Explains the hype surrounding the Swatch x Audemars Piguet 'Royal Pop' collaboration, which caused chaos in shopping malls but sold for just £335.
The queues for the Swatch Royal Pop pocket watch started long before sunrise, in fact many camped out the night before. By mid-morning, police had been called to some stores, social media was flooded with footage of surging crowds and shopping centre stores had to be closed.
Shortly afterwards, resale listings had already begun appearing online for up to £16,000 . All this… for a £335 plastic pocket watch that could be mistaken for coming out of a Christmas cracker. Crackers indeed. Not a rare Rolex Daytona.
Not a vintage Patek Philippe. Not even a traditional Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, but a brightly coloured Bioceramic pocket watch made by Swatch. And yet, somehow, the new Swatch x Audemars Piguet 'Royal Pop' collaboration has become the most talked about collectible of 2026. In many ways, it perfectly captures the era we are living in.
The 2020s have become the decade of the collaboration, where brands no longer simply sell products but engineer cultural moments. Luxury fashion houses collaborate with sportswear companies, fast food chains partner with musicians, toy manufacturers team up with film studios and every major release is carefully designed to dominate social media for a weekend. Bold statement: The pocket watch has caused quite a stir - is the hype justified? The reason collaborations have become so effective is surprisingly simple.
They combine audiences, create urgency and make consumers feel they are buying into something exclusive and time-sensitive. In the age of Instagram, TikTok and resale culture, that combination can be incredibly powerful. A product no longer succeeds simply because it is useful or well made. Increasingly, it succeeds because people want to talk about it online.
Few companies understand this better than Swatch. The company effectively rewrote the modern collectibles playbook in 2022 with the launch of the MoonSwatch collaboration with Omega. At the time, the idea sounded almost ridiculous: take one of the most famous luxury watches in the world, the Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch, and reinterpret it as an affordable Bioceramic Swatch. Traditional watch collectors initially reacted with horror.
Purists accused Omega of diluting its heritage and many enthusiasts dismissed the watches as little more than colourful plastic toys. Then the queues began. Suddenly people who had never shown the slightest interest in horology were camping outside stores overnight in the hope of buying a MoonSwatch. Resale prices skyrocketed almost immediately and the collaboration became a global phenomenon.
Indeed my very own husband got carried away with the hype. He called me while on a work trip to Cannes to say he too had joined a long queue outside a Swatch shop. He waited six full hours for his very own Mission to Uranus. Read More What are the rarest Swatch watches - and is my fun investment hobby daft?
DAN HATFIELD replies What made the MoonSwatch particularly clever was that it did not damage Omega's prestige in the way many feared. If anything, it strengthened the brand. Younger buyers who could never realistically afford a multi thousand pound Speedmaster suddenly became emotionally invested in Omega's history and design language. The MoonSwatch effectively acted as an entry point into luxury watch collecting.
That is the true genius behind many modern collaborations. They create the illusion of access to a world that would otherwise feel unattainable. Nike achieved the same effect through collaborations with Travis Scott and Off White. Supreme built an empire around limited edition drops and unexpected partnerships.
Lego transformed itself from a traditional toy company into a collectibles powerhouse through tie ins with franchises such as Star Wars and Harry Potter. McDonald's has repeatedly tapped into nostalgia culture through collaborations tied to Pokémon cards, Disney characters and retro Happy Meal toys. The collaboration itself becomes more important than the product. That is exactly what makes the new partnership between Audemars Piguet and Swatch so fascinating.
For months, collectors assumed the collaboration would follow the MoonSwatch formula and produce an affordable version of AP's legendary Royal Oak wristwatch. Instead, the brands surprised almost everyone by reviving the pocket watch. The 'Royal Pop' collection takes inspiration from both the Royal Oak and Swatch's quirky 1980s Pop watches, resulting in a collection of wearable pocket watches complete with lanyards, clips and desk display functionality.
The watches feature unmistakable Royal Oak design cues, including the octagonal bezel and exposed screws, while leaning heavily into bold colours and playful styling so symbolic of Swatch. It is undeniably strange, but that may actually be its greatest strength. Modern collectibles increasingly rely on visual impact and social media appeal rather than pure practicality. Pocket watches are objectively niche products in 2026, but the Royal Pop is unusual enough to stand out instantly online.
It is exactly the kind of object designed to thrive on TikTok and Instagram, where eccentricity and novelty often matter more than functionality. It's all about being loud, standing out from the crowd. In an overpopulated market you have to shout the loudest. Importantly, the collaboration also avoids undermining Audemars Piguet's core luxury business.
A cheap Royal Oak wristwatch might genuinely have upset collectors and risked diluting the exclusivity of one of the most important watch designs ever created. By turning the collaboration into something playful and unconventional, AP has managed to keep a degree of separation between the Royal Pop and its traditional haute horology offerings. Whether that translates into long term collectible value is another matter entirely. Future classic?
It's hard to say whether the Royal Pop will be an item that grows in value Is it an investment no-brainer? The danger with modern collaborations is that hype and collectability are not always the same thing. The 2020s have become the era of speculative buying, where consumers increasingly purchase products not because they genuinely love them, but because they hope somebody else will later pay more.
We have seen this pattern repeatedly in recent years, whether with Pokémon cards, trainers, NFTs, Prime bottles or Stanley Cups. The same signs are already visible with the Royal Pop, with resale listings appearing online for several times retail price almost immediately after launch. Resident expert: Dan writes the This is Money Modern Treasures series Historically, products driven purely by hype rarely maintain those extraordinary prices in the short term.
Long term collectibles tend to require genuine scarcity, historical significance or strong emotional nostalgia. The Royal Pop may eventually achieve the latter two, particularly if it comes to symbolise this very specific moment in consumer culture. Because while many people are laughing at the idea of a luxury inspired pocket watch today, history suggests that unusual objects are often the ones that survive culturally. The original Royal Oak itself was considered bizarre when it launched in 1972.
Swatch watches were once dismissed as cheap plastic novelties. Even the MoonSwatch was mocked before becoming one of the defining watch stories of the decade. The Royal Pop may ultimately prove to be a short lived fad. Equally, it may become one of the collectible objects that perfectly encapsulates the strange economics of the 2020s, where nostalgia, scarcity, social media and hype all collided to create queues around the block for products nobody even realised they wanted.
I tend to feel we will land on the latter rather than the former. Either way, Swatch has already achieved something remarkable. In an era dominated by smartphones and smartwatches, it has somehow convinced the world to care about pocket watches again, even if they could be mistaken for a Christmas cracker offering.
Swatch fan not sold by Royal Pop Once a year, I treat myself to a new Swatch directly from the shop, writes fan of the Swiss brand Lee Boyce. In November 2025, I bought a Swatch x OMEGA Mission to Earthphase Snoopy Moonshine Gold Beaver Moon watch for £335 – my priciest purchase yet. It tells the time, but also has a dial which shows what moonphase we're in and another to show how earth looks from the moon.
It required work to purchase it – I had to turn up at the shop ahead of time, form a queue, and buy one of the limited stock. Others joined behind, most missed out. It's not clear how limited edition it is, but I bought it because I loved the style, and to wear it, rather than tuck it away for any future investment growth. But that said, I've seen examples on eBay for between £550 and £650.
I also wore it on a recent trip to Antigua where a well-heeled American, with a flashy expensive Rolex on his wrist, wanted to inspect my Moonswatch – and decided he wanted to buy one for his own flashy collection! I felt validated for my choice of wristwear and will continue my annual tradition of Swatch buying - but I'm not tempted by the Royal Pop pocket watch!
Then again, I'm probably not the target audience... or age. Swatches worth collectingLast year, in my This is Money Modern Treasures column, we did a: What are the rarest Swatch watches - and is my fun investment hobby daft? In this story, a reader had sent in their entire Swatch collection, including a Vivienne Westwood version. Some of my personal favourites are: Nine to Six – Playful and peak 80s.
These go for about £50–£60 but are increasingly sought after. Like a Rubik's Cube for your wrist. Kailua Diver – Sporty, sleek, and stylish. £100–£130 and climbing.
A safe bet for future appreciation. Tresor Magique – Platinum case. Yes, really. Only 12,999 made for the brand's 10th birthday.
Not cheap , but the rarity speaks volumes. Voir – Created by Jean-Michel Folon. Strange, surreal, and rather beautiful. Around £200–£230 – well worth watching .
Ticking Brain – Designed by Jo Whaley. Smart, simple, stylish. These have started to tick upwards in value – £250 or so if you can find one. Dan Hatfield is This Morning's money-making expert and resident pawnbroker.
He is an international specialist in antiques, jewellery, diamonds and collectibles. He writes This is Money's Modern Treasures column and is after your items and collections for valuations.
Please send in as much information as possible, including photographs, to: editor@thisismoney.co.uk with the email subject line: Modern Treasures SAVE MONEY, MAKE MONEY4.51% cash Isa4.51% cash IsaTrading 212: 0.91% fixed 12-month bonusLearn MoreLearn More£5,000 cashback£5,000 cashback1% cashback up to £5,000 when transferringLearn MoreLearn MoreInternet with gift cardInternet with gift card£110 voucher when you take out broadbandLearn MoreLearn More£200 with Sipp£200 with Sipp£200 cashback when you open a pensionLearn MoreLearn More£20 gift card£20 gift cardOpen a Plum Isa and hold £1,000 for 90 daysLearn MoreLearn MoreAffiliate links: If you take out a product This is Money may earn a commission. These deals are chosen by our editorial team, as we think they are worth highlighting.
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