Jeweller - August 2022
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News<br />
MoonSwatch won't be available online<br />
Enthusiasts hoping to become owners of the Omega x Swatch Speedmaster<br />
Bioceramic MoonSwatch will still need to attend a store in-person, with a<br />
spokesperson confirming that online access will not be offered.<br />
In March of this year, the release of the Moonswatch collection caused<br />
mayhem outside of stores across the world, including in Melbourne<br />
and Sydney.<br />
The Moonswatch is the result of a collaboration between Omega<br />
and Swatch and was priced at $AU380 per watch. That retail price is<br />
dramatically cheaper compared with other Omega Speedmaster products,<br />
which list for more than $AU7,000.<br />
The watch collection offers customers the chance to own a timepiece close<br />
to the iconic Omega Speedmaster at a fraction of the cost. Online auction<br />
sites such as eBay quickly featured watches listed at more than five times<br />
the retail price following the launch.<br />
At locations in Melbourne and Sydney, lines formed in the early morning<br />
outside stores, however, due to the limited availability of the product,<br />
hundreds were left disappointed.<br />
Swatch Group CEO Nick Hayek has now confirmed that the watch will<br />
not be sold online, telling Fratello “There’s no emotion in online buying.”<br />
“It’s a carefully produced Swiss-made watch and not a commodity.<br />
“The MoonSwatch is not about to make as much money as possible in<br />
the shortest possible time period. So why should we sell it online?”<br />
Swatch has 110 retail stores worldwide.<br />
Hayek noted that after two years of pandemic restrictions, “it was about<br />
time to celebrate and to bring the people back on the streets, meet<br />
together, and revive the brick-and-mortar stores.”<br />
There are 11 models in the MoonSwatch collection representing the solar<br />
system, with each model designed after one planetary figure. Each planet<br />
from Mercury to Pluto is represented, as well as the Sun and Moon.<br />
According to a Swatch spokesperson, there is currently a shortage of<br />
Moonswatch products, with the company’s website attributing this to<br />
“overwhelming demand from Swatch fans all over the globe.”<br />
“We’re working around the clock behind the scenes to make the 11 unique<br />
watches and are replenishing our selected Swatch stores regularly with<br />
this special collaborative collection between Swatch and Omega,” the<br />
website reads.<br />
The statement noted the watches are not limited-edition timepieces,<br />
so consumers may be able to purchase them soon once stocks are<br />
replenished.<br />
Timeless Elegance<br />
The watch collection was launched on 26 March, with Australia being<br />
one of the first countries to launch the model ahead of the US and<br />
European markets.<br />
The watches are designed and modeled after the iconic Omega<br />
Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch, which was made famous after<br />
US astronaut Buzz Aldrin wore the watch during the 1969 mission to<br />
the Moon.<br />
Luxury Pearl and Opal <strong>Jeweller</strong>y<br />
enquiries@ikecho.com.au<br />
+61 2 9266 0636<br />
www.ikecho.com.au