BRAND IDENTITY: Maxime Herbelin plots a future for French flair, form, and functionality

HERBELIN, which rebranded from its previous name of Michel Herbelin in 2022, is a French watch brand present in 53 countries across the world. This covers almost 2,000 points of sale, with 40,000 units sold per year, so it’s a company operating at significant scale. With two flagship boutiques in France and an 80th anniversary coming up next year, the company’s marketing director Maxime Herbelin spoke with Watch Insider’s Daniel Malins about expansion plans, French flair, and the USA-shaped hole in its current operation.

Watch Insider: Can you remind me of what it was that led to the brand making that decision to drop the ‘Michel’ from its name in the first place? It’s been a few years since you did it, so how has the new ‘HERBELIN’ name been received in that time?

Maxime Herbelin: What happened was that we decided to change the name once we took over the company in 2020. As you know, it was the pandemic, and we were at the end of the second generation’s leadership and the start of the third. So we had to give our vision to the brand. The first question was: “Is Michel Herbelin easily readable or understandable for everyone, everywhere?” We needed to figure out something to give more exposure to the brand and make a bold statement. We decided that we wouldn’t be killing ‘Michel,’ as the company is still named Michel Herbelin. However, for communication purposes, HERBELIN is easier to read and write. It is easier to recognise, more modern, and in line with other luxury French brands. With Christian Dior, you have Dior, with Yves Saint Laurent, you have Saint Laurent. So you had Michel Herbelin, now you have HERBELIN, even if the soul of Michel is still in the company.

That was the first idea we had. At the same time, we wanted to give the brand a new global image in terms of products, communication, naming, tagline, and everything. It was good timing for the new photographic charts, communication campaigns, displays, and collections. It was a fresh start, I would say, but without getting rid of everything done in the past. It’s just evolution. I think today a lot of people still say Michel Herbelin, but when they see HERBELIN, they say: “Oh, this is modern, this is a new generation.” Is it still Michel Herbelin? Yes, but this is a new generation. So it’s working pretty well. 

WI: So you felt like it wasn’t just a branding exercise or logo change — did you feel like there was a product shift as well at that time?

MH: Everything. It was just a small shift, you know. It’s always difficult with a company that has lasted for almost 80 years not to change everything, because when you’ve existed for so long, with the same management or family at the head of the company, it means that a lot of things have worked in the past. You don’t want to get rid of what has worked, but you want to be in touch with the new generation’s way of doing business and the new way of creation. That’s why it’s a very sensitive subject. It’s very difficult not to change everything, but to change enough that people can see the significant changes while it still belongs to the Michel Herbelin spirit.

That’s why we changed the design of the Newport, for instance, but we did not change Newport. We still kept the DNA of Newport, but we have a new vision of Newport. And this is what is tricky, but it’s working.

WI: Well, that was my next question. How do you think that change has gone? And by what criteria are you giving me that answer? 

MH: Both the feedback we have from customers, retailers, distributors, and also from a sales point of view. Because for six or seven years now, the brand has been growing. And it’s not only in France, but worldwide also. In the UK, we took over the UK distribution company in 2018. And, since then, it’s been growing. And we were starting from zero at the time. Every year, we get a little bit more recognition. People like the brand more and more. Retailers say that the quality and the design are always there. That helps to build the brand and improve sales. Of course, I’m not saying that everything is perfect. In Korea, for instance, when we got rid of the ‘Michel,’ it was a huge thing there.

WI: Why was that?

MH: Because we were using ‘Michel Herbelin.’ Michel sounds like ladies’ watches, and Herbelin not at all. All the branding was around Michel and Michel Herbelin, but Michel mostly, so when we changed, for them it was a new brand. It was not successful at the beginning, and we are restarting. 

For communication purposes, ‘HERBELIN’ is easier to read and write. It is easier to recognise, more modern, and in line with other luxury French brands.”

WI: On that subject of different markets, France must be the most dominant market for you. But where else would you say you’re performing really well? And which countries and territories do you feel like you have a lot of potential in that you haven’t tapped into fully yet?

MH: All of them! Historically France is the main market, but international sales are growing, every year. So we are over 50% for international sales now. France used to be 60–65%, and now we are over 50% for international countries. We have historical countries like South Africa, where we are performing pretty well, considering the market. We are selling thousands of watches, which is a huge success for us. In the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and the Scandinavian countries, we have been there for a long time, but we are developing slowly. I think the fastest growing would be the United Kingdom and Ireland, because we have a very involved team there to develop the brand. We are really happy with that. In other countries, it’s more difficult because, for a family-owned company, we don’t have the budget for developing faster. We are getting better and better. 

The other point is that, when it comes to watchmaking, you think about Switzerland, you don’t think about France. That’s why we need to develop more, step by step. It’s not as easy for us as it is for the Swiss. We need to inform people to give them the assurance that HERBELIN is well made. It takes a little bit more time and, from a marketing point of view, it’s not as easy as branding a Swiss brand. That’s why we develop slowly, but we develop for sure, I say, in these countries in particular. Another country we are pretty well settled in is Turkey. For four years now we are in this country and we are developing more and more retail shops and specific branding around HERBELIN. Also Poland, which is a fast growing country for us. And we recently opened India two years ago, which is a country with a lot of potential.

WI: And a lot of people.

MH: A lot of people that might be interested in the French. You know, I was talking about Swiss, but they are really interested in French flair, French creation, the French art de vivre and everything. That really helps us over there because they don’t think we are like another Swiss brand — we are really a genuine French brand. For them, when we give them the quality of a Swiss brand, but with our French flair, it’s something that makes a difference. That’s why this is a country where we have a lot of potential. What we need now is to keep on developing the key collections like Antarès and Newport, and then to develop with branding and communication. 

WI: One country you didn’t mention is the United States. It’s the world’s leading market, it has lots of affluent cities, and lots of affluence generally. But it also comes with complications in the recent past, including the tariffs debacle. And, logistically, it’s not as easy as shipping to Europe for you. What’s your opinion on HERBELIN’s potential in America?

MH: Yes, it reminds me of that song [Empire State Of Mind]: “If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.” For our two boutiques in Paris and also our websites, the main customers are French, but the second ones are Americans, and yet we have no physical presence, no advertising, nothing in America. This is the best country for watches, as you said, but the entry price is too expensive for us at the moment. We need to concentrate in Europe, in countries where you don’t need to spend your turnover, in terms of communication. 

We’ve tried to break into America four or five times in the past decades because we believed that it was very important to be in the most important country for watchmaking. But at the moment it’s too expensive to enter the country because the territories are so wide, and the people are so different from East Coast to West Coast. I think if we want to go to America, we will open our boutiques. Maybe one in New York, one in Los Angeles, one in Miami. But going into retail there, it’s too big for us for the moment. This is a dream.

WI: So, the idea of opening boutiques in LA or New York is just hypothetical, or have you begun to think of plans like that?

MH: No, for the moment it’s just hypothetical, because we’re developing the retail networks with our own boutiques. We start in France, then in Europe, and then in America. But I think the easiest way for us to go there safely would be to open our own boutiques, because as an independent company, it’s very difficult. If you go, for example, to France, it costs 1,000. If you go to America, it’s 100,000. So, what do you do? Are you sure you’re going to succeed even if you put in 100,000? It’s dangerous for the company to put all our eggs in the same basket. That’s why we’re going step by step. But for sure, once we have the opportunity to go there, if we have a very good distributor that believes in the brand and they said, “Okay, let me start small and then we’ll go wide and wild,” that would be a good opportunity. The ‘American Dream’ is still there.

I’ve been in the industry for 20 years now. It has never been predictable. Never.”

WI: I asked you earlier about the change of branding. Related to that, I wonder whether the division of the gender split of your sales has changed? What did that split used to be and what is it since you dropped the ‘Michel’ from the brand name? 

MH: It is basically the same. We are still selling more ladies’ watches in terms of quantity because we have been specialists in this since the 70s. We have specific designs for ladies, so it’s pretty well appreciated by ladies. So, no changes on this side, but we are getting more and more recognised as a specialist in mechanical watches.

WI: What percentage of sales would be mechanical then?

MH: 25%.

WI: And it used to be lower?

MH: 20 years ago it was 1%! So it’s growing.

WI: You read a lot about women becoming more discerning and more into horology. Is that just a media narrative or is it true? If it’s true, are you trying to elevate your ladies’ products a bit?

MH: I think that it’s true. It’s not common to the mass market, but ladies are more and more interested in watches, but mostly because they are married to, or getting along with, guys who are really fond of watchmaking. They get the interest from that. Our sales guys are asking for automatic watches for ladies more and more. This is not only a journalist’s point of view, this is true.

WI: Is that a good or bad thing? On the one hand, you could say it makes the research, development, and design process more complicated. But, on the other hand, it probably elevates the price as well and makes the customer more engaged, rather than just putting a diamond on a watch or making the watch smaller.

MH: I think you’re right on both sides. It’s more difficult because the mechanical movements are very big, even the small ones. So, when it comes to having a very sleek and minimalistic design for a ladies’ watch like we have with Fil, for example, it’s impossible. Even if you want to have a smaller diameter, you would have something very thick, even if you cheat with the design of the caseback. I think it’s going to be complicated to have ladies’ watches — jewellery-like watches — with a mechanical movement. Even the smallest ones are already too big. If we can have a ladies dedicated automatic collection, we have some models that are around 34mm in diameter, which is not small, but the watch looks elegant. If you go smaller, the watch would not look elegant. So you need to get another kind of smaller movement.

WI: A final question on the movement: have you given any consideration to using a solar movement in your watches? I think this is going to be a major change in the next few years. What would stop you fully embracing that technology?

MH: We are thinking of using a solar movement, of course. I cannot say it’s done, but we are really watching what’s happening, especially in Switzerland. We had an opportunity to work with a company [that does solar movements] about 10 years ago. But the main point with solar movement is to get the light. If you want to get the light, you need openings in the dial. It makes the design very difficult. For a minimalistic ladies’ watch it’s very difficult. For a sports watch where there is a lot of stuff on the dial, you can have openings that are a part of the design. 

When it’s clear, you still have some wires — even if you can barely see them, you still see them a little bit. So it gives a strange feeling to the watch. If you want something efficient, you need to have a dark one to get the light. The interesting thing is that, if you have a solar movement, you don’t need to change the battery. So yes, I think solar will be the future once the movement is as reliable as a quartz one.

WI: One of final questions is on the family dynamics at the business and to what extent that can put a strain on relations? Do you have very defined roles that make sure you’re not treading on each other’s toes?

MH: Yes, we have very defined roles. We are four guys, and one guy, Cédric [Gomez-Montiel], is in charge of organising. He’s leading the organisation and the financial stuff. All the other guys, we have a specific department. Mathieu [Herbelin] is in charge of all the creation department, from boutiques to designing all the watches and everything. Benjamin [Theurillat] is in charge of all the supplying, the supply chain, and buying all the spare parts, and a bit of international markets. And I’m in charge of all the marketing stuff, all that’s related to the brand. 

We join together once a week to talk about all subjects. But I won’t say to Mathieu, “You need to draw this kind of watch,” or Mathieu never tells me, “You need to communicate this product,” or whatever. You don’t go very fast when you’re not alone, but you always balance everything. When you’re a company like us, a family-owned company, it’s a good thing not to go too fast on one side. Sometimes we don’t go too fast, but if you are working with other guys at the same level and you say, “I want to go there, what do you think?” you arrive at something common.

WI: As long as it’s constructive, it’s probably good if you have disagreements at various stages, because otherwise there’s just a bit of groupthink going on, which might not necessarily be conducive to the best decision-making.

MH: Of course, when it comes to ego, it’s not good. When you think about the brand of the company, it’s always good because you don’t take it personally. You might say maybe we don’t need to spend our money there, or maybe we need to go to this country, or maybe we should not go with this model, but it needs to be constructive. It’s a bit difficult to sail a big ship like this one, being alone.

WI: Finally, what would you say is your expectation of HERBELIN in the next year or two? Where do you think the big growth opportunities lie? Is it in different territories or is it just improving what you already have? And what’s your forecast for the watch industry generally? 

MH: To answer the first question, it’s easy. I think we’ll focus more on our existing markets, to develop them. If we have opportunities for other countries, we will always study these opportunities. But the point for the moment is not to expand too much, it’s to control the expenditure.

The other point you said, it’s difficult to say. I think every year there’s something that is not expected. A crisis, a war, new kinds of customers, a new product that nobody believes in. I think that consistency is the key. If you are looking for people that are looking for reliable products with a history, and authenticity, I think this is the key to last long. 

I’ve been in the industry for decades, for 20 years now, and I’ve been living with watches for more than 40 years. It has never been predictable. Never. I think for HERBELIN we will continue to develop retail and our international networks. We really feel that the traditional retail networks are shrinking. So we need to get new ways of distributing our products, or strengthening some partnerships with good retailers. And we will continue to develop the brand, the products in our price range, and the same quality of standards with new movements, complications, and materials, as our core business is creating and designing. I hope we will still continue to grow at a regular pace. We don’t want to have peaks — we just want to grow slowly, but surely.