The AP x Swatch collab is not a wristwatch. Is the hype over?

This week, the hype around the Swatch x Audemars Piguet "Royal Pop" watch built to a fever pitch. In the lead-up to the big reveal, watch collectors were already planning when they would start to line up at Swatch stores to secure the highly anticipated product.

But then the watch was fully revealed: not a wristwatch, but a pocket watch meant to be worn on a lanyard, clipped to a bag or snapped into a desk stand. The hype shifted.

Earlier this week, before the reveal, Robertino Altieri, founder and CEO of the watch marketplace WatchGuys, told Glossy that he suspected the hype would be subdued if the Royal Pop wasn't a classic wristwatch. After the reveal, Altieri joined the Glossy Podcast to talk about how the watch community is receiving the Royal Pop and what the collaboration says about the state of the watch industry.

As we've previously covered on Glossy, the Royal Pop seems to be following in the path of the mega-popular Swatch x Omega Moonswatch from 2022. Despite concerns that the Moonswatch would dilute the value of Omega, sales of Omega's flagship Speedmaster watch increased by 50% based on the popularity of the Moonswatch.

So will watch buyers take to the unorthodox new model? While diehard watch collectors may be scratching their head at the funky novelty of the Royal Pop, AP seems to be targeting a more casual consumer, someone who potentially has never owned an Audemars Piguet watch before, in a bid to expand its consumer base.