxury”, compared to a genuine Blancpain, which costs more than 10,000 francs. Last Saturday, thousands of people around the world queued up to be among the first to buy a “Scuba Fifty Fathoms”. The watch is only available in Swatch stores. Group boss Nick Hayek wanted to bring people together in physical places, following the pandemic and its travel restrictions.

The Fifty Fathoms was created 70 years ago by a passionate diver and was even worn by Jacques Cousteau. The Swatch version is water-resistant to a depth of 300 feet (91 meters). As with the MoonSwatch before it, the Fifty Fathoms is not a limited collection. It will be available in 5 watches to celebrate the world’s 5 oceans.

From a financial point of view, Swatch sold over a million MoonSwatches (at 250 francs a piece) in 2022, and according to its CEO, sales in Omega boutiques have increased by 50% since the MoonSwatches debuted. As Blancpain is in a much higher range than Omega, it will be interesting to see if the effect will be the same in 2023.