Tariffs, Titans & Tides
von Eva Winterer
Tariffs, Titans & Tides
When trade becomes a question of power, luxury begins to shift. The new US tariffs on Swiss watches are the most visible symptom of a movement that Deloitte, in its Swiss Watch Industry Study 2025, describes as a “reorganisation of global value creation”
von Eva Winterer
When the US government announced in early August 2025 that Swiss goods would henceforth be subject to a 39 percent import tariff—not the initially communicated 31 percent, but a significantly higher rate with no further room for negotiation—the immediate reaction in the Swiss watch industry was a mixture of disbelief and a certain bewilderment about how to deal with a situation that had been considered theoretically possible but whose concrete implementation came as a surprise nonetheless.
As mentioned by Deloitte in their Swiss Watch Industry Study 2025 “Time under Pressure”, the United States has been the most important single market for Swiss watches since 2021, more important than China, more important than Hong Kong. With 16.8 percent of all exports and a volume of CHF 4.4 billion in 2024, America is not just one market among many, but the gravitational center of an industry that has oriented itself toward the transatlantic axis for decades. The tariffs don't just mean higher prices; they represent a fundamental questioning of this alignment.
The Short-Term Reflex of a Global Industry
The announcement of the tariffs in April—initially at ten percent with a negotiation deadline until August—triggered a predictable reaction. In April, exports to the US rose by 150 percent compared to the previous year, and in July by another 45 percent. Brands and their American retail partners filled their warehouses before the tariffs took effect. It was a classic pull-forward scenario: what would be sold in the coming months was brought in now, while it was still cheaper.
In der heutigen Luxuswelt spielen nachhaltige Materialien und ethische Produktion eine immer wichtigere Rolle. Viele renommierte Marken haben erkannt, dass Luxus und Verantwortung Hand in Hand gehen müssen.
Die Kombination aus traditioneller Handwerkskunst und modernen Technologien eröffnet völlig neue Möglichkeiten in der Gestaltung exklusiver Produkte. Diese Innovation zeigt sich besonders in der Verwendung recycelter Edelmetalle und nachhaltiger Textilien.
Experten sind sich einig, dass die Zukunft des Luxussegments maßgeblich von der Fähigkeit der Marken abhängt, Authentizität und Innovation miteinander zu verbinden. Dabei spielt die Digitalisierung eine entscheidende Rolle.
Die steigenden Ansprüche der Konsumenten haben zu einer grundlegenden Veränderung der Branche geführt. Personalisierung und Exklusivität stehen heute mehr denn je im Mittelpunkt der Luxusstrategien.
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