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In the 80s, you didn’t want to be seen with just one Swatch on your wrist. You had to wear two or three Swatches at a time. And then you knew what time it really was. Time to be cool.

 

It had also been a frightening time for the Swiss watch makers. Years of Asian digital watch technology had steadily eroded their market, especially when the Japanese introduced the affordable “Delirium” watch in 1979. The Swiss were desperate for a new idea. Watchmaking was a core Swiss business, and the SMH, the Swiss Corporation of Microelectronics and Watchmaking Industries, had to come up with a plan.

 

An in-depth analysis of the watch market was done by Nicholas G. Hayek, the head of Hayek Engineering. He found that people weren’t looking to spend huge amounts of money for luxury watches, the main type of watch that the Swiss produced. Instead, they wanted inexpensive and technologically advanced watches, just like the type that Asian manufacturers like Casio and Seiko were making. Since the Swiss already had 97% of the luxury timepiece market, they knew it was time for a new product. It was time for Swatch.

 

Introduced in 1983, Swatch combined high fashion and low price. Sold at only $35, Swatches came in styles ranging from fun and fanciful to business and formal. The designs were so varied and the price so low, that people began collecting them and wearing several at a time. It became more than just a way to tell time – it became a fashion statement.

The reason the Swatches could be so cheap is that they were built from only 51 components, when traditional watches consisted of 100 – 150. This enabled them to be made quickly and inexpensively, and it encouraged people to just dispose of them when they broke and buy a new one. 

 

They were sold in clear plastic cases with showed off their slim, bendable wristbands and over-the-top colors and designs. Swatches were inspired by Lego toys for their bright plastic colors and disposable lighters for their sleekness. Swatch employed not only watchmakers for the product, but also graphic artists, industrial designers, and architects to create the myriad of styles, each a personalized work of art that spoke to the wearer.

A name was given to each Swatch, such as "Black Magic" or "Chrono Tech," reflecting the look of the watch. New styles were released all year long, resulting in a huge array of different looks. Even celebrities got into the movement with limited addition Swatches designed by names like Kiki Picasso, Yoko Ono, Keith Haring and Pedro Almodovar. And to protect your precious work of art, you could buy a Swatch guard, a little plastic band worn over the watch face to keep it from getting scratched.

 

The Swiss watch market is now run by the Swatch group. Today, some Swatches can fetch thousands of dollars at auction, and collectors still buy each new version as it’s introduced. Swatch is one major success story – they brilliantly competed against their Asian competitors, and created a product that continues to be a market leader.