Swatch store at King of Prussia Mall to stay closed Sunday after watch release draws massive crowd
The Swatch store at the King of Prussia Mall will remain closed Sunday after police say large groups of people stormed the property for a highly anticipated watch release Saturday morning, prompting the response of about 100 officers.
Saturday's commotion became so chaotic the mall delayed its opening and one person was arrested. Shoulder-to-shoulder lines wrapped around the mall as hundreds hoped to get their hands on the $400 watch.
Upper Merion Township police said a group of "several hundred people" was gathered outside the mall before it opened for the release of a new Swatch, a Swiss watch brand with a retail location inside the mall.
When police told the group to move back from the mall doors, "the crowd continued to grow and and became more defiant, prompting requests for additional police resources, which brought approximately 100 officers to the scene," police said in a news release.
While most of the crowd was dispersed, police saw others break down doors to enter the mall.
"Officers deployed to each location to prevent further damage to the mall, entry into stores, and looting," the release said.
The commotion was caused by high demand for the highly anticipated Royal Pop collection between Swatch and the Swiss family-owned luxury watch brand Audemars Piguet, also referred to as AP.
Cole Reichard, who owns a sneaker reselling business, explains the hype.
"It's taking a luxury brand, and such a high-value brand like Audemars Piguet and giving people a chance to buy into it at such a low price," he said.
According to Audemars Piguet's website, AP will use 100% of its proceeds from the collaboration to fund an initiative that supports the preservation of watchmaking.
Some of the watches are already reselling online for thousands above retail.
The Philadelphia-area mall was not the only one to experience the chaos. Dozens of malls across the country, and even overseas, saw large crowds, with many turning unruly.
"Nobody was really listening when they told them to move back or form in a line," Reichard said. "It could've become like a stampede if they did open the doors. It would've been a free-for-all."
A sign posted on the front of the store said the Swatch location would remain closed for the rest of the weekend.
Reichard said he thinks it's probably a good thing police showed up to control the crowds. But he says the company should've done more to organize the release before it all turned into chaos.
"I definitely think there should've been a wristband, a stamp, some sort of line - traffic cones," he said.
Swatch released a statement on social media saying: "We kindly ask you to not rush our stores in large numbers."
For now, shoppers will have to look elsewhere, or wait for restocks online.