DEPLOYANT – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles
Jean-Claude Biver is an icon of the industry. A marketing genius, if there ever was one. Credited with the revival of Blancpain, Omega, and the immense success of Hublot, and now at the helm of TAG Heuer as well as Zenith. We caught up with him in Tokyo recently when we attended the launch of the Zenith El Primero Defy Lab, and discussed many interesting things about the business of horology, the technology and the market in general.
Jean-Claude Biver was his usual self when we met that afternoon just after lunch at the Palace Hotel in Tokyo. He was effervescent, energetic, and spirited. Jean-Claude has always been the “fire and brimstone” kind of communicator – with effective use of body language, facial expressions and gesticulations, he was always to always able to deliver a convincing and powerful message. And a joy to talk to.
Jean-Claude Biver: A brief bio
As a biographical retrospect, Jean-Claude began his career in the world of horology in Audemars Piguet and Omega. In 1981, together with his friend Jacques Piguet (who ran the movement manufacture F. Piguet, which by then was a dying concerrn), he bought the rights to the Blancpain brand name and rescued it from the doldrums in the depths of the quartz crisis. By then, Blancpain was defunct, but from these ashes, Jean-Claude built an effective marketing campaign and utilizing the movements by F. Piguet and into a respected haute horogerie house. In 1992, he sold Blancpain to SMH (now Swatch Group) and remained as CEO till 2003. I first met him at the Blancpain booth in Baselworld in 1999.
With the sale, he joined the Swatch board and was put in charge of turning around Omega, which he did with clever marketing. He made changes in the product and marketing fields, employing techniques which he continue to use later in his career. One of these was the use of watches in product placement in movies, notably in James Bond films and celebrity sponsorships (including testimonials from Cindy Crawford, Michael Schumacher, and Pierce Brosnan). Jean-Claude left Omega in 2003, having presided over the company’s impressive recovery where sales had almost tripled over his 10 year tenure.
Jean-Claude Biver, photographed in Tokyo, September 2017.
After leaving the Swatch Group, he contemplated a partnership with Franck Muller, but the legal hurdles were insurmountable. In 2004, he joined Hublot as CEO and Board Member. The battle cry of “Fusion” was invented, a mix of tradition and the future to drive the then sleeper brand forward. Jean-Claude was tireless and relentless in his passion to promote Hublot and Fusion. He used many of the techniques he had earlier honed during his tenure in Omega, and signed on huge mega-stars to wear, promote and talk about Hublot watches. Sales increased 500% from 2004 to 2007, and the company was bought by LVMH in 2008 for a princely sum. He continued to run Hublot after the purchase, super charging the brand, now with increased capital injection from the luxury giant. He has recently been taking a more oversight role within Hublot, […]
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Article from: DEPLOYANT – Luxury watch reviews & horological lifestyles, by Peter Chong
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