The Future Manufacture: Will It Solve The Pepsi Problem?

May 26, 2015

When we talk about , we talk about huge numbers. According to Bloomberg, last year, produced 1.24 million timepieces with sales of CHF 10.1 billion. That wasnt enough to get people their desired Pepsi GMT-Master IIs, though. The future manufacture, about which the brand issued its first official press release, might change that. In due time, that is, because the 2022-announced manufacturing facility in Bulle in the canton of Fribourg is set to open five years from now. And will you still crave a Pepsi in 2029, or will your taste have changed? bets it won t have, and, honestly, my money is on that too.In late 2022, word got out that had acquired 104,686 square meters of land in the canton of Fribourg. On this patch of land (which cost CHF 31 million) in the industrial area of La Prila, close to the E27/A12 highway, a new manufacturing facility will aim to push production numbers way up. Having in Bulle, a small municipality in the district of Gruyere, 120 kilometers northeast of Geneva, is a big thing for the canton of Fribourg. Thats why the local authorities worked closely with the watch brand to make the project happen. After all, the new facility will provide jobs for around 2,000 people. The press release announcing the new manufacture preceded the building permit by just a few days. If you want to see the building permit, please find it in the Feuille officielle du canton de Fribourg.Render of the Bulle manufacture facility - Image: First renders of the future manufactureWhen sent out the communique last week, it came with renders of the manufacture-to-be, the fifth for the brand. The new complex, consisting of four production buildings connected by a central structure, looks impressive - what else did you expect? And it is also designed to be green. The goal is to attain the highest-level BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) certification. If succeeds, the Bulle manufacture will be the first BREEAM-certified industrial building in Switzerland. To give you an idea, strives to reduce energy use by 10% compared to a non-BREEAM manufacture. Since the new manufacture wont be operational until 2029, it wont quench the thirst for Pepsi travel watches or satisfy the demand for steel Daytona chronographs right away. To address that issue, already set up three temporary production facilities in Romont and Villaz-Saint-Pierre. The 250C300 employees working inside those two facilities will transfer to the new Bulle manufacture once it s up and running.With the addition of Bulle, the number of people working for in 2029 will be about 11,000 in Switzerland. Worldwide, the brand will employ around 16,000 people by then. As of today, the headquarters are in the Acacias district of Geneva. Acacias is where the development and assembly of watches take place. Also happening in the canton of Geneva is the production of watch cases, bracelets, dials, and Cerachrom bezels and inserts in Plan-les-Ouates. Gem-setting takes place in Chene-Bourg, in the east of the canton of Geneva. Finally, movements are manufactured in the town of Bienne.Image: Avi & Co.Will every steel sports you desire to become available in 2030?The billion-dollar question is this: will the new manufacture in Bulle solve the imbalance between supply and demand? Well, since every company plans for growth, five years from now, the turnover should have gone up significantly. And the same goes for the production numbers. So come 2030, the number of watches versus interested clients might not be completely balanced.A while back, I wrote about how market availability will hurt other brands. That same availability could also hurt . I m guessing that will try to find the perfect balance between would-be customers desiring and acquiring. Even with a yearly production of, say, 2 million luxury watches in 2030, knows all there is to know about scarcity marketing; FOMO is forever. As it stands, seems to have found the sweet spot between what s in the window and what s for sale.