Fans who queued overnight for Audemars Piguet x Swatch launch boo as VivoCity store closes
Fans hoping to get their hands on the new Audemars Piguet x Swatch Royal Pop collection spent hours — and in some cases, an entire night — queueing at Singapore stores, only to leave empty-handed.
Among them was a Stomper, who described his experience as a “total failure on Swatch’s side for zero crowd management”.
The highly anticipated Bioceramic Royal Pop collection launched at selected Swatch outlets on May 16, sparking massive queues at Marina Bay Sands, ION Orchard and VivoCity.
Inspired by Audemars Piguet’s iconic Royal Oak timepieces, the collection features eight colourways and retailed for between $535 and $570. The watches quickly became one of the most talked-about launches of the weekend, with overnight queues forming outside stores across Singapore.
According to Swatch, purchases were limited to one watch per person, per store and per day.
Photos and videos shared with Stomp show crowds gathered outside the Swatch outlets at VivoCity and ION Orchard, with some fans queueing overnight outside both malls.
One notice pasted at the VivoCity store stated that “official queueing” would only commence from 7am on May 16 and that overnight queueing was “not encouraged”.
However, the Stomper said many fans had already begun queueing much earlier.
Overnight queues at MBS, ION Orchard and VivoCity
“First, we were at MBS on Friday at 8.30pm. Then, after 10pm, they started telling people to clear out after the queue reached the first 50-plus people,” he recounted.
He said he and his friends then headed to ION Orchard, arriving at around 12.05am.
But according to the Stomper, there were already more than 300 people there despite earlier information that the queue had closed.
He and his group decided to try their luck at VivoCity instead.
“We took a Grab to VivoCity at about 12.36am,” he said.
According to the Stomper, they arrived at the third mall shortly before 1am and joined the growing crowd outside the mall.
But things apparently took a turn after 5am.
‘Never buying a Swatch or AP again’
“When we managed to rush in after 5am, they suddenly told everyone that the shop is closed and we should go back,” he said.
The Stomper claimed that more than 300 people were left waiting outside VivoCity after the outlet stopped accepting people into the queue.
A clip he shared shows members of the crowd booing after an officer using a megaphone reportedly told people to disperse at about 6.28am.
“There were 10 of us and none of us got a watch after this spectacle and drama since Friday night,” he said, adding that he would “never buy a Swatch or AP again”.
A screenshot shared by the Stomper shows Swatch announcing on Instagram Stories at about 6am that its VivoCity outlet would be closed for the rest of the day due to the “overwhelming crowd”.
“This was a collective decision made together with the local authorities to ensure the health and safety of both our staff and customers,” the statement read.
The company also reminded customers that the release was “not a limited edition” and said future drops were expected, though dates had not been confirmed.
The Stomper questioned why clearer information about stock levels and queue limits were not given earlier.
“If this was not a marketing stunt, why did they not reveal how many pieces were released or manage the crowd quietly like the MBS store did?” he said. “Why did they not do that for the VivoCity and ION Orchard stores? Isn’t it clear they just wanted people to queue?”
The Stomper estimates only about 49 watches were released at Marina Bay Sands and 47 at ION Orchard.
He said his friends who were still in the queues had counted how many customers walked out carrying Swatch paper bags before sales stopped.
On its Instagram page, Swatch said that in some countries, queues of more than 50 people “cannot be accepted” and sales may need to be paused.
The launch also sparked tensions elsewhere.
In an earlier Stomp report on the same Audemars Piguet x Swatch launch, a heated confrontation broke out at Bayfront MRT station after a man allegedly cut the queue outside Marina Bay Sands.
Long queues had reportedly formed from the evening of May 15, with security officers later dispersing crowds at ION Orchard.
According to The Straits Times, some people were reportedly paid hundreds of dollars to queue on behalf of those hoping to resell the watches online.
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