Interview: Thomas van der Kallen, President of EBEL

MTF presents an insightful 2008 interview with Thomas van der Kallen, then President of EBEL, offering a candid look into the brand's reconstruction efforts. This discussion follows up on a 2007 interview, detailing EBEL's strategic initiatives and new product launches, including the iconic Beluga and the robust 1911 Tekton.

Interview: Thomas van der Kallen of EBEL – Reconstruction Update
 

By Melvyn Teillol-Foo © 2008

Thomas van der Kallen, President of EBEL, last spoke with PuristSPro in 2007 to share his thoughts about rebuilding ‘The Architects of Time'. Horology history buffs may remember Ebel’s past achievements like the perpetual calendar based on the Zenith El Primero in 1984, to the more recent in-house calibers 137, 139, 240 and 288.

See 2007 interview click here

We had an opportunity to catch up with Mr. van der Kallen after the recent launch of the limited editions 1911 TEKTON FC Arsenal and 1911 TEKTON FC Bayern Munich.

Key

PPro =PuristSPro

TvdK= Thomas van der Kallen

PPro: When we last spoke, you were enthusiastic about "the opportunity to rebuild Ebel as well as to be part of a dynamic and entrepreneurial company (Movado Group)". What has happened since and what is your level of enthusiasm now?

TvdK: Our enthusiasm is growing with every new step we take toward rebuilding the brand. We have already achieved so much!

2008 will be a very rich and prolific year. This spring we launched a new interpretation of our iconic feminine watch, Beluga, and this autumn we will introduce a new powerful and extremely engineered masculine model, 1911 Tekton.

Gisele

On a communication level, 2008 will also be very important for Ebel, since we are presenting a beautiful and totally sensual new ad campaign with Gisele, in which she expresses all her glamour and natural charm. Gisele is all about understated elegance and timeless beauty. She is currently at the peak of her fame and probably the only supermodel of the new generation. She is an inspiration and an aspiration for the brand, bringing with her an aura of youthful sophistication.

1911 TEKTON Arsenal FC

Ebel Cal 245

PPro:   Are the Cal 245 movements in these 1911 Tekton football editions the “fifth Ebel caliber under development” that you mentioned in 2007?

TvdK: Exactly, this is the fifth and the most recent Ebel caliber. It is a chronograph movement specially designed to measure match half times and code-named “245”, standing for 2 times 45 minutes, it even indicates extra time where required. The oversized 45-minute counter at 12 o’clock on the watch dial serves to read off elapsed time, while the disk at 6 o’clock indicates the hours in periods of 45 minutes. Doubtless the most distinctive feature of all is the signature football-shaped oscillating weight, personalized with the corresponding club logo and numbered according to the limited editions.

PPro: “Ebel is asserting itself as the leading watch brand in the world of football”, reads the publicity release and it was a bit of a surprise. Is there a historical association of football (soccer) with Ebel or tournament success for Switzerland? Can you outline the strategy here?

TvdK: As you know, Ebel is indeed the very first watch brand to have been seriously involved in sports sponsorship. In the early 1980s and until the mid 1990s, Pierre-Alain Blum and his team created great associations with the world of tennis, golf, Formula 1 and … football!  Ebel’s first involvement in football dates back to 1978, when the brand sponsored the famous Genève Servette team, and even had its brand name displayed on the players’ jerseys until 1982! At that time, this Swiss football team was very strong and indeed the best in the Swiss premier league.

Over the past 4 years, Ebel has built a very strong communication platform to target women, working with the world’s finest fashion models to give a face to the brand’s class and sophistication. From Claudia to Gisele, Ebel has consistently conveyed a very inspirational image towards women around the world.

It is time now for Ebel to build a powerful communication to target men and support our great men’s collection composed of BTR, Discovery, Tekton and Hexagon. To do so, we have decided to take the brand into a legitimate sporting territory which we are convinced will propel Ebel’s image, strength and visibility to new heights. What is absolutely fundamental to grasping this approach is that football today is a sport, which has undergone a major transformation over the last 10 years. It has clearly become a prestigious sport, where the most famous architects of the world are requested to design the new stadiums, where prestigious brands like Audi invest heavily and where areas within stadiums dedicated to VIPs and corporate boxes have substantially increased. Not to mention the incredible global visibility that football gives its partnering brands.

PPro: Why are FC Bayern Munich and Arsenal FC the first two clubs chosen? As a Dutchman, why not AFC Ajax? Apart from the Ebel connection, do you have a favourite football club?

TvdK: Ebel’s strategic vision in football is to associate with only the most prestigious clubs, belonging to the recognized elite of European football, and representing much more than simple football teams. FC Bayern Munich and Arsenal FC uphold the principles of excellence and hard work, have a genuine history and enjoy international renown consistently enhanced by famous and great players. Both clubs have always been and still are at the very top of their respective championships, commanding respect and admiration, as well as an authoritative status that extends far beyond the soccer field. That’s why we have chosen them.

But we won’t stop our involvement in football here. This is a global and long-term strategy we have launched. We plan to announce many more partnerships with major European football teams in the coming 3 months. So you will be seeing us more and more in this new territory.

Personally I will be supporting the Dutch team in June for the EURO 2008 cup. During the rest of the year I must admit that I  am a big fan of Ajax.

PPro: “The two concepts were developed in close cooperation with the respective clubs”. Since both teams use red and white colours, we can understand how Bayern Munich may have chosen Teutonic Black but the choice for Arsenal FC seems so un-British with the barely discernible Gunners' Red . That was the knee-jerk response from a few PuristS' Arsenal fans; do you care or dare to comment?

T vdK: Our intention is to develop a new version for each club each year, so certainly the few people who may be disappointed will in due course find the perfect model to suit their taste!

PPro: Both horology and football fans want to know – can we read anything from the limited edition sizes set at 250 pieces for Bayern Munich and 350 pieces for Arsenal?

TvdK: Sorry but no; there is nothing special to be read into these numbers.

PPro:   Some watch brands are strongly ‘male’ or ‘female’. From the beginning, Ebel was ‘metrosexual’ before the term was even coined. Do we sense a shift at Ebel towards male since you joined? That would make sense as the vast majority of mechanical watches are for men and the highest value growth is in mechanical watches.

TvdK: Ebel is definitely a strong name among women and women will continue to be essential to the development of the brand.

However, we should not forget that, during Ebel’s most successful years, 40% of the brand’s clients were male; men that found in Ebel – specific values and distinctive timepieces with which they could identify. Unfortunately during the 1990s and until the arrival of the MGI Group at the head of the brand, Ebel had simply lost its power in the male segment due to the strategies adopted by various owners.

That is why over the past two to three years many important initiatives have been taken to again offer relevant products and a communication environment that strongly appeal to men. After the launch of the 1911 BTR (2006) for mechanical watch lovers and 1911 Discovery (2007) for a younger male clientele, we are introducing in 2008 our most engineered and conceptual men’s line within the 1911 family, 1911 Tekton, along with new interpretations of the very pure and design line, Ebel Classic Hexagon. Our communication in football and our involvement with the most prestigious clubs will reinforce our positioning in the men’s segment and propel Ebel’s image, strength and visibility to new heights.

PPro:   With Ebel’s recent change from fashion watches to include mechanical complications, what is your client demographic now?  Does it match your ‘ideal target product profile’?

TvdK: Today we sell around 40% to men and 60% to women, which represents the ideal balance that we are looking for and that corresponds to Ebel historical client demographic in the 1980s when the brand was at the top of the luxury watch industry.

PPro:   We had a hint of the Hexagon collection as an evolution of the 1911 BTR, yet still retaining the “Ebel look”. How does ‘Tekton’ fit into the line-up?

TvdK: To be totally accurate, the Hexagon is part of the Ebel Classic family, whereas the 1911 BTR and 1911 TEKTON are part of the 1911 family.

The 1911 trilogy (including 1911 Discovery, 1911 BTR) is now complete with the introduction of the 1911 TEKTON. Faithful to the core essence of the 1911 line (hexagonal case, mechanical calibers…) this new 1911 is the most daring, conceptual and cutting-edge men’s watch in the entire Ebel collection – and above all the most engineered. Its “sandwich” style construction system offers several valuable advantages over classic constructions, such as improved water resistance, better overall cohesiveness, an even more reliable case, pusher heads better anchored in the case – and even significant aesthetic added value, since the screws can be arranged in a particular direction.

The 1911 TEKTON models will be launched in autumn 2008 and exclusively powered by Ebel proprietary COSC-certified mechanical movements: Caliber 137, Caliber 139 or Caliber 245.

Brasilia (2006)

PPro: After the Brasilia rectangular ladies' models in 2006, you hinted about a redesign of another emblematic ladies' model for 2008; can you elaborate now?

TvdK: This year we have presented a new Beluga.  This iconic feminine line was launched in 1985 and had never re-designed since. It is always extremely challenging and risky to touch such an emblematic line. We wanted both to modernize it and to remain faithful to the magical “exclusive club” spirit of the original watch. The result is a very streamlined, modern and feminine precious watch exclusively available in diamond-set interpretations.

The new version was presented at Baselworld 2008 and the response from both press and retailers was enthusiastic. The new Beluga is already on the markets since April.

Beluga (2008)

Beluga Caviar (2008)

PPro:   Last year, you mentioned a vertical integrated in-house product development and engineering department as well as in-house movement development and assembly for the Ebel calibres. What is the proportion of “in-house” vs. outsourced manufacturing today.

TvdK: All 1911 BTR watches and the 1911 Tekton watches with the Ebel calibers (calibers 137, 139, 240, 288 and 245) together represent about half of our mechanical watches.

PPro:   As your mechanical watches become more complicated, how do you convey your concern for quality and reliability?

TvdK: Ebel has always been very concerned with quality and so we will continue applying our strict internal control process. Our watchmakers are well trained and have a lot of expertise and experience. That’s why we can claim to have a very low percentage of failure at the COSC tests (all our in-house movements are submitted to the COSC tests and only less than 1% fails).

PPro:   Which watchmaker (or business executive) do you admire most and why?

TvdK: There are many watchmakers who I admire, so I cannot single one out. I admire certain watchmakers for their consistency in their brand image, for their strength as a brand, as well as for their level of innovation in the technical field and in the design field. I admire watchmakers who balance supply and demand and who have a long-term vision of strengthening their brand.

PPro: Have you got any more to reveal to our readers on PuristS' forums?

TvdK: We have obviously planned this centenary celebration (in 2011) to be a unique moment in the brand’s life. Not only will we be launching very unique collections and movements, but also we plan to unveil some major communication initiatives that will give a new meaning to what the next century will be for the Architects of Time. After a hundred years of life for a brand, you don’t look back  -  you look forward. 

In 2011, Ebel will be introducing a lot of visionary projects...........

PPro: Thank you.

TvdK: You're welcome 

Copyright Melvyn Teillol-Foo - June 2007.

Photocredits: Ebel