Omega and Longines sales could have been even higher. But bottlenecks in the Swatch Group’s habillage division, which makes appearance parts for watches (cases, dials, hands, etc.), caused “a high level of back orders which led to significant delivery delays” in the second half of the year, the company said. The back orders amounted to CHF300 million, Swatch Group CEO Nick Hayek told financial analysts in a conference call.
The delays mainly affected Omega and Longines watches; the Longines V.H.P. (Very High Precision) collection was particularly impacted, the company said.
The group’s mid-priced and lower-price brands “performed well,” it said.
The group’s retail sales, including e-commerce, increased “almost 10%,” the company said.
Regionally, sales were strongest in Asia, although business there slowed down in the fourth quarter. “Sales in North America developed very positively, including the last three months of the year,” the group said.
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