They‘re really reaching with that title. Company town is way outsized.
Yes, you can see it like that (through the eyes of Americans). American love wealth, rich companies and big, fat numbers. And that is what Switzerland provides on a tiny area.
The article itself talks mainly about the Swiss watch industry. And it got popular traction in recent years. The UK based YouTube channel “Watchfinder&Co” has over 700’000 subscribers alone. Only from showing close-ups of watches and telling good stories about. Then there is Nicoleonardvanderhorst, Bark&Jack, Teddy Baldassare or Jenni Elle – just to name a few. All foreigners talking about how they love Swiss watches.
The industry reflects the general Swiss approach: We take something from low value (a small pile of metal, a few chemical molecules, a few numbers on a bank account, raw coffee), process it and sell it for a huge markup. However, we can only do it because Swiss learn from early on how to create additional value. You can buy a 40 years old Rolex Submariner, Datejust or Day-Date and it will still look cool on your wrist. That is real added value. And so, the watch industry projects important Swiss values to other countries. Reliability, attention to detail, value retention and innovation. Thus, making it easier for other Swiss industries to sell their products, too.
4 comments
They‘re really reaching with that title. Company town is way outsized.
Yes, you can see it like that (through the eyes of Americans). American love wealth, rich companies and big, fat numbers. And that is what Switzerland provides on a tiny area.
The article itself talks mainly about the Swiss watch industry. And it got popular traction in recent years. The UK based YouTube channel “Watchfinder&Co” has over 700’000 subscribers alone. Only from showing close-ups of watches and telling good stories about. Then there is Nicoleonardvanderhorst, Bark&Jack, Teddy Baldassare or Jenni Elle – just to name a few. All foreigners talking about how they love Swiss watches.
The industry reflects the general Swiss approach: We take something from low value (a small pile of metal, a few chemical molecules, a few numbers on a bank account, raw coffee), process it and sell it for a huge markup. However, we can only do it because Swiss learn from early on how to create additional value. You can buy a 40 years old Rolex Submariner, Datejust or Day-Date and it will still look cool on your wrist. That is real added value. And so, the watch industry projects important Swiss values to other countries. Reliability, attention to detail, value retention and innovation. Thus, making it easier for other Swiss industries to sell their products, too.
Switzerland is my town!
> Is Switzerland a ‘Company Town?’
Betteridge’s law of headlines strikes again.