In November 2002, the effervescent and amiable Michel Nieto took over the reins of Baume & Mercier and discovered, like his predecessor, a wealth of models in a safe tucked away from prying eyes (see 2/2002 – ‘Baume & Mercier reinforcing the dream’ and 6/2004 ‘Baume & Mercier - focusing on fundamentals’). These models were the very DNA of the brand and inspirational enough to spur Michel Nieto into using them as a base and, as he stated at the time, “… these pieces represented, in a way, our treasure, a treasure that needed to be fully re-evaluated.”
The re-evaluation complete, Baume & Mercier is now beginning to reap the rewards of Michel Nieto’s vision. “By the end of 2003, we were beginning to function better,” Nieto explains, “and by last year we were doing much better in general and particularly well in the USA. For example, in the 5-8,000 dollar gold watch segment in the US, according to the highly accurate LGI sales statistics, we were in the number one position. Another interesting factor is that there was a general increase of 8% in watch sales there, however Baume & Mercier’s sales increased by 17%. Overall, sales in USA count for 35 - 40% of our business, Italy 18% and France 9 -10%, the balance is the rest of the world.”
Michel Nieto considers Baume & Mercier to be a ‘brand of volume’ [the Richemont Group doesn’t give individual brand statistics, but an educated guess puts Baume & Mercier’s sales at more than 200,000 watches a year]. The brand now has 300 points-of-sale around the world, 50% of which are shop-in-shops and the brand is moving into China with what Nieto calls a ‘reinvented approach’.
DIAMANT
Stainless steel ladies’ watch equipped with a quartz movement. Mother-of-pearl dial with cambered case and domed sapphire crystal, appliqué numerals and indices, diamond-set bezel, date at 6 o’clock, screw-down caseback and a unique oval crown set with an off-centre diamond. Water-resistant to 30 metres.
CLASSIMA EXECUTIVES RETRO CHRONOGRAPH
Stainless steel watch (39 mm) equipped with a self-winding mechanical movement with chronograph function and central tachometric and telemetric scales. Silvered opaline dial, counters with black thread contour, screw-in crown, appliqué indices, Superluminova-coated hands, date at 6 o’clock, alligator strap, water-resistant to 30 metres.
The new campaign
“In September this year we started a new advertising campaign using two ‘names’ from the entertainment industry. We tested the celebrity of well-known actors in five towns on age groups between 20 - 30 and 35 - 45 and how the public perceived their image. The result was that we chose Meg Ryan because she is regarded as being naturally seductive with spontaneous elegance and Kiefer Sutherland, because he portrays humility but with force of character. The point they have in common is that they also use their image and celebrity to help the under-privileged.
“Our approach to them was rather unique. We explained that we wouldn’t pay them a fee for their services, but instead Baume & Mercier would donate their royalties to the charities of their choice. Both Meg Ryan and Kiefer Sutherland, as well James White and Robert Maxwell the photographers who created the visuals, accepted and listed five different charities they wanted to receive the donations.”
Using the Caption, ‘Baume & Mercier and me’ the stars were photographed at home and the watches they are wearing are not the focal point (see Watch Faces in this issue). “We wanted to create an atmosphere that showed celebrities as real people, approachable, in a relaxed and authentic environment,” affirms Nieto.
To conclude, Michel Nieto declared, “We have chic, elegant and classic watches and my dream is to have Baume & Mercier and its products renowned worldwide with the same level of notoriety in all countries.”
Source: December - January 2006 Issue
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