The Swiss Watch Industry: The Future Of The Swiss Watch Industry

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The Swiss watch industry is again in the midst of a technology revolution, which threatens to be comparable to the “quartz crisis” (Refer Appendix A). Led by organizations such as FitBit, Samsung and now more recently Apple, the wearable technology and smartwatch industry is expected to reach market revenue of US$32.9 Billion by 2020. Swiss watch makers, guilty of ruling the smartwatch market as a “fad” until recently, are now beginning to see the threat to their business. TAG Heuer (herewith referred to as TAG), a leading Swiss watchmaker, and part of the LVMH Group, has recognised this threat and will be entering the smartwatch market in Quarter 4 2015. TAG will release the "TAG smartwatch" in a partnership with technology giants Intel and …show more content…

Kotler et al. (2013) expands on this, stating that business units need to monitor competitors as part of their microenvironment actors, as they affect its ability to earn profits. According to a smartwatch industry report, over 40 companies had released smartwatches in 2013, with Samsung holding the largest market share at 34%. (Overview of the smartwatch industry 2014). Apple are poised to launch their smartwatch in April 2015, which the Apple Watch Edition aimed at the luxury watch buyer, these range from $US10,000 up to $US17,000. The TAG and Apple devices target customers with different smartphone OS, however future technology advancement could alter this, and create a direct competitor. 4 Market Analysis During the business unit strategic planning process, there are a series of steps, which if implemented and managed correctly, should lead to success (Kotler et al. 2013). With success being measured by the ability to meet the customer needs, wants and demands …show more content…

(2013) states that to ensure it can take advantage of opportunities, a business first must evaluate its internal strengths and weaknesses. While TAG does not need to correct all its weaknesses, nor gloat about its strengths, they should understand the opportunity and determine whether they can capitalise on it by leveraging strengths, by addressing existing weaknesses, or avoiding the opportunity altogether. Refer to Appendix E for a Strengths and Weaknesses summary. A significant weakness is that TAG is not a traditional technology company, and there may be customer concerns about their ability to deliver a technology solution. This weakness has been somewhat mitigated by the strategic partnership with Intel and Google, both being leaders in the technology space. Kotler et al. (2013) defines this type of partnership as a Strategic Alliance. In addressing their technological shortcomings, TAG has created an additional weakness. The branding ‘Swiss Made’ brings with it an association of quality with customers. This brand requires the watch movement to be assembled in Switzerland, and given that the Intel chip will be built in the Silicon Valley, the smartwatch cannot leverage this

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