• Bloomberg, Thursday, March 18, 2010 10:47 AM

Swatch Group's Omega watch line grabbed market share from Rolex in the $35 billion Swiss watch industry last year, analysts say -- a reflection of both price and design. Rolex's cheapest model is almost 60% more expensive than Omega's, Tom Mulier reports from Geneva, and, as one 30-year-old Chinese businessman told him: "Omega's designs are newer and trendier. Rolex is old and traditional."

Swatch has 17 other brands, from the $50 plastic Swatches to and Breguet timepieces that fetch $700,000. Omega's 2008 sales were about 1.48 billion Swiss francs, estimates Bank Vontobel analyst Rene Weber, compared with Rolex' 4.5 billion francs and Cartier's 1.63 billion francs.

Baselworld, the biggest watch fair, starts today in Basel, Switzerland, and both brands will be exhibiting their new models. Rolex clearly has a long way to go but Omega is gaining momentum. "Rolex is losing market share against Omega and over time this might weaken Rolex's hegemony," says Andre Polony, the owner of a Swiss jewelry and watch store.

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