Trouble broke out at a limited-edition sales event at a Birmingham store which saw customers queue up overnight, leading to the closure of the shop. The Swatch x Audemars Piguet Royal Pop pocket watch launch at the Bullring shopping centre descended into chaos, with police called to handle disorder.
Overnight Queue and Limited Stock
Buyers patiently waited outside the Bullring from Friday (May 15) into Saturday (May 16) to get their hands on the highly anticipated watch. However, when the shop opened at 9am, reports emerged of fights and trouble. Police were called and reportedly had bottles thrown at them. The shop closed shortly after sales began, as only 40 watches were available despite hundreds queuing.
One buyer, the owner of The Pawn Shop in Augusta Street, Jewellery Quarter, queued from 4pm on Friday for 17 hours and was fourth in line. He described the scene: “There were 400 people in the queue and only 40 watches got sold. The rest got turned away. Throughout the night someone broke their leg. There were two fights and somebody had a knife in the queue as well. It was crazy.”
High Demand and Resale Market
The collaboration between Swatch and Audemars Piguet created a surge of interest, with eight different watches on sale. Six versions were priced at £335 and two at £350. The shop owner, who wished to remain anonymous, criticized the event organization: “The organisation of the event was awful with kids being crushed, people doing drugs, and someone’s leg being broken.” He queued with seven colleagues to buy one of each colour, and the watches are now on sale on The Pawn Shop’s website for £3,000 each, with one already sold.
Police Response
A West Midlands Police spokesman said: “In the early hours of this morning (Saturday, May 16), we were called to Swatch store in Birmingham city centre to deal with disorder. A dispersal order was put in place and one stop and search was carried out as officers dealt with the incident. There were no reported injuries and no-one was arrested. We are continuing to liaise with store staff and our partners at the Bullring.”
Wider Impact
The early closure in Birmingham was mirrored at other UK shops, including in Cardiff, Glasgow, Liverpool, London, Manchester, and Sheffield. Swatch posted on Facebook: “In light of safety considerations for both customers and our staff all our London stores and in Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, Sheffield, Glasgow and Cardiff will be closed for the day. Thank you for your understanding.”
Before the sales, Swatch described the collection as “a ground-breaking watch collection that combines joyful boldness and positive provocation with fine watchmaking,” inspired by Pop Art and designed to be worn in multiple ways.
