It’s been over a month since Chanel filed a suit against Tourneau and Cartier. The timeline is hazy, so we thought we would present, “In Plain English,” just how the scandal unraveled…
Timeline of Chanel vs Tourneau & Cartier
- June 2011: Tourneau starts selling Chanel watches at two NYC stores.
- July 2013: Tourneau opens a Chanel boutique at its East 57th Street Location (AKA “TimeMachine”)
- August 2013: Cartier CEO Stanislas Chauveau De Quercize tours the TmeMachine and threatens to stop supplying Tourneau with watches unless Tourneau closes the Chanel Boutique at its TimeMachine location.
- September 2013: Tourneau tells Chanel that it is terminating its agreement to build the boutique.
- December 2013: The boutique is dismantled and is not used by Tourneau. Instead, it is used to house Christmas trees and a reindeer.
- December 13 2013: Chanel files a suit against Tourneau and Cartier in New York State Supreme Court, seeking over $15 million in damages.
Quotable Quotes
Plus, here are the great lines that should not go unnoticed:
“…tear down the Chanel boutique or lose the business of Cartier.”
-Cartier Officials to Tourneau Guys, August 2013
“The former location of the Chanel boutique currently stands empty of any commercial use by Tourneau, and is occupied only by two large Christmas trees and a small model of a reindeer”
-Chanel in December 2013 Filing against Tourneau & Cartier
“…carrying Cartier brands was essential to maintaining its [Tourneau’s] self-described status as an ‘unrivaled presence in the luxury watch retail market…’”
-Chanel in December 2013 Filing against Tourneau & Cartier
“[If] this boutique was built a year ago, everything would be fine and we wouldn’t have this issue. Today, the market is so weak, Asia is plunging and many brands become more difficult…”
-Tourneau’s COO Adam Sek in an email to Chanel in September, 2013
Captured on Camera
In a nutshell, this is what transpired. The first photo is the Before (Chanel’s Boutique at Tourneau’s TimeMachine Location) and the photo beneath that is the After…
More info on the Brands Involved
Chanel
- Click here for the Wikipedia entry on Chanel.
- Click here to view a selection of Chanel watches.
Tourneau
- Click here for the Wikipedia entry on Tourneau.
- Click here to find a Tourneau location near you.
Cartier
- Click here for the Wikipedia entry on Cartier.
- Click here to view a selection of Cartier watches.