BRAND MANAGEMENT

Brand Management

Brand Management

Phase 1: Current Brand Status Analysis

Introduction

In 1983, Swatch Group was founded by Nocholas G. Hayek (1928-2010) through a merger with Swiss watchmaker ASUAG and SSIH. The Swatch Group functions in many other industries such as movement manufacturing, jewellery manufacturing and retailing too (Swatch Group, 2013). As it is a multinational organization, it operates in more than 50 countries with approximately 3000 employees working under Swatch Group worldwide. The Swatch Group has been engaged in the finished and sale of products of watches, its movements, components and also jewellery. The company has more than 19 watch brands, at a diverse range of prices that includes Breguet, Omega, TIffany & Co., Rado, Tissot, Swatch etc. The company operates in many regions of the world such as Europe, America, Oceania, Far East, Middle East and Africa. Swatch is headquartered in Biel, Switzerland (Fashion Mag, 2013).

Hayek hopes for a 9 billion sales for the year 2013, by purchasing the high-end jewellery arm of Harry Winston, he is forecasting that since a 14% increase in the gross sales of 2012 will result in an 8.8 billion francs on average. He predicts that Harry Winston's business would contribute 1 billion sales under the Swiss Group gross sales. The appearance of Swatch plays an attractive role in the world market to rise in the middle class to the elite class (Swatch Group, 2013).

The industry size grew rapidly after merging with other industries and firms and increasing the investment through stock exchange and foreign investors (Fashion Mag, 2013). By taking over companies that produced high-quality movements and a number of lower-end watch brands, SSIH gradually managed to establish a strong position as a Swiss watch manufacturer. In 2012, in the Swiss franc's currency, Swatch generated gross sales of 8.143 billion. The major segments in which Swatch operates in are Watches and Jewellery, Production and Electronic Systems (Swatch Group, 2013).

Swatch rivals have come to rely on Swatch Group for movements and other components. But as far back as 2002, it put rivals on notice that it would reduce the supply of low-cost parts to competitors (Fashion Mag, 2013). The move was designed to force them to invest more in manufacturing and less in marketing while increasing the company's competitive advantage. Swatch spends more than $1 billion each year on the marketing and advertising of their products and services. A consolidated statement of 2012 can be seen in the Appendix (Swatch Group, 2013).

The Swatch Touch is another key product that enjoyed continued success. This touch-screen digital watch was a technological innovation when it was launched in 2011. It also had continued to appeal to customers, generating excellent results at points of sale and for the Swatch online store (Buck, J., 2012). Enthusiasm was especially strong in Asia, particularly in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan. This watch was also well received in European countries such as in France, where the advertising campaign went very successfully and boomed out the product with higher sales in 2011 (Swatch Group, ...