Robin Swithinbank

London

Freelance Journalist at Freelance

Writer. Editor. Content guy. As seen in New York Times, FT, Telegraph, GQ, Traveller, Vanity Fair, Harrods, Robb Report, The Road Rat

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Articles

Can Swiss Watches Compete on Value?

2 weeks ago | businessoffashion.com | Robin Swithinbank

With the price of gold soaring, the Swiss franc still trading high and US tariffs looming, luxury watch companies are facing a growing problem: Watch prices keep rising. That consumers have become more price sensitive and value conscious amid a downturn in overall luxury spending and growing competition from rival luxury categories only compounds the issue. Can luxury watches still compete?
half a century (and a bit) of the Porsche 911 Turbo

2 weeks ago | spearswms.com | Robin Swithinbank

So let's deal with some awkward dates first. Last year, to mark half a century of one of the greatest cars ever made, Porsche introduced the 911 Turbo 50 Years. It said it would make 1,974 of them, for reasons that won't need explaining, and that the car would carry a 3.7-litre flat-six capable of kicking out 650hp, delivering the sort of performance that would invert your spleen. At £200k-plus, it was a fine way to celebrate an automotive icon.
Soaring gold prices test mettle of luxury watch brands

3 weeks ago | businessandamerica.com | Robin Swithinbank

After a year of soaring gold prices, makers of luxury watches have been left with a heavy precious metal headache. Where a year ago procurement teams were buying gold at about $2,300 an ounce, now the figure is around $3,300 an ounce, a 40 per cent increase. With stock markets still volatile, few analysts are forecasting a correction. Luxury watch companies are reliant on sales of gold watches.
Soaring gold prices test mettle of luxury watch brands

1 month ago | ft.com | Robin Swithinbank

After a year of soaring gold prices, makers of luxury watches have been left with a heavy precious metal headache.
Geopolitical and macroeconomic factors spell uncertainty for luxury sector

1 month ago | spearswms.com | Robin Swithinbank

Luxury goods brands face headwinds caused by the global political and economic climate that may narrow the sector's consumer base, according to a panel of experts gathered at Spear's 500 Live 2025 on 7 May. 'Last year was uncertain and now there's even more uncertainty: the only thing that's certain is uncertainty,' said Ming Liu, watch and jewellery journalist who contributes to titles including the New York Times, HTSI and Robb Report Monaco.
Why Trump’s Tariffs Should Make Brands Take Value Seriously

1 month ago | watchpro.com | Robin Swithinbank

Perhaps we were all kidding ourselves, but it seems we all thought it. Even in the days before President Trump entrapped the world’s economy with Liberation Day, the watch industry appeared confident it would be immune to tariffs. What possible justification could there be for punitive taxes on a foreign industry that has no US domestic rival, and that creates thousands of jobs and drives many, many beautiful millions of dollars into the US economy? Right?
Has Watchmaking’s Direct-to-consumer Model Had Its Day?

2 months ago | watchpro.com | Robin Swithinbank

Rolex’s new temple on London’s Bond Street is a seriously impressive space. Four storeys of green and gold grandeur, more than 7,000 square feet of space for moochers and GMT-Masters, and even the offer of an exclusive green-coloured cocktail for those prepared to climb the stairs to the first floor (yes, yes, there’s a lift, too). It will, no doubt, be a whopping great success.
Benrus Watches Is Revived by U.S. Investment Group

2 months ago | nytimes.com | Robin Swithinbank

Benrus plans to produce watches in Switzerland, but is keeping its headquarters in the same Manhattan building where it was founded in 1921. In the 1960s Benrus was one of America's largest watchmakers, producing about a million watches a year. It made the huge clock that kept time at Pennsylvania Station in New York City, supplied watches to the U.S. military and had its timepieces worn by President John F. Kennedy, Steve McQueen, Charles Lindbergh and Babe Ruth.
Brands at Watches and Wonders Geneva Look for Sales

2 months ago | nytimes.com | Robin Swithinbank

Brands hope the models debuting at Watches and Wonders Geneva will recharge their lackluster sales. During the past seven days, about 50,000 visitors - industry representatives, members of the public, reporters and influencers - had been expected to walk the carpeted corridors of Watches and Wonders Geneva, considering new designs from the 60 luxury watch companies exhibiting there.
The Logic Behind Chanel’s Boat Race Deal

2 months ago | businessoffashion.com | Robin Swithinbank

Even the president of Chanel’s watches and fine jewellery division hadn’t anticipated the move. “It was totally unexpected,” admitted Frédéric Grangié in an interview with BoF ahead of next Sunday’s annual Boat Race between Oxford and Cambridge universities, now labelled the Chanel J12 Boat Race after the luxury giant’s J12 watch. “It happened by chance. Before June last year, I had no idea I was going to do this.”The deal with the Boat Race Company Limited is a landmark for Chanel.