CÔTES DE GENÈVE: THE FINISH

OF A LIFETIME8th February - 21st February 2017

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

INTRODUCTION.........................................03

SNAPSHOT OF THE PERIOD

Trending Topics...........................................05

Volume of Conversations......................07

ANALYZING THE SOCIAL BUZZ

Among Influencers...................................10

Beyond Influencers....................................12

THE BACKGROUND...................................13

BEHIND THE TREND.................................16

READ THE TREND.....................................21

THE METHOD...............................................22

THE FOUNDATION’S MISSION...........23

INTRODUCTION

This series of trend reports are a collaboration between London-based agency RE-UP and the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie. They will look back over the past two weeks and

discover what’s been ‘trending’ online.

We aim to discover which watches, stories and industrial developments in the world of horology gain the most amount of coverage on the digital sphere - uncovering why these

trends are important.

SNAPSHOTOF THE PERIOD

TRENDING TOPICS AND STORIESFROM 8TH FEBRUARY TO 21ST FEBRUARY

Percentage of conversation about Fine Watchmaking* brands penetrated by the topic, on a sample of 1,000 articles*Fine Watchmaking defined by the parameters set by the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie in their White Paper report

SIHH 2017 is still the most talked about topic in Fine Watchmaking

Arabic Numerals are becoming more prominent online since SIHH a few weeks ago

Côtes de Genève were spoken about more than usual over the past two weeks

Tag Heuer last week unveiled their first official club special edition watch with partner Manchester United

Cartier Tank was mentioned a lot around Valentine’s Day this year

5.57%

3.36%

3.15%

2.94%

2.73%

#1 #2 #3 #4 #5

VOLUME OF CONVERSATIONSON HIGH-END WATCHES

ANALYSING THE SOCIAL BUZZ OF

THE CÔTES DE GENÈVE

Among Influencers

1.62%Penetration of conversations by the expression ‘Côtes de

Genève’ in Swiss watch related conversations

0.35%Penetration of all

conversations by the expression ‘Côtes de Genève’

80%Increase of ‘Côtes de Genève’ mentions against the previous

two weeks

@ watchmediaonline

Beyond Influencers

120All online mentions of

‘Côtes de Genève’

20%Increase of ‘Côtes de Genève’ mentions against the previous

two weeks

50.83%Of mentions of ‘Côtes de

Genève’ in relation to Swiss Watches

THE BACKGROUND

Unless you’re a true watch fanatic you might not even know what Côtes de Genève (or Geneva Stripes as it’s

called in English) means.

Côtes de Genève motif is something you will have seen before, and is the most famous of all decorations displayed on watch movements. Whatever colour or

shape the case is, this pattern is traced on the smooth surfaces of both mechanical and quartz movements alike. People often forget that the finish is not purely aesthetic.

@vins_eastern

Côtes de Genève are controlled scratches made across the movement of a watch. When a movement emerges

from the machining process, the surface is usually flawed. It will then undergo a process of polishing, sandblasting

and be given a galvanic plating of either gold or rhodium - this gives it its distinctive grey colouring.

Finally, a tool head made of either wood or sandpaper spins on its axis, slightly bent forward and draws lengthways stripes across the timepiece. The tiny

scratches catch the light and complete the process, hiding the last traces of the machining. The Côtes de

Genève motif is finished.

BEHINDTHE TREND

An ever-present part of Fine Watchmaking that has suddenly come into the limelight, Côtes de Genève is as

much a trend as it has ever been.

This decorative finish is being spoken about now more than ever for the simple reason that Fine Watchmaking brands are taking advantage of its decorative properties and using it not just on the movement of watches, but on the dials and other prominent places, like the Parmigiani

Fleurier Tonda Hemispheres.

This relates back to a bigger trend in Fine Watchmaking which is seeing dials of different colours and finishes

becoming more and more popular. Our last trend report discusses black dials displayed at SIHH.

@watch4moi

Brands are finding new ways to display the finish, with it being displayed in circular lines around the movement,

like Piaget’s Altiplano 60th Anniversary Collection.

This in some way displays the innovation and forward-thinking flair that the industry is famed for. Taking something traditional and - instead of ruining it - morphing it into something even more beautiful.

@kishantailor

Piaget – 60 yearsof elegancePiaget’s 60th Anniversary Altiplano features a circular Côtes de Genève.

READ THE TREND

Jaquet Droz – The height of refinementThe Jaquet Droz Grande Seconde Tourbillon Mother-of-Pearl’s movement’s bridges are adorned with a fanned Côtes de Genève design.

THE METHOD

We use two key social listening tools to gather the raw data we have analysed for this report.

The first, an in-house bespoke database of 2000+ influencers and online sources within luxury and

watches - with the ability to gather insight into six month’s worth of online buzz.

The second, a social (and media) listening tool that looks at multiple keywords. This allows us to measure

and examine all online conversations over a set period.

THEFOUNDATION’S

MISSION

The mechanical watch is a wonderful instrument and the guardian of craftsmanship, creativity

and of course, time.

Our objective here at the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, is to take our wealth of expertise into

the world through our four missions: to inform, train, recognise and organise.

Since 2005, we have promoted values of excellence and tradition within an organisation that has the support of

many Fine Watchmaking brands.

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