Swatch Group 2021 Sales Bounce Back After Pandemic Hit

The sale of luxury goods fell sharply in the past two years as COVID-19 forced shop closures and brought international tourism to a virtual halt. Following the big hit taken during the pandemic, the watch industry has bounced back. Watch industry giant Swatch Group just released its key figures for 2021. At CHF 7,313 million, net sales are up 30.7% at current exchange rates or 29.6% at constant exchange rates. Yet, the activity has not returned to pre-pandemic levels, as 2019 sales were CHF 8,243 million. Swatch Group anticipates double-digit sales growth in local currencies for 2022.

Swatch Group underlines that Mainland China and the USA have been driving the growth with a record level of sales. As the pandemic has stopped international travel, there has been a significant shift in regional sales. The Group’s own retail business sales were at 2019 levels despite a net reduction of 22%. E-commerce is mentioned as a strong contributor to the current performance.

Swatch Group also underlines the sharp improvement of their production sector, reflecting the global upturn of the watch industry’s activity, and mentions a sharp increase in order books over the past few months.

With this rise in revenues, the operating profit jumped back to 14% (CHF 1,021 million) versus 0.9% (CHF 52 million) last year. The net income is CHF 774 million, compared with a net loss of CHF -53 million in 2020.

For more information, please visit www.swatchgroup.com.