Retail


“The enemy we have to beat is the online grey market”

RETAIL REPORT

Français
November 2017


“The enemy we have to beat is the online grey market”

“It’s crucial to go digital, and the watch brands have to start engaging with it now or things are going to get very complicated."
“The enemy we have to beat is the online grey market”

A

n online presence ought to help protect the brands; the platforms serve both to promote and to sell their watches. Ultimately, I think we’ll post half our turnover online and half in the boutique.

Our role as retailers is to help the brands to make their transition to online and to feel at ease there. But there’s one enemy in particular that both the brands and their partners have to deal with: the online grey market, where watches are sold at rock-bottom prices with a minimal mark-up. We mustn’t allow those players to come into power on the internet.
So in a few months’ time we’re going to be launching our own online sales platform for watches, in agreement with the brands we represent. We’re in separate talks with each one. Combined with our physical presence in Berlin and Baden- Baden that will give us a real boost. We’re anticipating growth in the order of 200-300% over the new few years, and we want to open five new boutiques, in Germany and in Europe.”

ABOUT
Name: Zewi
Boutiques: Berlin et Baden-Baden
Launch date: 2008
Category: Haut et moyen de gamme
Brands represented:
Ulysse Nardin, Parmigiani Fleurier, Frederique Constant, Louis Erard, Raymond Weil, Maurice Lacroix, Perrelet, Century, Arnold & Son, Franck Muller, Visconti, Pop-Pilot
Website: www.zewi-luxury.de