TAG Heuer Sales Director Patrick Pruniaux Joins Apple in Run-Up to iWatch Launch [Updated]

[peterdevries]

you are living in the past. we already have so many luxury smartphones...

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guys behind luxury watch will die soon and new staff will come with new mentality

Serban, try to listen to some of the people here because they know what the are talking about. The things that you say are true for many industries that are technology based such as cars, cellphones, tv's, but NOT for an industry such as the luxury watch industry.

Now I'm not going to repeat what many have already said here and you chose to ignore. What I am going to say is that venturing into electronics is something the traditional watch makers will NEVER EVER do if they haven't done it by now. It would be disastrous to their branding and customer base. In addition they do not have the product development and production setups to do that.

The reason for that is very clear. People that have a lot of money to spend look for exclusive items. By definition electronics are not that. They are more like commodities, lower priced, all the same and aimed at the larger customer segments.

Luxury watches are aimed at something entirely different; people that have worked hard to earn a watch that is exclusive and not worn by many. Something that they can pass on to their kids at some point. Something that is complicated, not because it has a lot of technology in it, but because of the intricate mechanical movements inside. People buy those watches because there will be an emotional attachment. I bought my Rolex when I finished a gruelling and long period study program and will always remember that and cherish the watch for it. It can do so because it will be working long after I will have stopped living.

I have yet to see a real argumentation from you that proves any of the people here that know what they are talking about wrong. You keep repeating things that have no subsistence. I just asked you what impact an iWatch will have on the high end luxury market and the only thing you could come up with were high level generic statements.

I'm absolutely convinced that the iWatch -if real- will disrupt the watch market, but it will NOT have any effect on the market or production of any of the high end producers of luxury watches that produce watches beyond the $5000 level. Prove me wrong and I will buy you an iWatch and will be glad to concede that I was wrong.

 

[Steve121178]

i really think will be nice to be treated as high build quality
i hope the base line will be $1000

I have a few expensive watches. I just need them to tell me the time.

I don't want/need a watch that duplicates information I can already get on my iPhone/iPad/Computer. As for the health apps & nonsense associated with the iWatch & iOS 8, I'm not interested.

Obviously we all need to see what the iWatch can do when it's presented to us, but I can't see it being a game changer. The sales of the horrendous Android smart watches tell us all we need to know - the consumer doesn't give a crap about this stuff.

 

[gyang333]

You are a collector so no point in here. Like a coins collector, has fanatic pleasure about one type of product. But well im sorry but we are not living in 1950 anymore and there are fewer handmade crafted watches, and like was in early very early watches for your pocket, now you have for your hand. So time goes by, i love handmade leather on the Rolls Royce who had no digital dash 20 years ago, i love my Longines watches BUT if your insanity about trusting that luxury brand will not improve with more functionality of their brand to stay in business, then you are so wrong. You can't run a company that is based on sales with no sales

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A collector by nature is blind with his own obsession, no offence because i have the same issue. But you can swear to me on your life that you truly believe that 20 years from now the luxury watch company will still make only a high end crafted watch to tell the time and date only?

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Most of football players have collection of cars and super cars. i think nobody thought that a Ferrari who has the purpose of only performance and road feeling will ever have AC or GPS or 4x4

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Trust me, in 2-3 years we will have at least 1 luxury smartwatch

Slyde already tried the luxury watch approach. They even brought in Thierry Nataf the former CEO of Zenith. I don't think they made any inroads at all. Yes it had a touchscreen.

 

[Burger Thing]

I'm not sold on the whole 'smart' watch idea. For sure we will have lots of marketing campaigns coming up over the next years, trying to convince us, that smart watches are essential. But are they? I just don't see it.

Looking over the fence what's going on in the Android World, everything I've seen so far just screams 'trying too hard' to me. And looking at and for instance at the iPhone 6 rumors and mockups which probably are close to the real thing, I don't see that Apple brings a device to the market, which will be overly innovative or entirely different.

I have a few expensive watches. I just need them to tell me the time.

I don't want/need a watch that duplicates information I can already get on my iPhone/iPad/Computer. As for the health apps & nonsense associated with the iWatch & iOS 8, I'm not interested.

Obviously we all need to see what the iWatch can do when it's presented to us, but I can't see it being a game changer. The sales of the horrendous Android smart watches tell us all we need to know - the consumer doesn't give a crap about this stuff.

I just wear a mere Seiko, but i still agree with your entire post.

 

[Serban]

Serban, try to listen to some of the people here because they know what the are talking about. The things that you say are true for many industries that are technology based such as cars, cellphones, tv's, but NOT for an industry such as the luxury watch industry.

Now I'm not going to repeat what many have already said here and you chose to ignore. What I am going to say is that venturing into electronics is something the traditional watch makers will NEVER EVER do if they haven't done it by now. It would be disastrous to their branding and customer base. In addition they do not have the product development and production setups to do that.

The reason for that is very clear. People that have a lot of money to spend look for exclusive items. By definition electronics are not that. They are more like commodities, lower priced, all the same and aimed at the larger customer segments.

Luxury watches are aimed at something entirely different; people that have worked hard to earn a watch that is exclusive and not worn by many. Something that they can pass on to their kids at some point. Something that is complicated, not because it has a lot of technology in it, but because of the intricate mechanical movements inside. People buy those watches because there will be an emotional attachment. I bought my Rolex when I finished a gruelling and long period study program and will always remember that and cherish the watch for it. It can do so because it will be working long after I will have stopped living.

I have yet to see a real argumentation from you that proves any of the people here that know what they are talking about wrong. You keep repeating things that have no subsistence. I just asked you what impact an iWatch will have on the high end luxury market and the only thing you could come up with were high level generic statements.

I'm absolutely convinced that the iWatch -if real- will disrupt the watch market, but it will NOT have any effect on the market or production of any of the high end producers of luxury watches that produce watches beyond the $5000 level. Prove me wrong and I will buy you an iWatch and will be glad to concede that I was wrong.

So you say that the luxury watch will stay the same for 200 more year ?
even the design are now more sport luxury watch...remember 100 years ago there were more pocket watch than arm watch..I really believe that even the timeless luxury watches will not remain the same and will be improved in functionality very soon...i think in my life time

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for Apple its very easy to set a standard and a game changer for watch. Just make them very high class, precision and stainless steel or leather with sapphire glass and put some very precocious health related functionality

 

[pdmpolishing]

If the iWatch does exist, I hope it will be a usefull device. What I mean by this is that first it has different senors for measuring different things (I'll get to this in a moment) also it's built as a quality product, not a $200 wrist band.

I would like to be able to download different apps for the watch. This is where the different senors would come into play, first off for the stanard health apps that would be avalible but then for different sporting apps. As an example I would like to be able to download an app from say Suunto for scuba diving, so therefore turning the watch into a diving computer when I select the app. Then I could then link the watch to the iPad or computer and log the infomation of the dive to a dive logbook app.

So the iWatch could be used for different sports by just opening an app, how great would that be?

 

[Serban]

If the iWatch does exist, I hope it will be a usefull device. What I mean by this is that first it has different senors for measuring different things (I'll get to this in a moment) also it's built as a quality product, not a $200 wrist band.

I would like to be able to download different apps for the watch. This is where the different senors would come into

i understand but iwatch should be first about fashion/build quality and after an app device

 

[Arran]

I agree, which is why I think they are also making an "iBand" Nike fuelband style wearable for those looking for a more affordable option that does the health tracking and other features while not being an expensive piece of jewelry.

I think it will be modular. A common electronics module will be sold separately which the consumer can marry with a huge variety of bracelets/straps/bands to suit their tastes. Price points for the bracelets/straps will go from $50 (a simple Apple-branded strap) to over $10K (gold/platinum/diamonds/etc. and possibly cobranded with famous jewelry/watch makers).

After a few years, the high-end bracelet owner just replaces their relatively cheap electronics module.

Something like this:

 

[tonyy]

So you say that the luxury watch will stay the same for 200 more year ?
even the design are now more sport luxury watch...remember 100 years ago there were more pocket watch than arm watch..I really believe that even the timeless luxury watches will not remain the same and will be improved in functionality very soon...i think in my life time

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for Apple its very easy to set a standard and a game changer for watch. Just make them very high class, precision and stainless steel or leather with sapphire glass and put some very precocious health related functionality

Dude, you're STILL going at this?

Yes, things evolve as technology gets better and better. You seem to hold onto the notion that high end mechanical timepieces will die out because the iWatch is coming.

Guess what? People said the same thing in the 70s during the quartz revolution. Mechanical is dead! Blah blah. And here we are now... They're better than ever.

Go ahead and wear your little electronic gadgets and replace it ever year or two because it craps out or "too old" to run the latest software. I'll wear my Panerai for the next 40 years and pass it onto my child. Can you do that with any gadget?

The iWatch can be an ADDITION but will not take over the high end luxury watch market. You seem to not understand that.

 

[manu chao]

So you are telling me that Apple does not take inputs from the sales manager before making the product but only after the entire thing is made? What is he .. A street seller? I think a smart way would be to get the guy, find out what the jewellers would like in a watch, see how best to implement it and then go to the Jewellers.

You misunderstand the meaning of "It can be argued that". It simply means it is possible that. It doesn't mean it is likely, it doesn't mean it is definitely so.

 

[peterdevries]

So you say that the luxury watch will stay the same for 200 more year ?
even the design are now more sport luxury watch...remember 100 years ago there were more pocket watch than arm watch..I really believe that even the timeless luxury watches will not remain the same and will be improved in functionality very soon...i think in my life time

Ok, I see that you are just not going to get it. I said before that the luxury watch segment is one that has seen incredible innovation over the past 30-40 years. It is not an industry that has stood still, quite the opposite. It has gone towards more thin designs with ever more complexity (tourbillions that revolve in 3 axis etc). Open up a rolex now and see how it differs from the same type 20 years ago.

Of course luxury watches (and with that I mean the segment above you Longines watch -> everything above 5000 dollars) will evolve BUT.NOT.BY.INTEGRATION.OF.ELECTRONICS! Again you do not know what you are talking about. There is a reason why that hasn't happened yet. It's not because technology has not been available, but because the customers expressly do not want it. This will remain the case. It's complicated to understand for you, but it is the situation. 50 to 100 years from now we will still have them and they will still not have integrated electronics.

for Apple its very easy to set a standard and a game changer for watch. Just make them very high class, precision and stainless steel or leather with sapphire glass and put some very precocious health related functionality

Sorry, I have the impression that you don't have a business education or are still in school. You clearly lack understanding of innovation, business strategy and market dynamics and how these concepts apply in a market that is as differentiated as the watch market.

I'm quite willing to explain why and how, but you keep regurgitating the same nonsense without providing any substance. Good day.

 

[Serban]

Dude, you're STILL going at this?

Yes, things evolve as technology gets better and better. You seem to hold onto the notion that high end mechanical timepieces will die out because the iWatch is coming.

Guess what? People said the same thing in the 70s during the quartz revolution. Mechanical is dead! Blah blah. And here we are now... They're better than ever.

Go ahead and wear your little electronic gadgets and replace it ever year or two because it craps out or "too old" to run the latest software. I'll wear my Panerai for the next 40 years and pass it onto my child. Can you do that with any gadget?

The iWatch can be an ADDITION but will not take over the high end luxury watch market. You seem to not understand that.

I never said that iwatch will replace that market,what the hell. But like iphone changed the Vertu thinking about phones, iwatch will do this. Apple is changing the game , and our youngest generations that come after us , very few will still apriciete the same mechanical thinking watch. And if the buyers goes small in 20 years will be move with the time or be dead as company and not as products

 

[brendu]

I think it will be modular. A common electronics module will be sold separately which the consumer can marry with a huge variety of bracelets/straps/bands to suit their tastes. Price points for the bracelets/straps will go from $50 (a simple Apple-branded strap) to over $10K (gold/platinum/diamonds/etc. and possibly cobranded with famous jewelry/watch makers).

After a few years, the high-end bracelet owner just replaces their relatively cheap electronics module.

Something like this:

That actually makes a lot of sense.

 

[tonyy]

I never said that iwatch will replace that market,what the hell. But like iphone changed the Vertu thinking about phones, iwatch will do this. Apple is changing the game , and our youngest generations that come after us , very few will still apriciete the same mechanical thinking watch. And if the buyers goes small in 20 years will be move with the time or be dead as company and not as products

This was your reply to me when I said the iWatch will not take over the high end mechanical watches:

In the quote below, you quoted me when I said the iWatch will not take over the high end mechanical watches.

The iWatch will not dominate the real luxury watch market because it's a "gadget."

The lure of fine mechanical watches is that they can last generations by keeping them serviced and well taken care of. They don't have circuit boards, coils, resistors, etc.

you wanna bet? if they do the design right...anything else is a plus over the luxury watch that only show your status and the time, and Apple can make it for health. You know that health is the important thing in this world right? Even if you are a teenager or even better an adult

Becuase Apple brand is one of the most respected company on Earth and because is a fashion device and can do a lot more with it. Trust me if Apple will appeal to that segment and deliever an high end materials pricy watch, everybody will buy and move on with the time.

Need I say more? You spew out so much different junk about luxury, Cars, Vertu, iphone, Armani, that no one knows what the hell you're talking about anymore. Like the other person said, good day.

 

[whiteboytrash]

No, just marketed like a desirable luxury brand item, you know like Apple products. But in the grand scheme of things Apple products are not so outrageously expensive that the masses can't afford them. Apple prices may offend cheap skates but so do $180 designer jeans.

I'd be dumbfounded if the upper end of the "iWatch" line -- if there is an actual line and not just one model in multiple colors and sizes was more than $200. Anything more than that is a niche product like a high end running watch. I think Apple is looking more to the mass market sales -- millions not hundreds of thousands.

The point being is; for the watch to be successful it needs to be attached to your wrist at all times bar sleeping. To collect vital statistics and connect with your iPhone you must be wearing it.

Therefore the "tech geek" crowd is not where this watch is aimed at. For the general public to adopt the phone and wear it all the time it had to look good with a suit, in casual and sports clothing.

That's why you need TAG on-board. This cannot look like a 1980s calculator watch for mass adoption.

 

[wilsonlaidlaw]

The disaster of LaSalle watches - Apple beware!

The story of LaSalle watches in the high end market is a good cautionary tale for any company thinking of entering with an electronic product. LaSalle was a company formed by Seiko to compete in the middle to high end market which Seiko felt they could not compete in. They bought the name from Cadillac who owned it (they used to make cars under that brand).

The watches they made were very complicated with lots of buttons, which provided two time zones, chronograph, repeater, alarm etc. They were very slim and had integrated rolled gold and platinum bracelets plus a gold case. The appearance was very classical (think Patek Philippe). However they made the dreadful mistake of powering them with two quartz motors rather than an automatic mechanical movement, in order to make them super slim. They originally sold for around $2 to 5K but they just did not sell at all. The high end market wanted mechanical watches, even in the middle and far east. I picked a new one up in Singapore for a fraction of the list price, after the whole enterprise collapsed and Seiko gave up and it makes a very nice evening/dress watch.

The only company who has been successful in selling electronic watches in the high end market is Breitling with their excellent Aerospace watch. I think Apple will struggle if they intend to compete in the high end market.

 

[icolove]

Apple doesn't make high end things, they've created a high margin/high volume success that no one else has matched. There's nothing about an iWatch that will be high end, they'll just sell a lot of them and make money.

 

[Tanegashima]

Tag Heuer, Burberry...

This iWatch thing is going to be pricey everyone.

The Burberry lady only did lower the Mac prices and improved apple store service.

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So... this means that Samsung is hiring the Timex sales director?

 

[peterdevries]

I think Serban finally gave up or he realises that the situation is not that he understands what is going on and the rest doesn't, but that it is in fact the other way around.

 

[Trius]

Less hardware but more engineering time spent on it.

The iPod Touch is just a stripped down iPhone, vastly reducing the amount of time spent on it.

Implying that no engineering time went into the iPod because it's simply a "stripped down iPhone" is preposterous.

Here, here's an iPhone. Go ahead and "strip that down" and make an iPod touch for me...

 

[nando87]

So you say that the luxury watch will stay the same for 200 more year ?
even the design are now more sport luxury watch...remember 100 years ago there were more pocket watch than arm watch..I really believe that even the timeless luxury watches will not remain the same and will be improved in functionality very soon...i think in my life time

----------

for Apple its very easy to set a standard and a game changer for watch. Just make them very high class, precision and stainless steel or leather with sapphire glass and put some very precocious health related functionality

Luxury watches evolve, of course. But they evolve in their own way, if you want to summarize: materials, design, and machining or fabrication methods. New materials for both exterior (case and strap) and movement's parts, and new designs for both exterior and movements, increasing its complications or other attributes taking advantage of the aforementioned new materials and machining/fabrication methods.

But a high end timepiece can't get obsolete, like the iwatch will. Why? Because, objectively, they are obsolete since decades ago if you consider them just time measuring devices, since you can have a gadget which tells you the time more accurately for 5USD. The fact they tell you the time is not their main merit: they are art, their main purpose if you ask me is making you feel good, having that romantic mechanical nature, it's its own kind of beauty. There are a lot of designs because you have to feel identified with your watch's personality, and it has to convey that X feeling to you. It's a very personal choice and you have to feel its charm, and it can be that way, among other reasons, because it's not mainstream.

I just can't explain it better.

 

[SHNXX]

If it's going to do sleep tracking it better not be a watch.

Have you guys slept with a watch on your wrist?
It is not a nice feeling and your spouse/gf most likely won't be down with it.

 

[Avalontor]

Sorry to say, but you just want to argue and thats all. An iphone is more elegant than most of the other smartphones and has a premium price. An iMac is the most elegant all-in-one and the price it's premium, an ipad is more elegant of the most tablets out there and so on with all of Apple products. Luxury means elegant than others direct competitors, a more attention to detail.

So overall Apple is luxury tech brand.

..that is sold at Walmart.

 

[SHNXX]

Everyone don't engage the troll.
Obviously he will never get it.
No point in arguing with a know-nothing troll demagogue.

 

[JAT]

This news has been splashed over numerous websites, but nobody seems to know the identity of this 'sales director'.

What happened to journalism?

(Happy TAG Heuer owner for 16 years)

.

So, you want them to randomly guess? Is that your definition of journalism?