LVMH watch division president Jean-Claude Biver has changed his tune on smartwatches and now says his company is looking at linkups to produce its own connected timepiece.
“There are some talks taking place about a partnership,” said Biver, according to The Wall Street Journal. “Maybe in nine months, we will have a smartwatch.”
It’s a little “contradictory” for high-end brands to dabble in high tech, he admitted.
“Luxury is supposed to be eternal,” he said. “How do you justify a $2,000 smartwatch whose technology will become obsolete in two years?”
But he said that Apple’s entrance into the market has spurred the luxury giant to action.
“Others have done smartwatches before,” he added. “But when Apple does it, it will sell.”
Biver had previously been dismissive of the Apple Watch, telling a local newspaper it was “too feminine,” lacking in “sex appeal,” and it “looks like it was designed by a student in their first trimester.”
However, he had also announced that TAG Heuer was working on a smartwatch, but without a partner.
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