• by Tanya Gazdik , Yesterday

The release of a Swatch and Audemars Piguet collaborative watch resulted in the sort of consumer excitement that can only be found in retailers' dreams. 

The problem is, the crowds got a little bit of hand, kind of like the famous Cabbage Patch Riots of 1983. (Do a search for it, it was really a thing.)

Back to the watches. Long lines formed outside Swatch stores ahead of Saturday’s launch of “Royal Pop,” a series of pocket watches modeled on AP’s iconic Royal Oak.

“Scenes turned ugly in several locations, with videos shared online showing fights breaking out and security guards struggling to contain large crowds,” according to CNN Style. “In the US, 19 Swatch outlets were closed over safety concerns, and a police officer in Long Island, New York appeared to use pepper-spray on a crowd. Stores in several European cities were also temporarily shuttered, while Swatch preemptively canceled launch events in India and Dubai. Police in both the UK and U.S. reportedly made arrests after crowds failed to disperse.”

On Sunday, Swatch issued a social media statement urging customers “not to rush to our stores in large numbers,” citing concern for the safety of staff and shoppers. It added: “In some countries, queues of more than 50 people cannot be accepted, and sales may need to be paused.” On its website, Swatch meanwhile assured customers that the collection will “remain available for several months.”

But a customer at the Times Square Swatch store — who had been waiting since Wednesday — said the scene was like a “mosh pit.” 

While waiting overnight for concert tickets used to be a thing, it doesn’t happen that much for retail items. 

“In several French cities, queues of hundreds of people formed overnight from Friday to Saturday,” according to The Guardian. “A police source said officers had fired teargas to control a 300-strong crowd outside a Swatch shop in Paris, where a metal shutter and two security gates were damaged.The police said the stores had underestimated the need for security.”

Some of those hoping to procure the watches may have been resellers hoping to turn a profit.

“Hype around the release has been been building since the companies unveiled it on Tuesday,” according to Business Insider. “Audemars Piguet watches can cost tens of thousands of dollars, marking its partnership with Swatch, an affordable brand, all the more enticing.”

In the end, Swatch decided to put the Pop online for $400.  

“You can check what stores have it in stock easily, without having to line up in the middle of the night,” according to Showbiz411. “This kills the collectors' market. Right now there are a lot of posts on eBay and elsewhere selling the Pop for thousands of dollars.”