Go look back with Wenger
Which Swiss brand is able to offer a $99 watch with a three-year warranty? No one except Wenger, whose top seller is still the Black Night, a watch even the Dark Knight would wear.
What timepiece would Batman wear? Or Robert Smith of The Cure, for that matter?
I’m talking about those men in black who are obsessed with objects characterized by the absence of color (black doesn’t reflect color and generally doesn’t give a rat’s ass about things). I, for one, chase those same shadows. The perfect timepiece for me would be an all-black beauty with the equally darkened hands and hourmarkers. But what’s cool is: there is a way of knowing the time. It’s not just a black steel bracelet that ticks and is heavy.
Hmmm… the Dark Knight would probably like the Roadster Black Night by Wenger, a watch that was “inspired by nighttime” — (the most inspiring time of the day, I tell you). And Bob would happily strum The Same Deep Water As You, The Hanging Garden and other cheerful pop ditties on a black Gibson, his fingernails shaded with Back Room nail polish, his left wrist embraced by the black chronograph.
“When we were developing the watch, we’d go, ‘Ah, you still see the numbers? Not black enough… do it again ( laughs),’” Arianna Pozza, head of Wenger Watches based in Switzerland, shares. “It’s so beautiful at night, the way it would light up.”
This watch is versatile: It can be classy, rugged, one with attitude, and — a very important thing with us Filipino consumers — it’s a watch that boasts impeccable quality, precision and outstanding Swiss craftsmanship, but at the same time won’t break Batman’s bank. (Uh, nothing would, but you get the point.) This is the brand’s origin story: Wenger was originally founded as a knife factory in Courtételle near Delémont in 1893, and later would become famous for its iconic S. A. K. or Swiss Army Knife. It expanded its product range to include watches in 1997 as well as travel gear in 2003. Since the takeover by Victorinox in 2005, the Wenger brand has retained its own distinct identity and continued to develop its own product lines. The mother company’s goal was this: strengthen the watch segment of both the Victorinox and Wenger brands, as well as to invest in the tradition-laden site in the canton of Jura by setting up a new watchmaking center at Wenger’s headquarters in Delémont.
Pozza explains, “We have made a new positioning for the brand within the Victorinox Group — and Wenger today is characterized as metropolitan, agile, dynamic, modern, and, of course, purely Swiss. We offer a product that is very sensitive in terms of pricing.”
Normally, a Swiss-made mechanical watch is something only Bruce Wayne, Tony Stark and real-life captains of industry can afford.
“With Wenger we’ve made it attainable, it is priced rationally,” says Pozza. “And we’ve expanded our distribution in the last 18 months to 45 new markets. We’re producing watches for men and ladies, from classic to sport.”
How does the brand maintain its low price points?
“We talk to consumers, our retailers, and globally with our partners. The key is to create expensive-looking watches that would make people go, ‘ Wow! The price is only that?’ We use stainless steel, leather, and all top materials. ‘Which Swiss brand is able to offer a $99 watch with a three-year warranty? No one! So, let’s make it.’ Now you can wear a Swiss-made watch without spending a fortune.”
One of Wenger’s most iconic watch lines is the Attitude. Its roots go as far back as 1998 under the name of Commando. It’s still a top seller. It’s the first Wenger that Pozza ever wore because it’s a rugged, masculine watch with which she can do a lot of things. “And then, years later, I found out that I was going to work for that very company,” she says. The Commando was also the first watch ever owned by Marnie Chua, brand manager of Wenger in the Philippines.
And even if the brand has shifted its image from being a go-to rugged watch in order to cultivate a more well-rounded lifestyle look, the coolness factor has been retained.
“Being metropolitan doesn’t mean you don’t go out of the city to embark on an adventure and do different things,” explains Pozza. “And our consumer base is so wide — thus, we have watches that are very classy or extremely sporty; masculine or feminine; with a city-hiker style or with sophisticated, minimalistic look. And a Wenger watch allows you to have as many attitudes as you want.”
Pozza, who does abstract expressionist paintings in her spare time, says the brand is all about dynamism and versatility. “We’re always working and brainstorming — no sleeping in airports,” she says. Pozza is currently traveling with international sales manager Mario Georgiev to different parts of Asia to talk about Wenger. “And being dynamic doesn’t mean you should rush things. For us, being dynamic is about doing things fast, but for the long term.”
In the Philippines, the top seller is still the Black Night (Batflecks, Batflecks everywhere), but Chua thinks there is a model that will unseat the dark one.
“From the looks of it, the Seaforce will be a top seller. The classic lines are very attractive, especially with our price points.” And the Seaforce Blue or Black Chrono offers water resistance up to 200 meters. Now Aquaman is listening.
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