The Creation of the Swatch Group and the “Swatch Legend”

Abstract

At the beginning of the 1980s, the main measure adopted by Swiss watchmakers to pull themselves out of recession was the merger of the two biggest Swiss watch groups, namely ASUAG and SSIH (1983). With gross sales amounting respectively to CHF1.3 billion and CHF815 million in 1979, they outstripped the other watchmakers, third place being jointly occupied by the Société des Garde-Temps SA (SGT, brands Avia, Elgin, Fleurier, Invicta, Sandoz, Silvana, Titus, Waltham) and Rolex, whose gross sales at the time were valued at CHF190 million.¹ What is more, in 1979 ASUAG and SSIH employed about half of the workforce in the Swiss watch industry² However, their combined clout must be seen in perspective, as it was primarily due to the crisis which had impacted other companies. In reality, ASUAG and SSIH faced huge industrial and financial difficulties, and their survival owed a great deal to the support of the major banks.