Apple hires sales director of luxury Swiss watch maker TAG Heuer to help with the iWatch launch (Jenny Cosgrave/CNBC)


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Apple hires sales director of luxury Swiss watch maker TAG Heuer to help with the iWatch launch (Jenny Cosgrave/CNBC)


An employee assembles a Hublot wristwatch case at the company's headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland,

Gianluca Colla I Bloomberg via Getty Images


An employee assembles a Hublot wristwatch case at the company's headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland,



Biver said he was happy for the employee as the new role represents a great opportunity for him.



"If it had been a direct competitor, I would have felt a bit betrayed, but if he goes to Apple I think it is a great experience for him," he said.



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Apple's plans to hire Swiss watch experts are an attempt to market its product as "Swiss made", which senior luxury goods analyst at Bernstein, Mario Ortelli, said is a label that is synonymous with quality when it comes to watches.



"For sure they are trying to approach the Swiss manufacturers, but the Swiss have got no great interest in working with Apple – if you are a luxury producer and you cooperate with Apple, you have got a dilution," Ortelli told CNBC.



"They (Swiss watchmakers) do not want to create a device like the iPhone, the iPhone is designed in California and assembled in China – so they don't want to dilute the value of the Swiss name," he said.



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Ortelli said Apple's new product poses a threat to the low-end Swiss watches, but ultimately it is an opportunity for high-end watch brands, as it could create more young watch consumers who will then be introduced to the watch market.



By CNBC's Jenny Cosgrave: Follow her onTwitter
@jenny_cosgrave






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