The Tamesis
Collaborations like Opera Ball are evaluated based on three criteria: cultural relevance, relative size and return on investment. “If someone is much smaller than us, they’re not going to bring value. If they’re much bigger, we’re going to be the backbone,” he said. The brand is equally thoughtful about what areas it chooses not to venture into. “I have no money to waste. Take sports for example: What is our natural connection? Do you know how many brands are associated with the Olympics?”
He applies that same pragmatism to retail. Swarovski’s early attempts to address scarcity were by closing stores, but it ended up cutting back on size. “For a brand that is two-thirds impulse buy, over-rationalizing the store network is hurting scale,” Nasad said. “You wouldn’t say to your boyfriend, ‘Let’s make an appointment with Swarovski in May’ – you might do that with Van Cleef & Arpels, but we have the humility to recognize that we are still impulsive, so being everywhere is more important.”
About two-thirds of sales come from Swarovski’s own stores, of which about 80% are generated in physical stores. Even the store design reflects the brand’s positioning: rather than traditional category navigation, merchandise displays are organized around color and aesthetics, encouraging layering and discovery in a way that reflects Swarovski’s maximalist styling codes. At the same time, Nassad is a firm believer that e-commerce should reflect the in-store experience rather than become a discount store.
Geography is also an important variable. Nasard said that the United States is Swarovski’s largest market, accounting for 19% of sales, while Europe (accounting for about 45% of sales) remains the cornerstone of Swarovski, with markets such as the United Kingdom, Germany and Switzerland reaching record highs for many years. Japan is one of Swarovski’s fastest growing markets, continuing to achieve double-digit growth, while the Chinese market continues to develop. “We haven’t cracked it yet,” he admits.
Financially, a reset is starting to show. In 2024, the company’s revenue will increase by 8% year-on-year to 1.9 billion euros, EBITDA will increase by 14%, and operating profits will return to positive territory for the first time in five years (2025 results will be released next month). Growth was also driven by a combination of higher sales, higher prices and customer upgrades, Nasd said. Over the next two years, Nasard plans to double down on its investments in core markets such as the U.S., Europe and Japan, expand into new categories such as glamour, and improve productivity (in part through artificial intelligence).
Luxury at every price
Few brands offer such a wide range of pricing as Swarovski: entry-level jewelry starts at 59 euros, fashion pieces made of crystal can cost 1,200 euros, while high jewelery (made with diamonds created in Swarovski’s laboratories) ranges from 500 euros to 250,000 euros. Nassar sees it as central to trendy luxury goods—one of the ways Swarovski aims to tap into cultural trends while remaining a scalable business.
To manage this breadth, Swarovski has introduced a structured strategy covering low, medium and high complexity products, each subject to different rules regarding distribution and promotion. “We wanted to create a taxonomy that encompassed not only the sophistication of the product, but also the price point,” Nassad explained. “It’s a very systematic model that builds the image while maintaining scale.” The system is increasingly supported by advanced analytics, including artificial intelligence models for optimizing pricing and promotion decisions on a dense SKU basis.
