There’s a brand at every price point, from high horology (Blancpain, Jaquet Droz, Harry Winston) to Rolexian tool watches (OMEGA), to cheap fashion forward timepieces (Swatch). The Swatch Group’s portfolio reminds me of Rolex’s foundational flailing. Longines Hydroconquest – Why It Costs $1600
A competitor it must approach but never surpass. As always, Tudor has only one real competitor: Rolex. If Tudor wanted to compete with the Longines Hydroconquest on price, it could, and still make a profit. In reality, the Pelagos is priced as Tudors have always been priced: as the most expensive possible poor man’s Rolex. Tudor fans can point to the Pelagos’ manufacture caliber MT5612, ceramic bezel and titanium bracelet as the reason it’s “worth” $4750. A strategy it recently abandoned with the Rolex Oyster knock-off known as the Tudor Royal. To solidify its market position, Tudor has been working on establishing its own identity, trying to differentiate itself from Rolex in the same way that Lexus differentiates itself from Toyota (only the other way around). We’re now at the point where Tudor occupies the pricing territory previously occupied by Rolex. As Rolex moved further and further upmarket, Tudor prices also ascended.
With excellent quality control, evolutionary engineering and clever advertising, it increased prices year after year, until its former “tool watches” entered the realm of luxury timepieces.Ī rising tide lifts all boats. Over the decades, Rolex slowly raised the bar for its name-brand products. Wilsdorf’s marketing mavens emphasized Tudors’ strength and durability – with a distinctly blue collar spin. Tudor combined Rolex materials (cases, bracelets, crystals, etc.) with off-the-shelf, industry-standard movements. Wilsdorf justified/promoted Rolex’s star status by fitting them with their own movements and aggressively marketing Rolex accuracy and dependability (especially the world’s first waterproof and dustproof derivatives). In 1952, Wilsdorf settled on a two-tier system: Rolex for wealthy customers, Tudor for people who couldn’t afford a Rolex, sold side-by-side. It failed for Hans Wilsdorf, leaving top-of-the-line Rolex unloved and unsold.
This “ownership ladder” strategy worked for General Motors. The idea: offer watches at all price points, with Rolex at the top. Īt the turn of the 20th century, Rolex registered a flotilla of watch brands: Rolex-Marconi, Unicorn Lever, RolCo, Omigra, Rolwatco, Elvira (never produced), Falcon, Genex, Lonex, Rolexis, Lexis, Hofex and Wintex. Is the $4575 Tudor Pelagos worth almost three times as much as the $1600 Longines Hydroconquest? Why do they cost what they cost? After reading Franz Rivoira’s excellent esssay, here’s my take. One made by the Rolex group under its Tudor brand. One made by the Swatch Group under its Longines brand.
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