Created in 1851, as a luxury shoemaker, the Swiss brand Bally has, little by little, transformed itself into a 'global luxury goods' company. At least, that is the goal of Texas Pacific, the American investment group that purchased it in 1999 from its historical owner. Texas Pacific has carried out major restructuring of Bally, concentrating on the 'merchandizing' of this perceived 'global brand'. Giving it a youthful facelift, the group is continuing its strategies by entering into a licensing agreement with Zurich-based Mondaine, an enterprise active mainly in the low to medium sector of watch production, with brands such as Mondaine, M-Watch, Swiss Railways, Camel.
In the case of Bally, the entire collection has been restyled in order to offer the highest quality timepieces with an innovative design, in keeping with the new Bally identity. (The average price is around 1,300 Swiss francs.) The new Bally team, directed by CEO Marco Franchini, has also reorganized the brand's distribution. Present in fifty countries, Bally watches are primarily distributed in Asia through the traditional Mondaine channels. They are also on sale in Bally stores and at other licensed retailers. It would seem that their development is thus closely tied to that of the Bally brand itself.