Skip to main content
BoF Logo

Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.

Swiss Watchmakers Battle for Their Future

The sector is facing double-digit sales declines and a crisis of relevance. ‘A watch has become a cultural object of sophistication… but culture has to constantly reinvent, otherwise it can disappear,’ said former Cartier boss Cyrille Vigneron.
Watches of Switzerland Store Front
A Watches of Switzerland store front in London. (Getty Images)

GENEVA

Please sign in to ensure you can read our agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice. Or get in touch at support@businessoffashion.com if you experience difficulties.

Further Reading

Can Swiss Watches Compete on Value?

The price of Swiss watches has continued to rise, leaving watchmakers battling to bolster their value propositions amid a downturn in luxury spending.

About the author
Robin Swithinbank

Robin Swithinbank is a contributing writer at The Business of Fashion. Swithinbank is a London based journalist, editor, and speaker who specialises in luxury watches.

© 2026 The Business of Fashion. All rights reserved. For more information read our Terms & Conditions

More from Luxury
How rapid change is reshaping the tradition-soaked luxury sector in Europe and beyond.

What Happened at Coperni Owner Tomorrow Ltd.?

The London-based showroom-turned-brand incubator, which also owns Martine Rose, is being sold to Italy’s Andrea Ciccoli. Founder Stefano Martinetto breaks down the move for BoF in this week’s High Margin luxury newsletter.


view more
Latest News & Analysis
Unrivalled, world class journalism across fashion, luxury and beauty industries.

The Industry That Eats Its Young

Small fashion labels have always been shortchanged by their wholesale partners. A wave of high-profile bankruptcies has turned a structural injustice into an existential crisis. There is a better way to do business, writes Imran Amed.


The Zara-Fication of John Galliano

Fashion’s enfant terrible is trading exclusivity for the mass market. Is it the ultimate fashion coup, or the final surrender of prestige?


The Impact of War on Fashion’s Supply Chain

Textile hubs are already feeling the cascading risks of the conflict in Iran as Washington ramps up forced labour probes to revive tariffs, while decarbonisation in fashion’s factories might finally have a standard to go off of.


VIEW MORE
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
CONNECT WITH US ON