Swatch & Audemars Piguet Royal Pop watches S’pore launch: Carousell users offer to queue

People in Singapore hoping to get their hands on the new watches as part of the latest Swatch and Audemars Piguet collaboration could opt to pay someone else to queue for them — provided the offers are legitimate.

Queueing service

Listings offering queueing services for the upcoming event have appeared on Carousell ahead of its Singapore launch on May 16.

Checks by Mothership showed several Carousell users offering to queue for the release, with listed prices ranging from about S$40 to S$988.

The listings appeared as watch fans overseas have reportedly begun queueing days ahead of the launch, with lines forming in cities, such as New York and Hong Kong.

Launching in Singapore on May 16

The collection, officially called the Bioceramic Royal Pop Collection, will be available from Saturday.

According to Swatch and Audemars Piguet, the collection combines the design of Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak with Swatch’s POP line from the 1980s.

Unlike a conventional wristwatch, the Royal Pop is a pocket-style watch designed to be worn in multiple ways, such as around the neck, in the pocket, as a bag charm, or as an accessory.

The Royal Pop collection comprises eight models and is powered by a new hand-wound version of Swatch’s SISTEM51 movement.

In Singapore, the watches will be available at Swatch boutiques at Marina Bay Sands, Ion Orchard and VivoCity, according to The Straits Times.

The stores will open at 10am.

Queues overseas

The collaboration has already drawn strong interest overseas.

Business Insider reported that watch fans had turned a Times Square sidewalk in New York into a “campsite” ahead of the drop, with some people spending days outside a Swatch store.

The publication reported that collectors and resellers had begun queueing outside Swatch stores in cities including Houston and New York ahead of the May 16 release.

A person in the New York queue, 24-year-old Noah Hosler from Ohio, said he had booked a flight to New York City after hearing about the Royal Pop line:

“It's more for the experience for me. Camping out and meeting some new people — it's been fun.”

In Hong Kong, long lines also formed days before the launch, according to the South China Morning Post.

SCMP reported that about 50 people were seen queueing in Causeway Bay on Thursday evening, a few metres from a Swatch store on Kai Chiu Road.

One person in the queue, who gave his name only as Jackson, told SCMP:

“If you don’t try, you don’t win.

“How many opportunities do you have in your lifetime to get an AP [Audemars Piguet]?”

More accessible than a traditional Royal Oak

Part of the hype appears to stem from the chance to own an Audemars Piguet-branded item at a much lower price point than the Swiss watchmaker’s traditional Royal Oak timepieces.

SCMP noted that traditional Royal Oak watches are often difficult to obtain, even for buyers who can afford them.

The Royal Pop could fetch more than its original price on the resale market, with its price potentially peaking at around US$2,500 (S$3,199) on launch day.

With queues already forming overseas and queueing services appearing locally, the Singapore launch may draw similar interest when the collection drops on May 16.