Revamped Technomarine Emerges with Vincent Perriard at the Helm…

So far so good for Perriard and his team in what was surely a very fast 6 or so months (at most) – a nice re-work of what is and will likely remain the brand’s core collection…the “Cruise Collection”…this one will be available in 40mm and 45mm versions.  Well I now have at least the start of an answer to my question (posed graphically – see Vincent Perriard Gears Up To Transform TechnoMarine, July 29 2009), but the ocean is vast and there is much more to come before we say if TechnoMarine can “get its cool back” Got to start somewhere, though…here it is:

BASELWORLD 2010 is coming soon.  You can see all the hot new pre-releases on Perpetuelle.com’s Official Baselworld 2010 Forum, and many many more when the event starts on March 18th.  Just click here!

In Quest to Rebuild a Brand New TechnoMarine CEO gives first online interview

If you did not know, after first being a “trendy” brand for a few years watch brand TechnoMarine lost its way and stopped being cool.  “Trends” come and they go, as they say!  However – seeing potential in the brand, new and forward thinking TechnoMarine Chairman (since 2006) Christian Viros (former Tag Heuer CEO) cleaned house and brought in industry visionary Vincent Perriard (and his demonstrable track record) as CEO to shake things up a bit.  Steven Cohen (Movado Group Canada / Ebel) was also brought in to help steer the ship into new and uncharted waters.

So what a nice surprise it was to see this morning an excellent interview of TechnoMarine CEO Vincent Perriard by Lex who runs Oceanic Time dive watch blog.  Lex asks some great questions, and receives some great answers. In fact this is quite an OUTSTANDING and probing interview – very well done Lex!

Here are a couple initial thoughts I had after reading it:

First, in addition to wondering who initiated this interview, I think that the choice of “venue” (ie a dive watch blog) is perhaps quite revealing as to the future direction and positioning of TechnoMarine.  My thought here is further reinforced by some of the discussion in the interview.  Is TechnoMarine going to define the dive watch market in ways never before seen?  Mr. Perriard will admin nothing, but I think that signs are pointing to yes.

Second, I would like to share here one excerpt from the interview which really caught my attention:

Lex As you know the internet has become a powerful marketing tool for modern watch companies, with sophisticated and expensive websites and Facebook accounts. What will TechnoMarine be doing to market themselves in Cyberspace?

Vincent We are going to invest more than 3/4s of our marketing money in electronic platforms and channels of communication. The watch industry keeps thinking it understands this media… That’s not true. A few brands have understood it. We (my new team and I), we are part of these few brands and we will maximize our efforts, I can guarantee this.

Why did this pique my interest?  Because Vincent Perriard is 100% CORRECT in his analysis here, and it bodes well for the success of the brand re-launch – which is of course highly contingent upon a successful marketing & PR campaign.  As Perriard notes, the watch industry keeps on thinking it does understand online media – when in fact 90% of all brands have NO CLUE as to what they are doing online (witness, for one recent example, Tag Heuer’s recent online accessory boutique in which they offer 8gb flash memory cards for a ludicrous price of $360).  While I was not overly impressed with Concord’s use of online and social media under Vincent Perriard’s guidance, they proved particularly adept at building buzz for the C1 QuantumGravity, and the brand did demonstrate a deeper understanding of what matters “online” than the other 90% of brands out there.  So I am quite surprised, and impressed, and excited to hear that 75% of TechnoMarine’s marketing resources will be dedicated towards “electronic platforms and channels of communication.”  This will only mean good things for the brand relative to spending its marketing/PR budget elsewhere (ie static print ads).

Like it or not, online media is the future, and those who embrace this will prosper over the long run.  But more on this subject later!

Click here to read the full interview of TechnoMarine CEO Vincent Perriard by dive watch enthusiast Lex at Oceanic Time.  I highly recommend it!  Enjoy!

Question is Not If, but How Perriard & Team Will Remake The TechnoMarine Brand

TechnoMarine is not a brand that interests me.  Mid-range, sometimes tacky, fake-bling, quartz watches.  Right or wrong, that’s what I think of.

Yawn*** Blink***Yawn.      But wait, what’s this?  A new sheriff (cowboy?) rides into town?

His name is Vincent Perriard – you may know him from his former transformation of the Concord brand – and he certainly has the grand ambition and vision to do something for TechnoMarine.  But what will he do?  Surely you remember most recently the Concord C1 Quantum Gravity – a watch with Perriard’s ambitions all over it – and a watch not without some controversy for its radical concepts (love it or hate it, I think) – but a watch that seemed to boldly deliver the icing on the cake of Perriard’s swift, bold remake of Concord.  All in all, his track record speaks of great success; there was the Grand Prix of Geneva award for the C1 Tourbillon Gravity, for example!

One thing is for sure – Mr. Perriard has hinted at GUARANTEED a new era for TechnoMarine.  One of disruptive, innovative and creative watchmaking.  He tells us to “Expect the unexpected.”    He sees that the worldwide crisis brings new opportunities and promises to deliver a surprising brand positioning within the next few months.  There will be new momentum, a new mission as well as a strong vision.

You have my attention, Mr. Perriard.  I’m most certain you don’t plan to move down market – only one way to go, and that is up, right?  For sure-this is the only way to live life!  Good luck.

In a surprising development, Business Montres reports that Concord CEO Vincent Perriard has tendered his resignation as CEO of Concord.  Mr Perriard, who oversaw creation of the C1 collection and the development of the much hyped C1 QuantumGravity concept watch, will be joining TechnoMarine.

Here is the article from Business Montres in French.

Here is the Business Montres article translated into English with Google Translate.