Georges Kern knows it well. The jet lag is easier to manage by flying from the East to the West and this is the recipe he applies for the organization of the #legendaryfuture roadshow which aims to unveil much more than a collection of watches but mainly the new Breitling momentum. After Shanghai, the roadshow was organized at home in the Hallenstadion of Zurich to welcome more than 600 guests made up of stars, ambassadors and influencers of all kinds. You will tell me: here we go again, Georges Kern uses the same tricks as those applied with IWC and the evening will look like an nth red carpet session whose photos will illustrate "people magazines" around the world. But he is far too smart to fall into such a trap. Breitling today needs something else and must find substance instead. In the end, the most important guests of the evening were the brand's retailers and a few key people connecting with the brand's past, such as Willy Breitling's grandson or the collector Fred Mandelbraun. The past of the brand, it is not that of the last years. No, the past I'm talking about is that of the decades that made Breitling one of the chronograph's flagship brands and at the same time embody a certain idea of ​​style and elegance.

More than 600 guests attended the Zurich roadshow:



A dynamic and effective evening with unambiguous messages

Georges Kern knows that he created a lot of expectations and that many people, including myself, could blame him to embody a purely mercantile strategic vision and to be very attracted by light as evidenced by its countless events featuring movie stars. Then, he killed these reproaches in no time, thus shutting up his most zealous detractors.

The brand has had famous customers and not only acrobats  of the sky ... Breitling constantly reminded its prestigious customers during the evening:



It still takes a nerve to dare to display almost caricatural pictures of his (not so distant) past and to explain that this period is over. The message from Georges Kern is clear: I am here to work, to develop the brand and certainly not to ensure my self-promotion. Certainly, but yet it is necessary to be respectful of the heritage of the brand, to feel the passion and not only the financial dashboards in the background. And that's where he throws his second card: Fred Mandelbraun who goes on stage and presents the key watches that contributed to the success of Breitling. You see, me (as opposed to my predecessors), I dare to call a collector like Fred, I dare to exchange with him, I dare to let him speak in front of you.

Georges Kern with stars? Yes but that was before.



Opportunism? Perhaps. But it's really effective and unassailable. What could I blame further to these speeches? Absolutely nothing. The criticisms that could be formulated a priori were swept aside and all that remained was to concentrate on the essential: the dynamism and the strategic orientations.

The dynamism is easily palpable. In a very short time, Georges Kern built a quality team of well-known personalities recognized by the trade sector (Tim Sayler from Audemars Piguet to take responsibility for Marketing, Guy Bove, from Ferdinand Berthoud and formerly at IWC for design, Louis Westphalen from Hodinkee for digital and so on). Within a few months, Breitling is able to present a new collection. Within a few months, Breitling is able to present a new communication campaign that will cover all aspects including the architecture and design of the boutiques or of the points of sale. Within a few months, Breitling has become again a key player, attracting interest, curiosity and even excitement. The rhythm of the evening was in this image: no idle time, no break, the seated dinner was short so that the guests could meet and exchange in a room dedicated to exhibitions of vintage watches and of the new collection. Efficiency again and again. And the constant link between past and present to give legitimacy to current actions.

An exhibition was dedicated to vintage watches during the evening. The link between past and present was permanent:



The strategic directions are also easily readable and everything was summarized at the beginning of the dinner. Georges Kern was accompanied throughout the evening by two accomplices. On one hand, Nick Foulkes was the perfect ambassador for dandyism, who, as circus ringmaster, was backing Breitling's return to a more elegant dimension. And on the other, the British actor Richard E. Grant who after an exchange with Georges Kern who gave the impression that the later was speaking with God, appeared on stage as an angel with a single wing.

Richard E. Grant lost a wing but the logo has lost two! Breitling remains heavily involved in aviation but not exclusively:



A symbol: the logo loses both wings ... and the angel loses one. And that's the full scope of the message: no, Breitling is not landing and exits the aviation world. But Breitling is not only linked to aviation. This will be one of the key strategic axis presented the day after during the press conference. When the guests left the Hallenstadion, a general consensus prevailed: things change at Breitling and they change very quickly.

Some elements of the decor foreshadowed the interior of the future boutiques:



The press conference: back to basics

Even if the event was successful, it was especially the press conference and the workshops which took place the day after that I expected the most: the opportunity to better understand the strategic direction and to discover in better conditions the Navitimer 8 collection.

A movie displayed at the beginning of the press conference summed up everything: the fury of the jets is over. Breitling doesn't give up the link with aviation, but also plays on other territories: the land and the sea. Breitling has to undergo a transition without losing its strength. The problem of the last years is that the brand, despite its reputation and the quality of the pieces, gave the impression of being locked in a sort of restricted segment, a kind of specialist in chronographs and precision instruments filling specific objectives in an almost exclusively aerial context. The communication contributed to this impression of confinement: I sometimes had the impression that the Instagram account of Breitling was belonging to an organizer of air meetings. And yet Breitling's biggest commercial success in recent months is the SuperOcean Heritage line. The brand didn't go so bad. Optimization and rationalization were certainly necessary. But its biggest problem was the constant reduction of its potential customer base in an exacerbated competitive environment.

Georges Kern delivered a very clear message:



The other problem with the brand was the confusion in its catalog (due to its structure and number of references) and we all know the problem: too many choices kill the choice.

Finally, the brand had abandoned areas in which it was very present in the past: that of informal elegance, that of women's watches, that of the simple watches.

The strategic orientations presented by Georges Kern can be summarized as follows: the brand must become simpler, more legible and more welcoming . Welcoming is the word that I would use to explain the term of "inclusive" used by Georges Kern. This notion of "inclusive" aims to take it out of the restricted segment in which it is located and this requires many actions:

- a single logo will be used, the B without wing to remind that Breitling is not an aviation brand. And of course, there will be no cohabitation with other logos.

- the catalog will be structured in 4 products families (Air - Navitimer / Sea - SuperOcean / Land - Premier / All Purpose- Chronomat) and each family will contain 3 atmospheres: elegant, elegant/sports, supersports.

- the brand will therefore make a comeback to more elegance, refinement, will be more focussed to women while injecting a touch of retro in the design.

- more "civilized" sizes will be available. Georges Kern also introduces himself as the chief tester of the prototypes. Given the modest size (so he said) of his wrist, if the watch does not suit it, it is eliminated. This explains the reduced lugs of the Navitimer 8 collection. The watch must remain wearable even if the diameter remains significant.

- reeditions will be presented with identical sizes to those of the original watches. Watches with handwind movements and no date will be produced to meet the expectations of a clientele of connoisseurs.

- Breitling is not intended to get out of its usual price range. However, initiatives that cause loss of value or irrelevance (access prices with quartz movements for example) are stopped. In the same way, Breitling's vocation is not to offer tourbillons or highly complicated watches. In a consistent and stable price structure , Breitling will strive to expand its offering while decreasing its number of references.

- the structure of the movement offer will be homogeneous regardless of the product family: ETA / Sellita movements will be used for 3-hand watches with a diameter of 39/42mm and an average price of 3,600 CHF, the movement B20 (Tudor) will animate 3-hand 42mm watches with an average price of 4,000 CHF, external chronograph movements (like Valjoux) will be dedicated to watches with a diameter of 42/46mm, with an average price of 5,500 CHF and finally the in-house chronograph caliber (B01) will be dedicated to watches with a diameter of 42/46mm, with an average price of 7,500 CHF.

- the finishes and aesthetic details will make easier to recognize an in-house watch from the others. Only the in-house watches will have a more refined polished/brushed finish, the high contrast between the counters and the dial and the lay-out in 3-6-9. The external chronograph movements will have a sportier satin finish and a contrastless dial.

- Breitling needs to expand its geographical scope: the brand is now very successful in the United States, Japan, Germany or the United Kingdom (I would add that it also works well in France) but it remains weak on other markets like China where double-digit growth is expected. It's ultimately good news because it gives potential. It is no coincidence that the new collection is called Navitimer 8, if the first roadshow took place in Shanghai and was followed by an interview with Georges Kern on Bloomberg Asia.

- A new communication campaign will be launched around Baselworld reaffirming these orientations. It will be accompanied by a new architectural approach of the boutiques and points of sale by adopting an industrial design currently being tested at the Zermatt boutique. Georges Kern reaffirmed the message: Breitling is not a cartoon brand and must be able to welcome in its boutiques a clientele of any type and obviously more feminine. The bimbos and pin-ups riding the missiles are no longer conform to the image that the brand wants to reflect.

Fred Mandelbraun on stage:



And he didn't come empty-handed:



Georges Kern's demonstration was therefore very clear. There was nothing really surprising or innovative in his messages or concepts. On the other hand, the roadmap is clear and the actions all tend towards the same goal: to make Breitling a more global brand both from the geographical point of view and that of the customer segments. Breitling reduces the number of references (from more than 600 to 120) but widens its offer. The brand must become easier to understand, easier to approach and ultimately more welcoming to find new sources of growth ... without disappointing the current clientele. And it is in this strategic context that was unveiled the Navitimer 8 collection which will not be, far from it, the only novelty of the year. Baselworld is approaching and the Fair will offer surprises and changes.

The Navitimer 8 collection, the first step of the brand's new strategy

It is necessary to begin the presentation of this collection by an important reminder. Navitimer is no longer the name of a watch but that of a family of products, the one dedicated to watches related to aviation. So, even if we can discuss for hours on the absence of the slide rule, for Georges Kern, the situation is simple: this kind of discussion is interesting  only for 1% of potential customers and in any case, the name Navitimer is so well known that it would be a pity to not use its strength and potential.

The Navitimer 8 chronograph:




The Navitimer 8 collection embodies many aspects of the brand's new strategic directions. First, despite the presentation of a complete collection (5 models), the number of references remains limited to 19. Then, its less marked design makes it more easily "affordable" from an aesthetic point of view for a wider clientele. .. and dare to say it, more Chinese. Because nothing is left to chance: the number 8, the presentation in Shanghai and that's why I feel behind these watches all their strategic significance.

The Navitimer 8 Automatic:



I touch here the problem of these watches: they have the defect of their qualities ... or to be more clear: their commercial scope is very noticeable. They are well made and the sunrays finish, especially with the blue dials, is very nice. But as the dials are simpler, they leave less possibilities for the expression of the very high level finishes, traditional at Breitling. I regret the absence of elements in relief and if I forget the B of the logo, the dials appeared to me too flat.

The Navitimer 8 Chronograph B01 allows to appreciate the sunrays finish of the dial:





This is the concern with consensual watches. They have to be appealing to many customers but they can't seduce those looking for originality and character. Now, even if they were prototypes (the Day Date and the Unitime were unfortunately not available), I could appreciate the seriousness of the design and a number of details such as the shape of the bezel, inspired by that of the reference 768, which was created in 1940 by Breitling's Huit Aviation Department. I also liked short lugs that improve comfort. Both chronographs and the Unitime have a diameter of 43mm but their perceived size is reasonable. A detail will be reviewed: the position of the bracelet makes it tend to rub against the case and a more curved bar would be welcome. Also note that the entire collection will be chronometer certified and the word chronometer  will be present on the final dials.

The blacksteel version of the Navitimer 8 Automatic is the most interesting:



The differences between the two chronographs are obvious. The diameter is the same but they are not the same watches. One uses the in-house caliber B01, offers dial lay-out in 3-6-9, contrasting counters, a see-through caseback and more refined finishes. The other, powered by a Valjoux caliber is more "raw" and becomes too "massive" because of its uniform rendering. This may be where Breitling wants to go: the price gap is certainly significant, but doesn't the customer have an interest in paying more to get the most interesting watch?

The comparison between the two chronographs:



The Unitime will be animated by the in-house caliber B35 and it can be perceived, at least for me, as perhaps the most interesting of the collection. I find the date better integrated, the complication brings character and it will be finished according to the standards of the watches with in-house calibers. I regretted its absence during the presentation.

Leather bracelets and metal bracelets will be available:





The Day-Date is not appealing to me but it will be primarily dedicated to Asia whose customers are very fond of this type of complication.

Finally, the Navitimer 8 Automatic will use a Sellita caliber housed in a 41mm case. The most interesting version, by far, is the Blacksteel because black brings originality and reduces the perception of size. B01, Valjoux, B35, Sellita: the Navitimer 8 collection uses the panel of calibres available as presented by Georges Kern during his press conference.

The in-house caliber B01:



The collection is actually exciting to analyze when included in Breitling's strategic approach. It may be less interesting when I take my point of view as a customer. The result is too consensual to please me even if some pieces are worth the detour (Unitime - Blacksteel - B01 blue dial). But I have the conviction that it will work because Breitling gives itself the means to succeed. What does it matter after all if this collection doesn't speak to me? Georges Kern's ambition is for Breitling to start talking to more customers. And I sincerely believe that some watches in the future will seduce me much more than those presented in recent years. That's what matters the most to me. In any case, an appointment is made at Baselworld to discover the next steps of the deployment of the new strategy.

Fr.Xavier