Swiss watchmaker Swatch UHR.S was forced to close some stores and limit queues after the launch of its Royal Pop pocket watch, created in collaboration with Audemars Piguet, attracted huge crowds and even led to scuffles among shoppers.
The timepieces, which blend Swatch’s 1980s pop-art aesthetic with Audemars Piguet’s signature octagonal bezel design, retail for about $400–$420.
That is far below the thousands typically charged for Audemars Piguet luxury watches, prompting strong demand and a wave of resales online at significantly higher prices.
Social media posts and videos showed long queues at Swatch stores in cities including New York, London, Barcelona and Dubai over the weekend, with disruptions in some locations requiring police intervention. Footage also captured shoppers fighting outside a Swatch outlet in Milan, among other incidents.
The surge in demand, fuelled by an aggressive social media campaign, escalated quickly, prompting Swatch to move to contain the situation as it risked spiralling out of control.
“To ensure the safety of both our customers and staff in Swatch stores, we kindly ask you not to rush to our stores in large numbers to acquire this product,” Swatch said in a statement over the weekend.
A Swatch spokesperson said on Monday that issues emerged on launch day at around 20 of its 220 stores worldwide due to exceptionally long queues and poor crowd management at some shopping malls, but stressed that the situation has since returned to normal.
He also noted that the collaboration generated millions of website clicks and about 11 billion views across social media platforms. However, the company has not yet released official sales figures for the Royal Pop collection.
A complete set of the eight Royal Pop models sold for more than $25,000 on the live marketplace StockX on Sunday, highlighting the intense demand for the collaboration.
Meanwhile, several unofficial websites began offering custom-made accessories, including bracelets designed to convert Royal Pop timepieces into wristwatches, with prices starting from around $50.
