• Despite a gloomy economical context, demand expressed for Haute Horlogerie brands registers a 14% increase in 2009.
• Facebook becomes the biggest online community for watch fans, with more than 300'000 declared aficionados. Hublot is the most popular brand there with 56’000 fans.
• Emerging markets from the BRIC already account for 12% of global demand for luxury watches on the Internet.
The 6th edition of this market study published by IC-Agency, a company specializing in luxury digital marketing, deciphers queries entered into search engines throughout the Internet from millions of prospects for 25 luxury watch brands. The survey covers 10 key markets, including – for the first time - BRIC markets Brazil, Russia, India and China as well as the top export markets United States, Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy, France and Germany.
Here are the main trends highlighted by the study and first uncovered for the Salon International de Haute Horlogerie SIHH 2010.
Increase of Haute Horlogerie
The global search volume linked to the 10 Haute Horlogerie brands increased by 14% compared to 2008. An encouraging sign showing the interest for exclusive products with an average value above CHF 15’000, despite a difficult economical context.
Blancpain, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Audemars Piguet realize the best performances for the “Haute Horlogerie” category with strong online increases of 115%, 114% and 81%. The biggest slow down concerns Zenith (-51%). Yet, the brand remains the second most searched for in this category with 16.3% of search volume, behind IWC (24.7%).
The most searched for Haute Horlogerie models
Among the 120 models analyzed in the « Haute Horlogerie » category, the three most popular ones are:
Jaeger-LeCoultre “Reverso” (8.2%)
Audemars Piguet “Royal Oak” (7.1%)
IWC “Portuguese” (6.3%)
This trio accounts for 21.6% of products-related searches for Haute Horlogerie. The other models (more than one hundred) represent almost 80% of the remaining demand for this category, showing how fragmented this market is.
Some new models also made their way into this ranking: “Pilot“and “Spitfire” by IWC, Zenith “El Primero” and Bancpain “Flyback”.
Watch ambassadors
Adding India to the study’s scope results in Audemars Piguet and Sachin Tendulkar leading the ranking of the most searched for “Haute Horlogerie” brand ambassadors. Indeed, more than 1 out of 2 searches (55%) concern the famous cricket Indian player, pushing the 2008 number 1 Jaeger-LeCoultre and actress Diane Kruger to the second place.
In the coming years, it is likely that other ambassadors coming from the BRIC markets are going to challenge Hollywood actors and renowned athletes.
BRIC markets
Demand coming from Brazil, Russia, India and China already account for more than 12% of global searches for prestigious watch brands.
8th export market according to the FHS (Jan-Oct. 2009), China alone accounts for 38% of the demand coming from the BRIC markets, followed by Brazil, Russia and India with 28%, 20% and 14% respectively.
In these markets, Patek Philippe, Zenith and IWC are the three most searched for Haute Horlogerie brands with 2.3%, 2% and 1.9% of the demand.
It is interesting to see that Internet positions itself as a media able to reach consumers living in these emerging markets, in which culture and appetite for luxury watches are constantly rising.
The social network Facebook
More than 300'000 people already subscribed to the Fan Pages of the 25 watch brands, a 440% increase in the number of watch enthusiasts over less than one year. Among the biggest increases, Hublot is the unmistakable winner with more than 56’000 Fans on the “Hublot-Genève” Page compared to its 1’700 Fans six months earlier. Following are Cartier and TAG Heuer with 44’500 and 36’600 Fans, respectively. For Haute Horlogerie brands, the most popular Fan Pages are IWC, Audemars Piguet and Vacheron Constantin with 8'300, 5'600 and 3'300 declared aficionados.
About the WorldWatchReport
The market study carried out by IC-Agency is published in partnership with Europa Star (www.europastar.com) "the most influential watch magazine" with the precious support of the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie. The report analyzes the demand for 25 luxury watch brands in 10 markets (Brazil, Russia, India, China, Japan, USA, UK, Italy, Germany, France). Haute Horlogerie: Audemars Piguet, Blancpain, Breguet, Girard- Perregaux, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, Franck Muller, Zenith, IWC. Women's Jewelry: Bulgari, Cartier, Chopard, Piaget. Prestige: Breitling, Hublot, Omega, Rolex, Tag Heuer. High Range: Baume & Mercier, Ebel, Longines, Montblanc, Raymond Weil, Rado.http://www.worldwatchreport.com
About IC-Agency,Luxury Digital Marketing
Created in 2000, IC-Agency is a leader in luxury digital marketing. Based in Europe (Switzerland) and in North America (Canada), IC-Agency provides its clients with services such as analysis, promotion, optimization and protection for their brands, products and services. Among IC-Agency's clients are many independent luxury brands, as well as brands belonging to groups such as Swatch, Richemont, LVMH, and PPR/Gucci. The company was recently awarded the Strategis/HEC Lausanne prize for its excellence in Management.http://www.ic-agency.com
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