Hundreds camp overnight at Topanga mall for Swatch-AP pocket watch

More than 300 shoppers lined up outside Westfield Topanga mall in Canoga Park through Friday night to buy the Royal Pop pocket watch, a limited-edition Swatch and Audemars Piguet collaboration, before Los Angeles police capped the line at 200 ahead of Saturday's release.

The scene highlights the surging appetite for limited-edition luxury watch collaborations in Southern California, with some buyers eyeing a resale price near $1,200 for watches retailing at $400 to $420 — a margin that drew resellers to outnumber collectors in line.

The eight-design Royal Pop collection, priced between $400 and $420, drew a crowd that swelled past 300 by late Friday, according to ABC7 Los Angeles. Officers from the Los Angeles Police Department intervened and reduced the line to 200 shoppers, citing the store's limited inventory.

Some in line discovered that the collaboration produced pocket watches rather than wristwatches, a detail that caught buyers off guard. William Enenstein, a Woodland Hills resident who waited in line, said he recalibrated his disappointment. "I was surprised. I was disappointed for sure, but it's unique on its own. Who else is coming out with a pocket watch that has 500 people plus lined up? Nobody," Enenstein said.

Not every buyer planned to wear the watch. Aidan Chin, a Northridge resident, said the crowd was dominated by resellers. "I'm probably the only one who wants to wear it here. Everyone is trying to flip it for $1,200," Chin said, according to ABC7.

At least one shopper who spent four hours in line fell outside the 200-person cutoff and left without a purchase, ABC7 reported. The release caps a week of anticipation online, where the collaboration's scarcity and collectible status fueled speculation across watch enthusiast forums.

The Royal Pop release adds to a pattern of limited-edition luxury watch collaborations generating standout retail demand at Southern California malls, where the line between collecting and speculating has grown increasingly thin.