Breitling Cuts Jobs Amid 11% Global Sales Decline
Breitring, owned by private‑equity firms Partners Group and CVC Capital Partners, is confronting an 11 % decline in global sales to CHF 769 million and a 21 % drop in adjusted EBITDA profit to CHF 162 million for the year ending March 2025. The slowdown, driven by a stronger Swiss franc, rising material costs and inflation, has led the company to cut roughly 50 jobs across HR, marketing and sustainability functions, while the total workforce remains around 2,000 employees. Swiss short‑time work schemes, which reimburse up to 80 % of lost wages, are being used to mitigate further layoffs, and the government is considering extending these measures as the watch industry remains subdued. In the UK market, Breitring’s sales fell 24.1 % to £58 million in the year to March 2025, though they stayed above pre‑pandemic levels, and operating profit dropped 24.6 % to £2.3 million with a steady 4 % margin. Recent leadership changes include the appointment of Georges Kern as CEO of the newly formed House of Brands and Antoine Loron taking over as Breitring’s CEO, signaling a strategic push to expand the brand’s presence in the United States and introduce additional luxury brands under the group’s umbrella.
Buying Time Analysis: The article highlights how Breitling’s sales decline and modest layoffs illustrate the broader challenges facing Swiss watchmakers, and shows how short‑time work schemes are being used to buy time and avoid larger redundancies in a weakening luxury market.
