Longines - Interview with the CEO Walter von Känel
Kristian Haagen: Mr. Von Känel, Longines seem to be doing very well these days. Do you recall having experienced such a favourable period during your time as CEO for Longines?
Walter von Känel: Well, in 2003 Longines sold watches for CHF 300 million and nine years later we sold watches for CHF 1.2 billion. In doing that I reached my target, as I wanted Longines to sell one million units in 2011 and to reach the one-billion Swiss franc mark in 2012.
That makes Longines the fourth best-selling Swiss watch brand after Rolex, Omega and Cartier, with Tissot just behind Longines. We are the Swiss watch industry's billionaires.
These are indeed impressive numbers, not least in light of the difference in prices compared to the top three brands…
The entry level for Longines models ranges from CHF 700 to CHF 900. Our best-selling watches, which represent 45 per cent of our sales, are priced between CHF 1,500 and 3,000, while 12-15 per cent of our sales are in the CHF 3,000 - 4,500 bracket.
What about the gender mix?
Longines is a 50-50 brand, meaning we produce equal numbers of watches for men and women. Longines has always been big on "pairs" watches. This goes for all our collections, except of course the Dolce Vita and Prima Luna which is only offered as a ladies' watch.
How does Longines meet the new challenges of the Swiss Made regulations?
While there is a lot of confusion regarding these rumours, things are very clear for us at Longines. Right now the regulations require that 50 per cent of the watch should be assembled and/or produced in Switzerland. We (Editor's note:Swatch Group) will however be inventing heavily in case production machinery and my goal is to offer all Longines watches with a 60-40 percent ratio in terms of Swiss and Asian production. These figures, which does not include bracelets, but covers hands, dials, cases etc, are definitely reachable for Longines within just a few years. And we will produce at costs similar to current Asian production costs. Of course all our movements are already made in Switzerland (Editor's note: ETA).
What has been your biggest achievement in your 25 years as president of Longines?
Undoubtedly reaching the CHF billion mark that makes the brand a billionaire!