After Rolex and Hublot, it is today's breaking news that Audemars Piguet, has decided to close its headquarters to prevent the spread of the coronavirus infection outbreak. The decision taken by Hublot to shut down their Nyon-based plant, along with Audemars Piguet closing headquarters and boutiques, is in line with the restrictions enforced in Switzerland to reduce the contagion from Covid–19, on par with the restrictions long since applied across Italy and other European countries. Audemars Piguet's decision comes a day after Hublot and Rolex had decided to stop all their activities.
However, these three brands have adopted slightly different actions: Rolex is closed from 17 to March 27, Audemars Piguet until the end of the month, whereas Hublot has applied more substantial restrictions, and the shut down will continue until further notice by the brand itself. The general limits enforced by the Swiss Federation involve all the commercial activities (including restaurants, shops, leisure areas, etc.) until April 19. The pandemic keeps affecting Switzerland at a fast pace, too; let's bear in mind the number of confirmed cases of infection by coronavirus has raised to 3,115 infected and 33 deaths, according to the freshly updated website Worldometer. We have no confirmation yet, but we presume these luxury watch brands are promoting smart working as much as possible. Nonetheless, this situation confirms it'll be a down year for the watch industry, globally.
(Photo credit: courtesy of Hublot, Horbiter®'s proprietary)
Gaetano C @Horbiter®
Instagram – Gaetano Cimmino
