patrick_y
[PuristSPro Moderator]
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JCB Biver Watches Launch
At a star studded party filled with watch industry executives, retail store owners and buyers, industry influencers, and journalists (but not yours truly), Jean Claude Biver, the famous watch industry veteran, announced his own line of watches. Having worked for many different watch brands such as Blancpain, Omega, Hublot, and Tag Heuer, JCB is known as an executive who knows how to market watch brands to the fullest using celebrities and creating mass market appeal. He's credited for being a part of Omega's product placement on celebrities and in famous James Bond films, and also for significantly increasing Hublot sales. He's also a friend of WatchProSite, as he helped WPS create the special line of Zenith watches and presented the watches in person to our members. While JCB's Midas touch reputation was forged on these mass market appeal brands such as Omega, Tag Heuer, and Hublot, his personal collection skews even more high end. And his own eponymous brand reflects that - the launch watch being a Tourbillon minute repeater with a micro rotor.
Monsieur Biver is approximately 70 years young and thus part of the company's operations are also helmed by his 22 year old son, Pierre Biver. I have not had the pleasure of meeting Pierre, but one who has seen quite a few things despite his short career thus far. I've had the pleasure of meeting other very young individuals in the watch industry (namely the Arnault boys) and many have convinced me that despite their age, they articulated a clear vision of what they wanted to achieve and they painted me a picture of how they plan to achieve it. Thus, I will definitely give Pierre the benefit of the doubt for now - and I hope to meet him one day.
Here are some photos of the watch. I haven't seen the watch in person (again, I was not at the launch event). I really like the dial. But the whole design is a little cold to me. Of course, the press photos are always a little cold, so we should save our judgment for when we see the watches in person. It's always very hard to launch a new watch brand - especially in a sea of competitors - consumers are spoilt for choice. The proportion of the dial looks good to my eyes, the proportions of the case which is much more 3-dimensional needs to be seen in person for me to ascertain whether or not I like it.
My favorite model so far. Made in titanium rather than white gold or platinum - I'm okay with this as titanium does usually have good sound transfer characteristics for the minute repeater. I really like the dial proportions. Not sure about the case - need to see it in person, bezel seems too slim in proportion to everything else. I'm not crazy about the Tourbillon though - balance cage looks a little small.
Wow, that's one nice box!
Rose gold with another rock dial. Very nice. Still not crazy about the case in this photo neither.
I personally rather do not like watches with a bicolor look. But maybe this design will appeal to some eyes. The watch is cased in titanium, with rose gold bezel, crown, minute repeater slide, and bracelet center-links.
Here's a nice photo of the movement. The movement is a micro-rotor automatic movement that features a two gong minute repeater and a Tourbillon. Details however are sparse, but the devil is in the details. I personally prefer the slower beat of an 18,000 vph movement as it's more visually pleasing to my eyes, this one has a 21,600 vph. Balance cage is also a little smaller than I'd like (the faster the beat, the smaller the balance, generally).
The blue rock dial is made from coring a stone.
The exquisite dial.
The watch starts at 520,000 CHF or Euros! That's a lot of money! There's a saying that's mostly attributed to Henry Ford, "Sell to the masses, dine with the classes" suggesting that if you make a product with mass market appeal, you will become very wealthy. There's another saying that's a twist on Ford's quote, "sell to the classes, and you'll dine with the masses." Suggesting the upper end market is sometimes too small for new market entrants. We'll see if Biver is able to make it work. I'm not thrilled with the design so maybe this watch isn't for me - but considering Biver's track record, he may find a market for this watch!
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JCB Biver Watches Launch
At a star studded party filled with watch industry executives, retail store owners and buyers, industry influencers, and journalists (but not yours truly), Jean Claude Biver, the famous watch industry veteran, announced his own line of watches. Having wor...
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He is one of my favorite entrepreneurs of all time, and seems like a total class act. It's good seeing he's doing well health-wise, as in an interview he mentioned he had cancer. The watch isn't personally my thing aesthetically and definitely more than I...
I agree. So far it's not appealing to my eyes...
Aesthetics can be very personal, and so far the pictures aren't getting me too excited. Of course, an in-person viewing may change that. I thank JCB for what he's done to help our favorite industry survive! And I too wish him continued good health!
I've seen some live photos on line and it looked quite flat.
I personally think he should have gone for a time only watch, perhaps with an interesting escapement, observatory tested and well finished. Pricing would have been more in line with other independents and the whole project wouldn't look like a money grab....
I don't disagree. And your cynicism is well placed!
Yes, I'm not sure about the font and the logo. I agree with you. And I also agree that this Tourbillon minute repeater was definitely very ambitious. The watch isn't very thin, and might be a bit thick for me. And YES, you are right! The watch journalists...
Herein lies the issue! Although this is slightly tangential, we are talking about a brand set up by the marketing maestro...
It is certainly easy for me to comment as I wish because I am not beholden. After a few attempts at working in the industry I am comfortable now as an 'outsider' so am free to be subjective. Having dipped my toes though, the number of times I have heard h...
Watch companies wouldn't invite Batman-journalist, but they would invite Bruce Wayne Journalist...
There's a lot of security behind these events at W&W, there are tons of guards, detectors, access control systems, facial recognition, etc. Very difficult. Although the last year I attended, there was a robbery at 2019 SIHH. But overall, it's difficult. T...
Can I join you and go 100% all-in cynical? :)
Some obvious questions: 1. I understand the use of the JCB name, but who actually designed this thing? JCB himself, really? 2. Who has he partnered with, who are the actual watchmakers who will build this watch? 3. What does a 22-year-old have to contribu...
I have never had his cheese...
Although I bet it's good! I've met a few very impressive 22 year olds. Both in Silicon Valley and in Paris/Geneva. And while they're not always right, the good ones are rarely wrong. Keep in mind, some of these 20 year olds have seen much of the world des...
I wonder, if he’s going to go the MB&F route…
of pulling together a small team on a project-basis, it would cool if, like Max, he makes these connections explicit. JCB & Friends has a nice ring to it….
totally agree
smells like a marketing gag. Design definitely not distinctive and who wants to wear a chunky Beaver, aaah Biver on the wrist! 🤭
What do you mean with „this watch has technically only one complication“ ?
Not sure you know what you are taking about - sorry to be kind of direct…
Not at all!
To some a tourbillon regulator is not a complication as it doesn't add any further function to the watch but assists only in timekeeping. Others disagree with this. I'm aware that this is not unanimously accepted.
To some? Do you or them define what a complication is?
Did you hear of a Carillon?? This is one!! You should not go cynical !
A while ago I tried on the Bulgari/Daniel Roth carillon repeater with tourbillon.
My comment, although perhaps more tongue in cheek than cynical, is supported by some watchmakers and of course other watchmakers will take the opposite position and certainly include the tourbillon regulator on a list of complications. I think Mr Biver mi...
Thanks Patrick for breaking this for our forum -- I'd love to see their new watches in person before commenting, but I bet this will be among the most interesting (and probably talked about) news of this year's edition of W&W! ;-)
Of course I'm sure you received it too, but here's also the release they sent with the requirements for the "JCB Seal." I haven't seen it published anywhere yet, so here it is below for our interested members! Cheers. ...
Ahh, I hadn't digested it yet!
All the press releases are coming in all at once! It's madness! Now, that's a long list of seal requirements!
Take me with you! (joking)
I'm already retired. More or less. Partially joking. Hopefully not retired forever. We'll enjoy nice pasta together. I was in Italy recently and I brought back 20 kilograms of nice Italian pasta! In the USA it's hard to get good pasta that has a nice al-d...
Bears can have access to my Scotch and Lalique bar.
I'll walk the dog. Take the dog to its modeling appointments. And we'll eat pasta every morning in winter (I like hot breakfasts with carbohydrates in the winter). And every night we can chat under the stars about whatever topics are on our mind while sip...
Might be Italian...
Probably something from Minotti or Flexform? Who knows, maybe it's Swiss or French. Ligne Roset or Roche Bobois?
THAT IS AN AMAZING BOX!
That's probably one of the best boxes I've ever seen. The watch is probably not one of the best watches I've ever seen - again I haven't seen it in person, so the jury is still out.
“JCB, we’ve got some good news and some bad news”…
The bad news is people aren’t immediately digging your half-a-million dollar watch. The good news is they love the box and sofa!
Careful, JCB is never going to talk to a WPS journalist after this...
But yes, it's true, the box has universal acclaim - and the jury is still out on the watch. And nobody has seen the box in person nor the watch in person. The rendered photographs of the watch aren't great though. JCB has got to realize that. I hope he ta...
Me too!
JCB's expertise is definitely in more mass market watches. Even though his passion is in haute horlogerie, it doesn't mean he can transfer his extensive work experience. We shall see!
I am nowhere near being able to even think about dreaming about desiring a 500k watch
That being said, I have a good thing to say, a bad one and a neutral thought. 1) The bad: I don't find the design attractive. It looks cheap (maybe it's because of the renders). 2) The good: the finishing of the movement really seems as good as they promi...
$500K is outside of my budget too...
But like everyone, I have an opinion too. And my opinion exactly aligns with yours. 1. I don't like the renders too, although I believe the watch will look better in person. 2, I agree, excellent movement finishing and quality is a given at this price poi...
Hey, if it looks good, I'll take a look!
It'll probably be expensive. Even if it is in titanium. Probably $30K to $80K, considering the finishing.
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In consumer, it's MUCH easier to expand down market than vice-versa. It's also safer as gearing up for large production requires heavier capex.
Very true!
Yes, for a small Cap-Ex, it's generally wise to start small and high end first, then go down market while expanding the manufacturing base and client base.
Part 3) I think is precisely at the heart of the point... JCB (and son) are no doubt betting a lot by attempting to place their new Brand right at the very top....
He's one of the legends of this industry, whose breadth and depth of contributions are impossible to overestimate. But will this new Brand and its incredibly bold approach survive "the test of time"? This is THE main, legacy-defining question that fascina...
JCB is a legend, no doubt about that
I too hope the brand will succeed and make great watches, but I can't get too excited about something that expensive. I'm not their typical client though, so my opinion doesn't really matter haha
I believe (but have no idea for sure) that they'll need to decrease, or at least widen, their price range, for a tourbillon- (or otherwise $500k)-only company is simply not sustainable... ;-)
Something we haven't discussed yet is that the current price tag will soon be "justified" by a similar, unique piece auctioned by Phillips, which will (hopefully) fetch well over $500k -- just to put things in context. But again, this is arguably a huge (...
I'm in the same boat as you!
I definitely am not in the habit of buying such expensive watches neither. And I too hope that the brand is successful.
Agreed! Same concerns.
Very few new brands have survived the test of time. Consumers seem to revert back to the old famous brands; Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet seem to be the hottest brands currently. Most members of my family have only heard of the "big brands" like Seik...
This watch makes no sense to me…
From everything I’ve learned about JCB the man - his vision, his values, his understanding of the market and his relationship with collectors - this watch is none of that. This has left me quite confused…
I agree, there's some disconnect.
JCB came from mass market brands; Tag Heuer, Hublot, Zenith, Omega, and these are generally more entry-level luxury timepieces. Now he's selling a Rolls-Royce equivalent. So there's a huge disconnect. But still, he probably has a good plan. Pass the popco...
Why do you say that?
What is your rational behind those phrases? Ps: I know JCB myself. SoI know about his visions and values.
Sure…
To me, JCB has always been a man of the people, genuinely interested in bringing accessible entry-level luxury to his audience. What he did with the brands Tag Heuer, Hublot, Zenith, Omega sum that up perfectly. My favorite JCB moments are the personal no...
A launch for the 1%, lol....why bother to show to 99% of us?
The branding design, just like the recent JUNGE, really doesn't look appealing to me but again, I'm not the 1%.
Considering JCB has touched so many watch collectors, I thought it'd be relevant.
JCB has been around for so long and has been involved with so many projects too, that almost all of our WPS members have been affected somehow. And many of us even own a product he was involved in. So hence the post. I wasn't invited to the party though! ...
Apologized I should be clearer, my comment wasn’t meant to say your post to share here…
I’m just saying their release but like some major brands, I guess they do release big ticket models too. Thanks for sharing Patrick…again, not meant to refer to your post but now I realize their release is no different from other brands.
On the metal is nicer 🦾 I think they have the right strategy
Image Credits: Hodinkee Some initial thoughts: Stone dials haven't been very popular in the past, as evidenced by Piaget and Roger Dubuis watches with stone dials, which were always a bit difficult to sell. However, I must say that the unique and modern a...
Thanks for the extra information, Christian….
You’d have to think with JCB’s reputation and notoriety, he should not struggle to sell twelve pieces. That was probably a smart move to be able to quickly announce the first edition is Sold Out.
It's possible that clients were already offered the watch before it was even announced...
I wouldn't be surprised if this was the case...
👏you are welcome!
I think that before the money issue one has to *love* the design language or DNA. Not for me!
The end links of the bracelet look worn out (how they fit)
Like a tired Rolex bracelet, and this is a new watch or new concept presentation…
Quite conservative approach, for a CEO known for being a Innovator
The nearly 20k Tag Heuer tourbillon was one of his highest peaks, IMHO. What I find extremely funny is the JCB seal, like there was the need to other certifications other than existing ones.
Agreed. That JCB Seal is one of those things that sound like an ego trip.
Then again, I suppose they can't really use the Patek Philippe seal.
No offense…
I admire JCB career and it seems he’s a very cool guy, that is all what I can say about this…mmm… luxury watch?
Looks designed for the older generation. Retro.
Dislike discussing investment, so to sound positive... those with established wealth for many decades may like this timepiece.