Fifth Avenue is still widely regarded as the most prestigious shopping street in the world.
With regards to watches, that’s still the case, considering Rolex, Omega, Cartier, Tiffany, Louis Vuitton, and many others have their flagships there.
However, not far away is Billionaires’ Row, an area south of Central Park, in Midtown Manhattan, named for all the ultra-expensive skyscrapers housing billionaires.
New York City is not just the city with the most millionaires — it’s also the city with the most billionaires (The Bay Area is reported to have more billionaires, but that’s not a single city). Luxury watch companies naturally operate in these areas due to the number of people who can afford their products.
Even though the prestigious mainstream (volume) watchmakers mentioned above still dominate Fifth Avenue, for years, East 57th Street has been accumulating ultra-luxury watch brands that target ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWI). Aptly, this area has also been dubbed Billionaires’ Row, due to the clientele the stores target and its proximity to the skyscrapers in the larger area that goes by the same name.
Audemars Piguet is at 65 East 57th Street, Vacheron Constantin is at 28 East 57th Street, Richard Mille is at 46 East 57th Street, and now, a few doors down, right across from The Four Seasons Midtown, Blancpain has relocated to 40 East 57th Street.
The new Blancpain boutique is smaller than the 2-level boutique previously operated out of on Fifth Avenue for the past decade, although it’s now better positioned to target the uber-rich.
Blancpain is headquartered in the Le Sentier village within Switzerland’s famous Vallée de Joux watchmaking region. Blancpain operates in a factory that was previously Frédéric Piguet, and is one of the oldest and most storied Swiss watchmakers. However, unlike its new neighbors, Audemars Piguet, Richard Mille, and Vacheron Constantin, it’s not currently in the top 20 Swiss watchmakers (based on sales revenue). Presumably, this is what Blancpain hopes to change by being more accessible to a wealthier clientele.
Photo by Blancpain.
