"With our 4:20 and 4-Bit watches," says Vanya Buvac, founder and General Manager of Philadelphia's
Cadence Watch Company. "People light up when they see them."
And that's the key to marketing an analog timepiece in a digital age, according to Buvac. "We are developing watches for particular markets." Beginning with its reddit-branded product, which sports the reddit alien on a largely black face, Cadence has always put the customer at the center of its design. "We figure out whom to develop the watch for, how to reach that person, and market test it so that when the launch comes, it's easy to publicize and market."
In the case of the 4-Bit model, Buvac knew that the audience was the Tech Crunch/Engadget crowd, so it was not much of a stretch to market via those sites, giving Engadget a bit of an exclusive to help with promotion.
Similarly, the creation of 4:20 line was very deliberate, based on conversations with reddit about strong sub-communities of redditors, one of which is people who know why 4:20 is an important time of day. Getting coverage for that watch in High Times magazine was easier than filling a pipe. "We integrate publicity with design," explains Buvac. In the first week alone, there were 800 pre-orders for the stoner-friendly watch.
Traditionally, there are two ways that people market a commodity like a watch, says Buvac: through celebrity endorsements and sponsorship of sporting events. "We didn't want to do that. We want to do product development that's going to help our audience stand out in a sophisticated way. With the 4:20 line, the style of the watch is a very subtle manifestation of belonging to that group. For people who know, it's a signal."
The micro niching strategy also helps with Cadence's recent decision to shift all sales exclusively to the internet. Cutting out retail chain distribution saves 50 to 70% on the price to the consumer, and forgoing wholesalers and exporter clearinghouses saves another 10%. "The designs bring people in the door, but the value proposition seals the deal," says Buvac, who can afford to sell watches for $60 and still make enough money to pay staff. Cadence does its own e-commerce as well, using the Magento platform. Cadence is now seeking to hire an e-commerce buyer.
"Everyone says, why do you need a watch today? But the watch industry in 2010 was $43 billion, and grew by 4%. It's been growing 4% or more for last 5 years. It's a very exciting market to be in. The opportunities are enormous. There is a misperception in the tech community that it's a dying industry, but it's not," says Buvac, who works out of The Marketplace Design Center at 2400 Market Street with four employees, and also operates a fulfillment center in Horsham.
Source: Vanya Buvac, Cadence Watch Company
Writer: Sue Spolan