Q&AFrederique Constant’s Managing Director Speaks About The Brand’s Smart Moves

How do the 2019 novelties take the Frederique Constant brand story forward?

The most important thing is that we always push ourselves for innovation. It has always been the strength of our brand to build a story. Here we’ve added two new in-house manufacture calibres, which brings the total to 29 in-house produced calibres in the last 15 years. One of the calibres has a power reserve for the new Slimline. It really explains the strategy of the brand—that we want to give a large group access to luxury. It’s a well-priced product compared with the competition. There are several brands that offer the same things at much higher prices.

The Hybrid Manufacture and the Horological Smartwatch have become such a big part of your line-up now. What does this category mean for the brand going forward?

It’s one of our main lines, but we will never make it a dominant line. We do feel like we differentiate ourselves with these watches. On the one hand, we have the Manufacture watches, and on the other, we have the high-tech smartwatches. Last year, we brought the two together with the Hybrid Manufacture. It’s definitely a strong part of our product offerings that drive business. Last year, we did about 24,000 Horological Smartwatches, and we did about 4,000 Hybrid Manufacture watches. Without that, we would not have grown.

The Slimline Power Reserve is a new addition to Frederique Constant's repertoire of watches powered by in-house calibres

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“It really explains the strategy of the brand—that we want to give a large group access to luxury,” states Niels Eggerding, managing director, Frederique Constant

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“There are several brands that offer the same things at much higher prices,” Eggerding adds, explaining how this watch offers great value as an automatic piece with a complication

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01

What are your thoughts on the smartwatch in general and how it’s impacting the Swiss watch industry?

Four years ago, we launched the first smartwatch, and it was great. We were confident that other brands would also be doing that soon. However, even up until today, no other brand is producing a Swiss-made horological smartwatch. And if you see the quartz industry, the number of quartz watches being exported from Switzerland has decreased consistently four years in a row. Something has changed. Apple has become the number one watch brand in the world. I’m not saying that we all need to make horological smartwatches, but we shouldn’t neglect it. There are brands in a certain price segment that are losing market share. We’d be happy to see brands step up and start to innovate in this area; it will help the industry in general.

Seen here is the 2019 update to the Hybrid Manufacture. Like its predecessor, it combines a self-winding mechanical movement with battery-operated smartwatch technology

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The new edition includes these rose gold PVD-treated steel versions, available with a white or blue dial, paired with a leather strap in brown or blue

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The 2019 updates include the faceted applied indexes, which replace the Roman numeral hour markers, as well as a more refined finishing throughout

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01

What are the true values of watchmaking in your opinion?

The true value of watchmaking is when you have the capability to do it all yourself, from the conception and the design to the movement.

“[The Hybrid Manufacture and Horological Smartwatch are a] strong part of our product offerings that drive business. Last year, we did about 24,000 Horological Smartwatches, and we did about 4,000 Hybrid Manufacture watches. Without that, we would not have grown,” Eggerding confesses. Seen here is a 2019 edition of the Horological Smartwatch

What advice would you offer a new watch enthusiast on selecting watches?

I would tell them to create an interest in pure watchmaking, looking at details. Stay close to your taste. Explore the brands’ values; you should be able to relate. Do you appreciate the brand? Do you like the designs? Ask yourself these questions, and choose a watch that offers good value for money.