For those who appreciate the art of watchmaking, a trip to Le Locle is a pure delight. Located in the Jura Mountains, the town is a bastion of horological history, often referred to as the birthplace of the Swiss watch industry.
No sleepy mountain town, Le Locle is the place where tradition and innovation collide and, at the heart of this explosion, is Tissot.
A brand with more than 170 years history, Tissot welcomed a dynamic new CEO in 2020 in the form of Sylvain Dolla.
Here he tells WatchPro about his respect for the past, his love of technology, his plans for the future, and why the newly-released PRX UFO Robot Grendizer was a passion project for him.
WATCHPRO: How did you start in the watch world?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: I have been working at the Swatch Group for 20 years, but I began my working life at Alcatel, the French telecoms company. When I started there, it was a small company but within two years we were producing 20 million phones and I had the opportunity to work in the Middle East, the UK and the US.
In 2004, the Swatch Group was looking for somebody who knew the world of consumer electronics to prepare the launch of the Swatch Paparazzi and I got the job. Paparazzi was the first connected watch and was a partnership between Microsoft and Swatch Group. I will remember that time for my entire life – it was crazy, fascinating, revolutionary.
It was an amazing way to learn about the Swatch Group. My biggest learning curve was to understand fine watches – the history, the brands, and the very long-term approach, which was a stark contrast to consumer electronics, which is all about rapid change. At that time, I was not passionate about watches, that came when I started to work with them.
After Swatch, I was at Hamilton for 15 years and for the past four years I have been with Tissot, although I started to work with the brand four years before I joined the company when I took part in the T-Touch Connect Solar project. I always loved Tissot and was inspired by what it was doing even when I was working for Hamilton. It is a huge pleasure to be the CEO today.
You are one of Swatch Groups most successful CEOs but do you see yourself first and foremost as a businessman or a watch man?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: Thank you for the compliment. I would say that I am a watch enthusiast with a passion for marketing. Tissot is a very strong brand in the watch industry and has been ever since its foundation in 1853 so it’s an honour for me to head up the team.
You were one of the first CEOs to see the value of a brand’s history and its relevance to today. Can you tell me about that?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: It’s extremely important. The main difference between consumer electronics companies and brands in the watch industry is this strong history. We are not short-term oriented. When we make an investment in new product, we think for 10 years ahead. It is part of what makes Tissot so special.
Tissot has so many stories and we can talk about innovations for hours. Tissot’s archive is amazing. We have 7,000 restored watches that reflect all the history and all the innovation of the brand.
And wow, what a source of inspiration. I mean, the first week I was at Tissot, I remember being upstairs opening drawer after drawer of pure inspiration. That’s the beauty of having such a vast history. We can use all the historical riches of the brand to come back with strong commercial products for the future.
Did you know that Tissot was the first brand to develop antimagnetic watches? We should communicate more about this. It is all about authentic stories. We are in a completely emotional industry and people buy our watches for a moment in life.
If we don’t communicate enough about our stories, we will lose them. Why would I buy a watch for a wedding or for a graduation, for example, if there is no story behind it?
Can the public see these 7,000 watches?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: We do have plans for a museum, but it must be done properly, and we have so much in the pipeline that we can’t dedicate the necessary amount of time to it now.
But what we are doing is continuing to invest in our historic collection and every year, we acquire pieces that we may be missing. This has led to us establishing a dedicated restoration hub in Switzerland and we are now able to repair very old Tissot watches for clients.
It doesn’t provide any source of revenue for us, but the beauty of watches is that they are such an emotional product, and we are prepared to invest in that. So, we are not neglecting the past, but we’re taking it all step by step.
The PRX has been an incredible success. It seems like such an obvious winner – an original 1970s integrated steel sports watch – but why did it take so long to bring it back?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: I think the timing was just right. It is often just based on gut feeling. This particular gut feeling came about during my first week at Tissot. When I joined, I discovered the richness of the archives going back to 1853, which I have to say I had underestimated. When I saw the archives, I was like a kid at Christmas discovering new beauties such as an extraordinary minute repeater. Then suddenly, I pulled out the 1970s drawer and saw what would become the Tissot PRX. As you said, it was an obvious choice.
Was there opposition to your decision to revisit it?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: The choice was unanimous. When I took it out, the product manager said he had already started working on the reinterpretation of the watch, so we looked at the analysis and I told the team that we needed the watch within 9-12 months. It usually takes a lot longer, but I was so excited.
I just loved the design. We really worked on all the details in order to achieve a watch that could speak to everyone, regardless of income. The attention to detail is what makes the difference. We did everything to make it not only look good but also feel good on the wrist. This was essential for me.
Exactly how successful has it been? Were you surprised by it becoming such a phenomenon?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: It wasn’t difficult to see it could be a bestseller. That said, we still had a very positive surprise with its success. Our forecasts were massively exceeded, as we are selling 20 times more units than we originally planned, and our customers keep asking for more variations. It has become one of our bestsellers worldwide, along with the Le Locle, Seastar and Bellissima.
Certainly, in the UK, the PRX is bringing new recognition to Tissot and giving it that ‘cool’ factor, especially among Gen Z – said to be the most important demographic for the watch industry. But is there a danger that you may become a ‘one model brand’?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: The beauty of Tissot is that we are not a one model brand and that’s an amazing strength. I would hate if we depended solely on the PRX because maybe tomorrow the sports watch with integrated bracelet will be out of fashion. For us that is fine as we have other pillars that are holding Tissot up.
Tissot is known as the leading Swiss watch brand in terms of volume, and we are well known for creating products from pocket watches, quartz pieces, mechanical models and connected timepieces.
We are very far from becoming a one model brand.
During the past three years, we have been concentrating our work on perceived value and fine-tuning the details. We have, therefore, reduced the number of references with a target of 99 references per year.
In the past, we had over 150 new references every year. The fact that we have a third less to develop means that our product team has one third more of their time to dedicate to the fine parts of the watches. But we are still far from just a one model brand.
The volume also entails a lower price point. This attracts a younger audience, which does not have an unlimited budget but still wants to be able to afford a fine Swiss watch, but also an older generation that pays attention to detail, quality and value. We will always make watches for everyone.
In August you launched the PRX UFO Robot Grendizer Special Edition. This is a project that is personally important to you but how is the collaboration a good fit for Tissot and PRX? And how will it be different to other anime edition watches that we have seen?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: I will always give all the credit for everything at Tissot to the team, but if there is one project that I will take a bit of credit for it’s the Grendizer.
When I was about six years old, I had difficulties in school because I have dyslexia. I had an hour of extra tuition at the end of the day, and I made a pact with my teacher that I would be really focused for 55 minutes if she would let me go home five minutes early. I would run all the way back and switch on the TV to watch Grendizer. It was really my first experience of Japanese manga and I was completely passionate about it.
And then two years ago, I read that a new version was going to be released so I contacted the Go Nogai studio that makes it. I was so excited, and they probably thought that the Swiss are completely crazy. The cool thing is that I was not alone, because the deputy head of products is the same age as me, and he loves it too.
The watch itself is very discreet in its references, but the packaging is in the form of a spaceship that people have to build, and the outer box is decorated with the original 1975 drawings of Grendizer. It won’t be limited – I hate limited editions because they are missed opportunities, and they frustrate people who miss out.
This special edition watch combines the vintage design of the PRX with the iconic elements of Grendizer. This watch’s blue dial, inspired by the blue of Grendizer itself, glows in the dark with a yellow Super-LumiNova outline of the robot hero.
You can also see a Harken second hand and a uniquely engraved rotor. In the upper flange, there is a text in Japanese that reads “UFO ロボ グレンダイザー”, the original title for Grendizer.
It has been a great honour for me to collaborate with the great Go Nogai and the PRX was the perfect opportunity as it seemed natural mixing Swiss craftsmanship and 1970s design with manga pop culture, both coming from the same era.
Tissot’s archive is deep and illustrious. Will we see more reissues?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: That it is! And we see a lot of reinterpretations and vintage models that are on-trend. The PRX or the Tissot Telemeter 1938 are examples of that trend.
The Telemeter 1938 represents some of the first chronographs that Tissot used to enter the sports timekeeping world. It is also equipped with the newly upgraded Valjoux A05.231 automatic movement with extended 68-hour power reserve.
It’s a beautiful piece! We revive a historical watch every year so yes, you can expect to see more in the coming years.
Last year we saw the 1970s Sideral revisited and again it was a huge success. Would you say that it also did a great job of reminding people that Tissot is a pioneer in materials and technology?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: These watches are good reminders of our history and innovative spirit. Tissot has created many firsts, such as the Antimagnétique, the RockWatch, the T-Touch. In 1971, the Sideral S debuted, featuring the iconic yellow rubber strap and its innovative fastening system – signature elements of the Sideral family. This model was the world’s first fibreglass watch, featuring a light yet robust design.
When updating it, we were committed to preserving the watch’s heritage and spirit. The original Sideral embodied innovation, adventure and the excitement of the unknown. To recapture these qualities, we chose forged carbon for the case, a material that parallels the lightweight, innovative and resilient nature of fibreglass 60 years ago.
Sport has strong connections for Tissot. The brand has chosen its partnerships well with both cycling and basketball becoming huge internationally. Will these partnerships continue?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: Yes, of course. We will keep strengthening our position in our three major sports of cycling, basketball and MotoGP. In addition to being part of Tissot’s DNA, sports have always been a fundamental communication vector for the brand and will continue to be.
These sports are the perfect platform for demonstrating the brand’s dedication to precision in action. Active involvement as Official Timekeeper in all of these sporting events, including the NBA, FIBA, Tour de France and the UCI World Championships brings Tissot closer to fans all over the world, whether they are watching live, on television or taking part in the action by wearing one of the associated special edition watches like the Seastar Wilson WNBA, the PR100 Tour de France or the T-Race MotoGP. And let’s not forget Ice Hockey and rugby, which Tissot is also involved in as Official Timekeeper.
Tissot was one of the first brands to sponsor both cycling and basketball. Both of these are now becoming globally huge, so a lot of brands are following. Does this bother you?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: It shows that we were right. And good luck to the ones that are following us because I wouldn’t enter a sport where I am going to be number two, three of four, I am only interested in being first and taking the gold medal.
If you look at cycling, we have a long-term partnership with UCI, the Tour de France, the German Tour, British Tour, the World Championship. As you say in English, we eat the cake, the others can have the crumbs.
And in basketball, we have the NBA, if other brands want to sponsor tiny little clubs or have one ambassador then so be it, but for me it doesn’t make sense to have one person.
America and China are our two biggest markets and the two biggest followers of basketball, so the NBA is the perfect partnership for us. And now it’s exploding in Europe, and we will also be the official timekeeper of the NBA Paris game, which is the biggest moment of the NBA outside of the US.
This is your fourth year at Tissot. How do you think the brand has changed in that time?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: Tissot has been on a journey to uplift the brand appeal among younger consumers and the latest collections and campaigns are proof of that. Like the product, the campaigns are edgy and flamboyant with a modern appeal. We want to break the conventional codes of the traditional watch industry.
We have also continued our innovation strategy and reinforced digitalisation with major projects on ecommerce and CRM for example, which I would say has been the most notable change over the past few years.
In terms of retail, what works best for Tissot – monobrand boutiques, multi-brand stores, or online selling?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: It is important for us to have a mix. Opening a corporate boutique can bring significant benefits to partner retailers, by reinforcing the brand image and therefore increasing customer numbers and loyalty. They are all complementary. We have 213 corporate stores worldwide. They are all strategically placed to answer consumer’s demands.
The boutique in Paris was one of the first in the world to integrate the brand’s new design that is part of the image uplift, look and feel. These boutiques are the perfect windows for the millions of visitors that pass by each year.
We want to be able to offer our customers the best experience whether in store or online. The corporate stores are also our laboratories to try merchandising tools and decoration, which can then, be rolled out within our 11,000 points of sale.
Before covid, we were one of the first brands in the industry to have invested in an ecommerce platform. The crisis just accelerated what we were forecasting and boosted our online platforms.
Today, we are facing a rough time with international uncertainties. That said, we are still seeing a lot of opportunities in emerging markets such as India, for example, which is showing a lot of potential, or the US, which is still very strong for us.
You are on the board of CSEM (the Swiss Centre for Electronics and Microtechnology that Swatch Group hold shares in), how does this reflect your interest in technology? How important is it to combine the traditions of watchmaking with contemporary innovations?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: I have always had an interest in technology. As you know, before joining the watch business I was in the telecoms and software industry and then came into watchmaking as head of high tech & access at Swatch. It is also what led me to Tissot with one foot in the door working on the T-Touch Connect Solar project.
Mr Hayek explained to us that we were going to make a connected watch, but not like everyone else: we were going to develop our own engine, our own Swiss OS (Operating System), our own intelligence that would stand out from iOS and Android. He asked us to develop this new watch with ETA and CSEM and we all worked very hard to be able to launch it.
It was a very exciting project. We knew it was going to be complicated: developing an OS is a huge undertaking, even for champions of microelectronics. We benefited from the help of CSEM, which had certain elements that were missing at ETA.
Then ETA had everything else, including development experience in so-called ‘simple’ quartz watches. We brought all these engineers together by introducing new ways of working, new methods (AGILE), and new collaborative tools. We recruited specialists in embedded software for connected watches.
The project was large-scale and exciting and we all learned a lot. The ETA, Tissot and CSEM teams realised the highly strategic nature of the watch, and we all realised that this was the project of a lifetime. When I retire, I’ll particularly remember the Swatch Paparazzi and the T-Touch Connect Solar.
We’re working on the versions of the future, and we’re in the process of bringing new skills in-house, such as applications development. I can’t say too much more than that, but we are investing in certain key elements. So, to answer simply, Tissot stands by its tradition of innovation.
What direction do you see Tissot taking in the next five or 10 years?
SYLVAIN DOLLA: I think the past few years have shown us that our perspectives about the future could change drastically in just a few days or weeks. It has shown us that we can confront the challenges with intelligence, perseverance, and innovation.
The industry’s challenges are already here: technology is evolving fast, and we need and will do everything in our power to be at the forefront, creating new and exciting experiences and watches that can be allies in people’s day-to-day lives.
On another note, the brand should not change. It has been here since 1853 and is still very stable. Even when the market is challenged, Tissot remains very strong.
My job is to continue and not to drastically change the brand DNA but to make it evolve to fit today’s world and people. I would add that we are very optimistic for the future at Tissot, as we have seen a very high level of interest from the new generation below the age of 30.