Chaos and Tear Gas as Swatch Launches AP Watch

(IDEX Online) - The launch of Swatch's latest watch collection - a collaboration with Audemars Piguet (AP), triggered scuffles, arrests, and temporary store closures as shoppers fought to get their hands on the $400 timepieces.

Outside a Swatch store near Paris, police reportedly fired tear gas after a crowd of about 300 people gathered and the situation threatened to spiral out of control.

In New York, reports said police used pepper spray at Roosevelt Field Mall and made at least one arrest outside a Swatch outlet in Manhattan.

In Austin, Texas, police arrested three people for trespassing at The Domain mall after hundreds of people turned up. Swatch also temporarily closed more than 30 stores where the collection was due to go on sale on 16 May.

There were multiple reports of overcrowding, pushing, and aggressive behavior in Dubai, Mumbai, Delhi, Singapore, London, and elsewhere, prompting intervention from police and mall security.

Swatch responded by urging customers not to rush to stores in large groups. The company said the Royal Pop collection is not a limited edition and, although it is not available online, it will be sold in stores for several months.

"To ensure the safety of both our customers and our staff in Swatch stores, we kindly ask you not to rush to our stores in large numbers to acquire this product," the company said in a social media post.

The collection pairs the mass-market Swatch with Audemars Piguet, one of the priciest Swiss watch brands.

It includes eight playful, Pop Art-inspired versions of the Royal Oak, Audemars Piguet's most famous watch line, which remains one of the brand's defining designs and is currently priced from $15,000.

Pic shows crowds outside a Swatch store in New York and (inset) a Royal Pop watch.