Swatch's 'Drop Culture' Gamble Takes Leaf From Labubu, Popeyes Playbook
Swatch said the Royal Pop will be available for months after launch-day queues, police responses and resale listings pushed prices above $4,000.
- On Saturday and Sunday, the Royal Pop watch launch by Swatch and Audemars Piguet triggered global crowds, prompting store closures and police intervention as shoppers sought the new bioceramic timepiece.
- Consumers flocked to stores to capitalize on resale value, with the $400 watch fetching thousands online, according to Pierre-Yves Donze, business history professor at Osaka University Graduate School.
- Authorities shuttered stores across London and the Netherlands after scenes described as a 'mosh pit' occurred in New York, while police in France deployed tear gas to disperse crowds.
- Swatch stated Monday that supply remains adequate despite launch day 'challenges' in about 20 of its 220 stores, confirming the watch will be available for months.
- Fashion critic Odunayo Ojo, London-based, suggested Swatch underestimated demand or strategically hyped the drop, noting that streetwear trends have increasingly moved online due to safety concerns.
27 Articles
27 Articles
The hype around the "Royal Pop" – the cooperation of the watch companies Swatch and Audemars Piguet – is undisturbed in Graz. On the first day of sales the pocket watch was sold out, but it is always delivered. Ice King Charly Temmel was also lucky. At 10.30 a.m. on Saturday the watch was sold out in Graz. Since the Swatch business in Sporgasse had just opened an hour. Hundreds of people were queued and had spent the night in front of the shop. …
Swatch's 'drop culture' gamble follows Labubu craze
Swiss watchmaker Swatch and luxury partner Audemars Piguet are betting big on a Gen Z "product drop" culture - buzzy, often limited launches that have helped spur sales from Labubu dolls and Nike trainers to Popeyes chicken.
The Toronto Star
Chicago TribuneA new Swatch model is introduced, and a case study in overexcited ‘drop culture’ plays out
LONDON (AP) — In Paris, police deployed tear gas. In Milan, Italy, a fistfight erupted. In London, Singapore and New York, all-night queues snaked from the doors of Swatch stores
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