Swiss watchmaker Richard Mille and British automaker McLaren are highlighting their exclusivity with an extended brand partnership.
Richard Mille announced its partnership with the automaker?s Formula 1 team on social media the morning of Friday Feb. 18. The exclusivity and rarity of the vehicles, along with a keen sense of design, make the high-priced brands a match.
Automakers (particularly those involved in auto racing) and timekeepers have gone hand in hand for some time,? said Donnie Pacheco, principal at Clean Channel Consulting, Inc., Seattle. ?Not only is racing all about precision timing from a technical driving standpoint, but the ultimate goal is to have the fastest time.
In essence the two are locked in a race against one another, with automakers using technology to go faster and timekeepers using technology to be more precise in how time is measured,? he said. In the nick of time

The deal between Richard Mille and McLaren?s Formula 1 team is for 10 years. Longer partnerships give the feeling of authenticity and suggest common ground has been found rather than reading as an arbitrary or financially motivated bargain.
A long-term relationship makes sense because it allows the brands to be more strategic and long-term in their thinking,? Mr. Pacheco said.
Over the course of a decade, it will allow the two to become synonymous, fully reaching the others? audience.It will also allow them to be more creative and try more things than a brands whose partnership i...