Luxury Watch Industry Leaders React to Apple Watch: Jean-Claude Biver Speaks

Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

With the prospect of the Apple Watch launching in Q1 2015 looming, the traditional watch industry is planning how to respond, both in terms of competing products and anticipating consumer reactions. Whether you personally want an Apple Watch or appreciate its design, most people agree that it will be a very disruptive product. Not only will it be the first true smartwatch device for the mass consumer market, it will take smartwatches to a new level in terms of design, finish and price. Whether Apple has designed a beautiful watch that will appeal to watch enthusiasts is a matter of debate in the Swiss watch industry right now, and reasonable people can be divided on the impact it will have.

Of course, I have my own ideas, but I wanted to get deeper insights from the Swiss watch industry itself. I knew who to ask: Jean-Claude Biver. After a successful career at Omega, Blancpain, and Hublot, Jean-Claude Biver now heads up the watch division at LVMH, which means he oversees luxury watch brands like Hublot, TAG Heuer, and Zenith. Biver has always had great and incisive opinions on developments in the watch industry (among other things), and he not only has a great understanding of what consumers want, but is also very open to new ideas and designs.

Jean-Claude Biver has been receiving a ton of questions from media and colleagues around the world in recent days since the launch of the Apple Watch. This means that he has had plenty of time to ponder not only his feelings about Apple's new smartwatch product, but also how it will affect the luxury watch industry as a whole, and perhaps how the industry will react. Jean-Claude doesn't agree with Apple on the design, but he does agree that it is a game-changing device. Jean-Claude doesn't believe that the Apple Watch will be a threat to mechanical watches with a longer-term value proposition, and he is confident that the Swiss watch industry will come out with its own “answer” to the Apple Watch in due course. But will Jean-Claude Biver be an Apple Watch customer? Let's find out.

Ariel Adams: How did you feel when you first found out about this?

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Are you excited? Are you surprised? Are you scared? Are you skeptical?

Jean-Claude Biver: I was a bit disappointed because I was waiting for the typical “Apple revolution” and what I ended up seeing was a watch with a brave and somehow classic connectivity. I still believe that the next generation of Apple Watch will be much better, so I will not buy this first watch.

AA: Some mechanical watch enthusiasts argue that the Apple Watch is “not a watch.” Some say it's an electronic device and belongs in a different category. Others feel that Apple has rightfully entered the “real watch” space in terms of materials and design. What do you think?

JCB: The Apple Watch is certainly an interesting information tool that you wear on your wrist. I wouldn't call it a watch. In any case, terms and definitions of watch vary, but to me it is an information or communication tool that you wear on your wrist.

AA: Apple clearly looked closely at the watch industry during the Apple Watch design process, and we know they even recruited from TAG Heuer, a brand you help oversee. Were you personally involved in Apple finding talent? What have you learned from the watch industry that Apple could never have gotten right on its own?

JCB: No, I didn't help him at all personally. But when one of the managers I supervise got an offer from Apple, I thought this was a great opportunity for him. I wanted to think of his interests first and not ours. That's why I encouraged him to take this challenging job. I thought this was a unique career opportunity for a young person. Now, I'm a little disappointed when I see the “iWatch” (Apple Watch), but I believe it will improve in the future.

AA: People suspected that if Apple were to release a smartwatch device, it would mainly compete with non-luxury watches, given its expected price range and features. Then we found out that many versions of the Apple Watch will be offered in 18K gold cases, meaning that the Apple Watch is clearly a competitor to the luxury watch industry. Are you surprised? What do you think?

JCB: The Apple Watch, no matter how great a product it is, is always the result of technology and industrial production processes. It is therefore, in my opinion, destined to become obsolete; therefore, after a few years (or less), its value will drop to almost zero and it will be unrepairable (in contrast to Swiss mechanical watches). The Apple Watch therefore cannot compete with luxury watches from leading brands. Consumers need to consider the long-term usefulness of a gadget made of precious metals that will only be state-of-the-art for a year or so.

AA: Like most things, the design of the Apple Watch has generated mixed reviews. The Apple Watch was likely inspired in part or in large part by the work of Marc Newson. Many critics claim that, unlike many mechanical watches, the Apple Watch lacks a soul. Do you agree, or do you think the Apple Watch is a very unique smartwatch?

JCB: Yes, it lacks soul, of course, but it also lacks aesthetic tension (yin-yang) and is not sexy at all.

AA: Speaking of design, do you think Apple made the right choice? Can the Apple Watch compete with the sophisticated design talents of European watchmakers? We know the Apple Watch is one of the best-looking smartwatches out there, but is it good enough to meet the expectations of luxury watch enthusiasts?

JCB: No, at the moment the Apple Watch can't compete with European watches at all. We'll see how the next generation improves, but for now it just doesn't compare to the designs of Swiss watchmakers.

AA: I think the Apple Watch's price point, as well as its aesthetic and material features that are reminiscent of the traditional watch industry, will bring new attention to the luxury watch industry, which has been largely isolated from mainstream consumer attention until now. What do you think this attention will lead to? What are the positive and negative aspects?

JCB: The Swiss watch industry will find the answer to the “connected watch”. It's not Apple's answer, which is just a miniaturized iPhone for now. Still, there will definitely be an answer for a Swiss smartwatch with its own concept and message. I'm sure the Swiss watch industry will find the right angle for the connected watch.

AA: How long will it take for the luxury watch industry to produce a product that can compete with the Apple Watch in the smartwatch field? Now that the door has been opened and the market has been created, I think there is a real future for luxury smartwatches. Will the Swiss watch industry be able to compete with Apple sooner or later? What do you think?

JCB: Swiss luxury and prestigious brands have no interest in manufacturing, producing or selling watches that will depreciate dramatically in a short time and eventually become unrepairable, which contradicts the Swiss concept of creating “eternity in a box”.

AA: I've long argued that anything that encourages people to wear items on their wrists is a good thing for the watch industry in terms of attention and awareness. At the same time, smartwatches are competing for the same real estate on people's bodies as traditional watches. Do you think the benefits of getting more people thinking about watches outweigh the new “race for wrist space”?

JCB: The Apple Watch is definitely a promotional tool to teach the younger generation to wear a “watch” or information tool on their wrist. Apple is preparing it so that this generation can one day more easily wear a real watch that carries tradition, culture, heritage, art, and above all, soul. So I welcome the Apple Watch and thank those of us in the Swiss watch industry for helping to promote and prepare our wrists.

AA: How does the Apple Watch, or a watch like it, fit into your life? You're a huge fan of mechanical watches, but you're also a passionate technology enthusiast whose iPhone is more often in your hand than in your pocket. How does your passion for traditional watches coexist with your need to stay connected and entertained with the latest technology?

JCB: Once the connected Apple Watch can be disconnected from the phone and stand alone (i.e., when I can wear the Apple Watch without having my iPhone 6 nearby), I intend to buy this watch, but for now I prefer the other fitness watches I own.

Ariel Adams is the founder and editor of the watch review site aBlogtoWatch.com.