“To Be Posted On Your Blog” – With Kindest Regards, Vincent Perriard – Concord Watches

Let me say first off that I have purchased several Concords in the past, but I am no longer in their target market now... I'm more in Movado's. Can't justify tens of thousands in today's economy! Trading down doesn't make me feel too good, so I admit I must be biased against the new direction. I'm not saying the C1 isn't a great watch or accomplishment, but bulky chronos with rubber straps don't really turn me on. I'm probably not the best judge of the C1, but even If I could afford it, I'm not a big fan of the looks. But, I do love the Concords of the eighties and the Delirium and the Mariner are probably my two all-time favorite watches. So, I do hope they will broaden the range in price and looks.

Hi Charles,

Sorry for the late response, just came back from Baselworld.

"A small few will think it’s genius." -> I disagree, this watch is the talk of Baselworld 2009. Their booth was so full that I had to wait 1 day even to get to see the watch. Read the press, offline or online, it is THE piece of this year's Basel.

Now I respect your opinion, but you should have been there to experience the aura... it's a huge hit and sold out on the first hour.

Hi Yizhi,

Just wanted to respond. I did say (in my original comment) that I was being a bit juvenile. But the more I think about it, the more accurate I think my gut was to do this.

Mr. Perriard opened himself up to this kind of criticism by providing pictures of himself. This should be about the watch. But he's made it about "style" rather than the particular watch we were talking about. Remember that watches are really about style and form rather than function (a $50 Casio Atomic is a better timekeeper than any of the watches on this blog). The clothes Mr. Perriard is wearing in these press shots, and the manner in which he is wearing them, has been very carefully considered, and are meant to project the same sense of style and image that he is trying to capture with his watches. These aren't snapshots taken on a Sunday afternoon. So there's a lot of insight to be gained by the clothes he is wearing, and the way he is wearing them. I would never wear a shirt like the one he is wearing. I would never wear a velour jacket. And I would never buy a C1.

So the insight gained from Mr. Perriard's wardrobe wasn't as juvenille as all that - Mr. Perriard's whole look is more akin to a clothing designer than a watch designer. He's not stodgy. He's not conservative. He's not an outdoorsman. He's a fashionista. That's totally cool - there's nothing wrong with that. But it gives me insight into his influences, and gives me an understanding of where Concord is going. I'm not going there with them.

And I completely agree with you - I'm thrilled that Mr. Perriard is reading, and responding to blogs like this one. As I said in my original post, I give him a lot of credit for trying to shake up the industry, for caring so much about user (and press) feedback, for trying out new designs and new ideas. We need more of all of these things in the watch world. There are lots of people that will likely love the C1.

So, as you say, let's refocus, but not on Mr. Perriard's response, but on the marketing strategy behind the watch. I think the watch itself is silly. A small few will think it's genius. To the majority, it's akin to a runway exaggeration - only supermodels can get away with the crazy styling, but more conservative items that have similar design elements will fly off the shelf. It is specifically designed to be polarizing - like pop art or the PT cruiser. And that's where the marketing genius comes in - taking marketing ideas from other industries (like fashion) and applying them to a hyper-conservative marketing environment (the watch industry).

Anyway, I'm all over the place again, and probably overanalyzing...

Charles,
Buttons done or undone, is really not the subject here. Don't start judging people in this juvenile way, kindergarten is over, hopefully for you as well.

Refocus on the subject:
Vincent should get credits for his reply. It shows that he cares about public perception and especially he cares about his baby Concord. I'd welcome more CEOs spending some time on the blogs and share their thoughts and justify/explain their brand strategies.

Now if you like their watches or not, that's a another story. Nobody can ever force your taste...
However I believe Concord has a strong sense of the business and if they are good, which I strongly believe, they will find the right people to purchase their watches.

Always appreciate the dedication someone puts on a project, that's why this blog is also one of my favorite. (keep up the good work Ariel)

My 2 cents,
Yizhi

A mature response from concord in my opinion

I've never been a Concord hater - actually, I lust over an older delirium, and I recently advised my father-in-law to buy a gorgeous Mariner, but I have to get a few things off my chest. (Speaking of which - Mr. Perriard, button up your shirt! Seriously! The 70s are over!)

1) The current "marketing language" Concord is using is insulting to me, and likely, to most watch collectors. Maybe something is lost in translation, but it just sounds goofy and made up. It insults my intelligence. I can give you a whole bunch of examples, but that would mean I'd have to read it again (yuch!).

2) I acknowledge that Concord is doing some clever and original things that no one has done before - including the neon green liquid display thingy. But maybe there's a reason no one has done this before! Even Trace Elliot stopped using neon green in their stuff in the 80s. The watch is ridiculous.

Look - I think it's wonderful that you're trying new things. The watch industry needs visionaries. And eventually, really nice new designs will come of it. But your current designs are more flash than function; they can not be taken seriously. I'm not sure what the vision for the rebranding of Concord is, but you took a great, respectable watch brand, that was admittedly probably a bit stagnant in sales, and you took it in a brand new direction. That's bound to create contreversy, and (like the PT cruiser) bound to create people that love it, and people that hate it. You are no longer appealing to the mass market with your brand, and it's my option to sit on the side of people that hate what you're doing to it.

Other brands are being re-branded much more effectively - I love the new Chopard designs.

4) I'm going to be petty and juvenile for a quick second - I think it's funny (and somehow appropriate) that you have three button holes on your cuff. That they're sewn in a contrasting color. And that they're undone. It kind of summarizes the design direction you've gone - let's make something bigger and with more doo-dads than anyone else, let's make them bold and unsubtle, let's make them useless.