Swatch x Audemars Piguet Royal Pop Watches Draw Crowds and Store Closures
Swatch stores worldwide limited sales of the new Bioceramic Royal Pop pocket watches to one per customer on May 16, 2026. The $400 to $420 items prompted long queues, temporary store closures, and police presence in multiple cities.
ForbesSwatch stores in London, Dubai and other cities closed or restricted entry on May 16, 2026, after large crowds gathered for the Bioceramic Royal Pop collection. The watches combine Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak design with Swatch’s earlier POP line from the 1980s. Eight modular, pop-art-inspired pocket watches were released through 200 selected Swatch stores worldwide.
Each customer could purchase only one watch.
The items retailed for $400 to $420. Social media posts before the launch showed AI-generated images of wristwatches that did not match the final pocket-watch format.
Resale listings for complete sets appeared on StockX shortly after the release, with some priced above $25,000. Security personnel managed entry at the Covent Garden store in London, allowing shoppers inside one at a time after queues formed days earlier. Police were called to several locations where crowds spilled onto sidewalks.
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