As the former CEO of Richemont, Mr. Georges Kern, took over Breitling, he noticed something that was, according to him, “completely ridiculous”: the watch brand made only 10 percent of its sales in Greater China. For most Swiss watchmakers, Chinese customers are currently their best chance for a promising future, two of the three biggest watch markets are inside the Greater China area, so any watch brand that wants to go global must have a high exposure there.
Market share statistic released by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry from last November.
| Market | Mil. of Swiss Francs | Share |
| Hong Kong | 287.1 | 13.9% |
| USA | 231.4 | 11.2% |
| China | 187.4 | 9.1% |
| Japan | 130.0 | 6.3% |
| United Kingdom | 121.1 | 5.9% |
| Singapore | 111.2 | 5.4% |
If a brand wants to profit from Chinese customers, it’s important that it’s recognized in China. But the problem for Breitling was, their watches didn’t really match Chinese customers: They were they too large for Asian wrists and also mainly pilot watches. Chinese can’t identify with those kinds of timepieces as the country doesn’t have a longstanding aviation tradition like Europe.
To make the brand better known in China, Mr. Kern applied a bold market entry strategy, some of the highlights of this strategy are:
- Using the brands historic links with motoring, sailing, diving and skiing.
- Creating a new product line called premier (璞雅) which should better fit Asian wrists.
- Starting ad campaigns on important Chinese media channels such as Hupu, Toutiao, GQ, Pengpai and Huawei.
- Launching online stores on Alibaba and WeChat.
- Creating an online strategy aimed at Gen-Z buyers.
- Hosting a Gala night in Beijing with Breitling’s brand ambassador, the “Cinema Squad”.
The strategy Breitling used to enter the Chinese market is bold, but also clearly innovative and well-thought through. This can, for example, be seen in their #squadonamission advertising campaign were they use squads of exceptional people from different areas to promote their brand. In China, they used the “Cinema Squad”, which consists of the actors Brad Pitt and Daniel Wu, surfer Sally Fitzgibbons as well as filmmaker and photograph Peter Lindbergh. Interesting (and a sign that Breitling considered the Chinese market well) is that they didn’t use any Mainland Chinese online celebrities as brand ambassadors as so many other luxury brands do. These online celebrities increasingly have a reputation for being too career-focused and money-hungry, so they might not project the right image for a brand.
George Kern’s strategies seem to have succeeded in making Breitling better known in China; the brand was, for example, able to double its follower on WeChat and increase its Baidu index by 25 percent.
Further reading:
About Breitling’s China expansion / Jing Daily
Mr. Kern’s strategy for Breitling / Financial Times
Breilting’s “Cinema Squad” led by Brad Pitt / South China Morning Post
