From tourbillions and the world’s most complex minute repeaters to wildly bedecked pavé diamond styles, fine watches are a buzzing category and retailers are predicting a healthy holiday season.
Women’s fine watch sales spiked 10 percent last year to $2 billion, while sales of luxury watches that retail for more than $25,000 jumped 25 percent to $150 million, according to LGI Network, a Randolph, N.J.-based independent audit firm that measures the sales performance of watch and jewelry brands at retail.
This year has seen lots of activity in the fine watch arena, as companies such as Van Cleef & Arpels are promoting dainty, jewelry-inspired watches, such as VC&A’s Alhambra, and large, men’s-inspired styles at Tiret, Chanel and de Grisogono have spurred interest from women. Brands including Tag Heuer and Ernst Benz will be pushing two-tone watches in steel and yellow gold combinations, a style that has plummeted in recent years and took an 18.2 percent nosedive in 2005.
“The mix of white gold and yellow gold in jewelry can easily match with [a steel and gold] watch,” Daniel Lalonde, president and chief executive officer of LVMH watch and jewelry, which owns Tag Heuer, told WWD in August.
Lalonde, who will head up Louis Vuitton in North America starting in January, added, “We’re trying to capture a larger share of the market. You have to identify who your customer is.”
Here, retailers predict what styles they think their customers will gravitate toward for holiday purchases.
Bergdorf Goodman
“Rose gold is definitely picking up in watches, and oversize [watches for women are] still selling,” said Ed Burstell, senior vice president and general merchandise manager of beauty, jewelry and accessories.
Burstell highlighted Franck Muller’s Curvex watch with diamonds, $38,800; de Grisogono’s Tino watch with cognac diamonds and a shagreen strap, $64,000; Cartier’s diamond dress watches that sell into the midthousands, and the far-less-pricy plastic Toy Watch, $150 to $250.
London Jewelers
“Women want oversize sport watches with diamonds for an elegant flair to keep pace with the men, and ceramic and rubber are popular, as well,” said Candy Udell, president of the firm, which has five stores on Long Island in New York.
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She cited the Harry Winston Premier rubber sport watch with a diamond bezel, $62,100, and the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph Daytona, $53,050.
Mayfair
“Women are getting complicated watches because they got used to their husband’s watches,” said Lauren Kulchinsky, buyer and vice president of Mayfair, which has four retail locations on Long Island in New York.
Kulchinsky pointed to Tiret’s oversize Second Chance Dual Time Zone, $43,000, and Jaeger-Le Coultre’s Master Compressor Automatic in Rose Gold with diamonds, $15,000.
Reinhold
Marie Helene Morrow, owner of the San Juan, Puerto Rico store, cited Hello Kitty by Kimora Lee Simmons watches, $995 to $3,450; the Rose Gold Chronograph by Philip Stein Teslar, $13,500; Hermès’ Cherche-Midi watch, $2,950, and David Yurman’s limited-edition High Jeweled Pavé Diamond watch from the Thoroughbred Watch Collection, $35,000.
Ross Simons
“Steel watches with diamonds is still a hot category,” said Charlie Savasta, watch buyer for the Cranston, R.I.-based firm, noting that two-tone watches also are expected to be stronger than in the past few years.
Savasta pointed to Tag Heuer’s Aquaracer watch with a diamond bezel, $3,995, and Raymond Weil’s Shine, $4,750.
Saks Fifth Avenue
The retailer’s market director of women’s accessories, Beth Kanfer, observed the popularity of Chanel’s J12 ceramic watch with diamonds, $4,100 to $27,500; Cartier’s Tank Française, $3,200 to $240,000, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, and the Toy Watch.
“[It’s about] classic and elegant watches at any price point,” said Kanfer. “[We’re] moving away from bling.”
Tourneau
“Watches are becoming less gender specific,” said Andrew Block, vice president of Tourneau. “Brands are moving away from categorizing by gender, offering a variety of sizes for anyone. We are also seeing more men and women building their watch wardrobes and selecting watches for different occasions or attire.”
Block noted Cartier’s new La Doña watch, $15,000 to $33,900; Raymond Weil’s Shine, $4,750, and Tourneau’s Calypso, $3,895 to $12,995.