Accordin to Reuters the Swiss competition authority WEKO, will soon investigate Swiss watchmakers. This after getting complaints from independent repair centres and customers about the restrictive supply of spare parts.
A WEKO investigation could lead to a fine and would increase pressure on industry majors Swatch Group, Richemont and unlisted Rolex to make spare parts available beyond their network of accredited repairers.
While watch brands say only their accredited repair centres offer the best quality service to customers, independent repairers say they are cheaper and often faster and that clients should be free to do what they want with their watches.
“We received complaints from independent watch repairers who no longer had access to parts, but also from customers who were unhappy they could not get their watch repaired wherever they wanted,” WEKO Deputy Director Patrik Ducrey told Reuters on Thursday.
Full Content: Daily Mail
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