Richemont has raised prices for its luxury watch brands by around 10% in the UK, according to sources speaking to WatchPro this week.
IWC, Cartier and Vacheron Constantin raised trade prices by roughly 10%, while Panerai and Jaeger LeCoultre adjustments have been a little less.
The trade price for LVMH brand Hublot has increased by a similar 10% to the Richemont brands, as have Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet prices.
The industry is still holding its breath in expectation of a price rise from Rolex, which has not reacted so far to the considerable price advantage being enjoyed by UK retailers over their overseas peers following the post-Brexit decline in the pound.
Swatch Group prices have not been changed yet, WatchPro has been told, making Omega, Longines and Blancpain timepieces considerably cheaper in the UK this summer.
The weakness in the pound has led to a massive spike in exports for Swiss watches into the UK this summer. In August, alone, sales to the UK were up 23.5%, while exports to the USA were down 12.4%.
The UK was the fourth largest export market for Swiss watches in August.
Price increase was expected, with GBP so much under pressure
would be more interesting to understand about sell in and inventories, wich at retail still look quite substantial
also, buyback of inventories is weighting on margins and sales at manufacturers
I find it strange that Swatch Group have not made any adjustments so far. When the Swiss Franc rose in 2015. They updated prices within a month. Now the GBP has been weak for many months and is increasing to lose value each day. Simply don’t get it.