Horological Meandering

in order to adjust to changing demand in watch industry due to exchange rate situation. No more information yet. Best, Magnus

Thanks for the posting. 350 is a real number,,,,do you know the total number they employ? That would enable me to getter a perspective on the severity of their situation. Kind regards, Antony

but I cannot help but look at the percentage layoffs over two years,,,,about 1.5% a year. Perhaps just slimming down a little and using the currency as a cover? Over the last two years the CHF against both € and $ has gone up by about 10% (yes, there have... 

9000 employees in Switzerland as per news papers. ( Le Temps)

Global brands are notorious for spinning the numbers,,,,,350? From where? It could be just Switzerland or spread amongst their global empire

I hope we'll soon know in what brand of the group they belonged. Best, Nicolas

If the luxury groups have accumulated billions in the bank during the boom years and they still report profits now, they could absorb 2% of the salary bill. Life goes in cycles, you'll need your personnel again in a few months or years. Sure, you can hire... 

but you put it so eloquently. To be blunt they want the profits, the staff commitment but when it comes time for something in the other direction it's a different story,,,or so it seems. So sad for dedicated staff. Antony

The downside of large corporations. They lose the knowledge that a company cannot survive without good staff. Dedication only works in 2 directions...

I cannot help but feel that the biz started as small ateliers making ever finer almost unique, or very limited series, artisan works. As it has gained enthusiasts and followers the 'big fish' have smelt the profit potential....we all know where that leads... 

but not new. And you know that our economy does not act like this - especially not at firms like Richemont where stakeholders looking mainly for profits. However, you can do something about it to foster these thoughts: Buy something from the Swatch group ... 

You may be right today but when brands like Piaget and Cartier were family-owned, during the much more severe 'quartz' crisis, they did not re-trench their workers, who were also 'family'. Of course, luxury groups today have no family owners, right? They ... 

Credor/Grand Seikos

But collectors are scared,, what if they disappear, they don\'t hold the value.. Etc etc... Watch collecting community need to show more... Attributes. Independents ( some) are the only breath of fresh air in the watch business... Mo

We all know that most independents lose a dramatic amount of value,,,,the question is why. Let's look at it from the other side,,,why don't the few big power brands suffer the same fate? (and there are only five or six of them, the rest also suffer from m... 

and speaking personally I have too often bought a watch, changed my mind and then whinged (or should that be winced?) about the depreciation. But really it wasn't the makers fault....but that didn't stop me complaining....in retrospect,,,unfairly.

In the end, who are the shareholders?... I like the idea of independents and family owned watch brands. Let\'s see if they prove me wrong these days. BR, Kolosstt

As for any other listed company, it\'s all about KPIs and ratios and not about long term views and commitments. Maybe it\'s 2% salary cost over 10% less revenue? I\'m sure some nice words will be found to justify the step. Will all these words on manageme... 

I think that the demand in the watch industry is changing for more reasons than the exchange rate alone. It\'s no science to see that global economic slow down is also affecting the watch sales figures. In comparison to some other industry sectors in CH, ... 

While layoffs always leave a bitter taste, there is more to be known about them to fully judge the effects and - as customers - our opinion of the moves. From what I\'ve read a strong CHF tends to have a much larger effect on watch sales than the state of... 

I suspect marketing though maybe manufacturing if there is an over supply. Maybe PP can employ some more skilled labour in that case in their service department since that is supposedly an issue.

Most of these new breed of CxOs are under so much pressure to beat numbers without any real growth or margin expansion QoQ. They have been 'conditioned' that way by the shareholders/boards. The first thing that comes to their minds is expense reduction bu... 

I personally believe that to some extend the watch industry can only blame itself for the difficult market environment they find themselves confronted with these days. Just imagine the price raises we were used after each and every SIHH or BaselWorld, and... 

10% is not really significant,,,,almost any dealer would give that, or better, if asked nicely. It's not a game changer. With most consumer products far bigger discounts need to be given to significantly affect sales volumes. The buyers are so desensitize...