Patek philippe rob corder
WATCHPRO editor-in-chief and co-founder Rob Corder.

CORDER’S COLUMN: Patek Philippe’s pruning is a warning for the entire industry

If you are not investing in your people, the customer experience, the environment of your stores, your marketing, then why should the brand do it for you?

There was a lot of talk in Geneva last week about the ripple effect of Patek Philippe’s decision to significantly shrink its network of global retailers.

As WatchPro exclusively reported in early March, Patek Philippe has been pruning around 30% of doors worldwide; a process that is not yet complete.

The first effect is among Patek Philippe authorised dealers, themselves, which have either been given the bad news already, or are fearful they could be next.

The second is among other brands, which sense an opportunity to work with some top tier retailers.

If Patek Philippe is coming out, we could be moving in, they reason.

And from the retailer side, if they are losing a prestigious brand like Patek Philippe, they are wondering which marques could replace it.

The third is the most profound of all, but few retailers I spoke to at Watches and Wonders were prepared to discuss it, which is that Patek Philippe’s decision is a signal that only the very best retail partners will make the cut.

If your store is in a location that has declined in stature over the years, Patek Philippe will not prop you up any longer.

If it is the prestige of Patek Philippe, not the quality of your customer service and all-round excellence, that is keeping you afloat, then you are going to be allowed to sink.

If you are not investing in your people, the customer experience, the environment of your stores, your marketing, then why should the brand do it for you?

This goes wider than Patek Philippe. Over the past decade, Rolex has reduced its number of doors in the UK from 130 to 97 and in the United States from 468 to 301.

This process is continuing, and will accelerate as the Rolex Certified Pre-Owned Programme gathers pace.

Retailers with the infrastructure to join this programme will get far stronger, and leave the weaker behind.

Richemont is verticalising its distribution; closing down partners that will not invest in monobrand stores for the likes of IWC, Panerai and Vacheron Constantin.

Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille are now sold only through boutiques or lounges.

Thankfully, we are blessed with exceptionally talented and thoughtful retailers.

The UK, in my opinion, is one of the best-served markets in the world, and the United States is catching up fast, thanks in part to the boom of the past two years creating the headroom to invest.

The best retailers will adapt to a changing market; they have been doing it for generations.

But anything less than the best will no longer cut it. Patek Philippe has delivered a warning that must not be ignored.

 

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