Swatch Promotes Omega CEO, Names New Heads for Tissot, Longines

(Bloomberg) -- Swatch Group AG promoted Omega Chief Executive Officer Raynald Aeschlimann and named new heads for Longines and Tissot, reorganizing brands amid one of the most challenging years ever for the Swiss watch industry.

• Aeschlimann will join the executive group management board, elevating him above the directors of most of the watchmaker’s other brands. The changes take effect July 1.

Key Insights

• The company was ripe for a reshuffle, as Longines President Walter von Kaenel has been with the company for 51 years, while Francois Thiebaud has been CEO of Tissot since 1996. Demand for Swiss watches has slumped as the Covid-19 pandemic forces store closures.
• Matthias Breschan, who currently heads Rado, will become CEO of Longines as von Kaenel retires and becomes honorary chairman of his brand. Sylvain Dolla, who runs Hamilton, will become CEO of Tissot, where Thiebaud will become chairman.
• Vivian Stauffer, the head of sales of Hamilton, will become CEO of that brand, while Adrian Bosshard, who runs Certina and Union, will take command of Rado. Marc Aellen, a sales vice president at Jaquet Droz, will run Certina, while Mido CEO Franz Linder will also assume management of Union.

Market Reaction

• Swatch shares have dropped 29% this year.

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