Marcus Hanke
[PuristSPro Moderator]
11295
My Basel '07 tasting notes, Pt. 3: Glashütte fireworks
Since some years, the Baselworld fair is a festival for fans of Glashütte Original watches. The fireworks of new models presented there seems endless: fourteen new watches this year, without counting dial colour and case material variants; sixteen new watches last year, and I am not sure to have remembered them all. There were four new movements or complications in 2006, three this year. That’s wonderful, isn’t it?
To be honest, the continuing stream of GO novelties has reached a level where it starts slightly worrying me. Can creativity burn out too fast? Is that ultra-fast pace in producing new models really necessary?
I admit not being an economist, neither do I have experience in leading large companies. Even my two-person household is mainly managed by my better half, so I can frankly state to be an absolute nil in economic science. I am an experienced watch enthusiast, though, and think to know what people like myself, also called “collectors” prefer.
So what are the arguments against a never exhausting cornucopia of novelties?
One of the first reasons for a collector or fan to decide for a specific watch brand, is what I use to call “terroir”, or the “brand DNA”. When acquiring a watch, it should be a typical example for the brand’s style and tradition. Design experiments are attractive either for the die-hard fans, concentrating specifically on this brand, or for those generally uninterested in the brand, who like but this individual watch.
I have to admit missing a clearly visible theme or style in the GO novelties shown, especially those of this year. Somehow I have the impression the company intends to satisfy all demands, serve all markets at the same time. The result are watches that have barely anything in common but the brand name on the dial. The two most contrary designs presented this year may serve as illustration: Both, the reedition of one of the communist-era GUB watches, called “Sixties”, and the new Senator Rattrapante, which does not even distantly resemble any other member of the “Senator” family, will become very popular watches, no doubt. But would anyone guess that they are made by the same company, if they were not branded?
In my opinion, the formerly typical style of Glashütte Original is one of the victims of the recent rapid fire with novelties. Another problem results from the vast amount of different parts needed to produce the many different new watches. Especially in a business that constantly laments the lack of trained watchmakers, offering a large array of references means that not all models can be produced by the small number of watchmakers for a long time. Consequently, some specially work-intensive models have to be discontinued in favour of the novelties. Even milestone timepieces as the PanoRetroGraph, and now the PanoGraph are not spared from this fate. I think this is a pity.
Finally: While parts of watches thankfully do not use up substantial storage space, the supply with spares for older and discontinued references might nonetheless become an issue in the future.
Aside the effects on production and assembly of the watches themselves, the lack of concentration on fewer, but more “typical” references also forces the marketing and sales staff to invest more work; more models have to be present in advertising, the sales staff of the dealers have to be trained for knowing the details of more different models, and the dealer themselves have to take more different models into their stores, costing them more money.
But maybe I am looking at the issue from a completely wrong aspect? Maybe it is the right strategy to cover all imaginable styles and tastes, from highly sporting to highly complicated luxury? The future years will show whether I am right or wrong.
Best regards,
Marcus
