Fearless Form and Function
In the north of Denmark lies a tiny fishing town that produces the hardiest of people, yet inspires the most exquisite of creations.
The name of the place is Skagen.
Located on the northernmost tip of Denmark, Skagen sits where two seas—the Kattegat and Skaggerak—merge in turbulent waves that literally form the letter “x” as they crash into one another.
The salt crystal content of the atmosphere heightens the sky’s color and gives everything a sparkly, magical feel, which inspired the works of Danish artists like P.S. Kroyer and Anna and Michael Ancher.
The sky over Skagen, according to Norbreeze Managing Director Anders Peter Sauerberg, is “30% to 40% bluer than anywhere else.” He says Skagen’s dancing light was also influential in shaping the Impressionist style of painting.
These days, Skagen again lends its name and beauty to a line of products established by Danish couple Henrik and Charlotte Jorst. Begun in 1989 and spanning watches, jewelry, and sunglasses, Skagen stands for “clean, simple, high quality” designs. Norbreeze is the company that distributes the brand in Asia.
Nature Never Goes Out of Fashion
The timeless design of its watches—particularly the Black and White labels—was recently awarded the coveted Red Dot Design award. This was celebrated at the Red Dot Museum in Singapore. Given to brands with outstanding design quality, past recipients include Apple Computers and BMW.
“Nature never goes out of fashion,” says Norbreeze Branding and Marketing Director Anne Trads Hansen. The White Label, for instance, was inspired by the changing color of a summer sky and the gentle beige of the sand dunes. “A walk on the beach is astonishing now as it was millions of years ago,” Hansen says.
Having nature do the talking is aligned with Skagen’s low but distinct profile. “When we started,” relates Anita Jensen, Skagen sales and marketing director for Asia, “the philosophy was not to dictate to the consumer what fashion was, but that you can find beauty in the simplest things.”
There is nothing simple about the construction of a Skagen watch, however. True to its Danish origin, function follows form to the tiniest details. It is impressively thin, which makes it a favorite among executives whose starched cuffs need an inconspicuous, but handsome, watch to slide over. Its stainless steel mesh line moves as if the bands were more cloth than metal. Skagen also has a titanium line, created to address the niche that is allergic to the nickel content in steel straps.
“It looks beautiful but is very practical,” Hansen adds, noting that the slight curve of the face enables it to “grab” your wrist so it “doesn’t dance around and gets scratched.”
All designs are kept within the company, says Jensen, although Skagen will be commissioning a Japanese designer next year. “It’s a major leap forward,” she says, “it’s out of the comfort zone of the owners, but since we’re a global brand, we have to show that we can be run and driven by other things.”
The Skagen Customer
At a fraction of what luxury name watches cost, Jensen shares that the market initially was affronted with Skagen’s audacity in offering quality, non-compromising designs at non-luxury prices. “Twenty one years ago, this was a revolution. The big brands were actually quite offended, because how dare we compromise margins, dissolving the whole business of luxury?”
As a result, they’ve had “converts” who started wearing and buying Skagen watches for themselves, for their business partners and family members.
“What’s interesting is that some of our customers ask for an engraving – it’s become an occasion watch,” says Hansen. “It’s a safe gift.” It’s also got a limited international warranty, and “you don’t burn a hole in your pocket. You spend with responsibility. That’s one of the reasons we’ve managed to grow.”
There is no exact age profile when it comes to the Skagen customer, shares Jensen. “It’s all across over the board, from 16-year-olds to 90-year-olds. But the denominator is that they are affluent.” And independent-minded enough to “not care if they’re wearing a slim watch when everyone’s wearing thick bulky watches.”
A Class on their Own
The Jorsts are adamant that the Skagen brand maintain its identity. Last spring, for example, when everyone was doing colors, Skagen introduced a white watch. “It really stood out in the stores; we had the best spring season ever,” says Jensen. “Now we build our own trends.”
The 2011 spring collection, she reveals, will be “very white”—and will feature ceramic material. “Easy to clean, durable—and only 199 to 249 euros.” Compare that to the ceramic watches currently being offered by a high-end fashion house, which cost five digits.
When they launched in Asia, shares Jensen, no one was making slim watches. “And so the question was whether we should make what everyone else is doing. And the owners said no, we stick to what we’ve been doing. When we see high fashion, we interpret in our own way. It’s a very narrow road and sometimes it’s a very frustrating one, but our owners are very committed to what they (believe in the) business. ‘Let’s stick to what we are’”—and that’s ultra-slim, organic, classic designs that withstand fads and the test of time.
“It takes a lot of courage to not jump on the fashion bandwagon and just be who you are,” Jensen ends. – Article courtesy of Manila Bulletin
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