News In record time, Louis Vuitton has found a place in the sun in the luxury watch market. A meeting with Albert Bensoussan, coinciding with the launch of the second watch collection from the world’s leading luxury goods producer.
Apart from a special edition marketed in 1986 with the support of IWC, Louis Vuitton has been active in the watch market for barely two-and-a-half years, since 2002. A lapse of time which, in principle, is far too short to stake a serious claim in the very select club of luxury watch manufacturers. And yet…
"Today we are producing more than 20,000 watches a year… but fewer than 50,000," proudly declares Albert Bensoussan, director of watch production of the French bag manufacturer, who refuses to be more precise for fear of problems with the stock exchange watchdog. His target in the medium term, i.e. five or six years, is to realise 5% of group turnover with watch products, against 2 to 3% today.
To achieve this, he has at his disposal an instrument unlike any other: the global network of around 350 Louis Vuitton stores, 120 of which currently have exclusive rights to the Tambour range of watches and, very shortly, the new Speedy line. At Louis Vuitton, distribution is special in that it takes place solely through the company’s own network: indeed, none of the French manufacturer’s watches are sold officially in other points of sale. If such is the case, then the product originates from the grey market or, worse still, is a counterfeit!
With the exception of uncommon products such as tourbillons or jewel watches, the Louis Vuitton watch range sells for roughly 2,500 to 15,000 francs. According to Albert Bensoussan, sales are divided equitably between Japan (30%), the manufacturer’s flagship market for many years, the rest of Asia (20%), Europe (25%) and the Americas (25%). Distribution between quartz and mechanical timepieces is also fairly well balanced: 60% for the former, 40% for the latter. Customers meanwhile are equally divided between the sexes, a situation that Albert Bensoussan intends to modify slightly over the coming years in favour of ladies’ watches.
He may well achieve this goal with the new Speedy collection, which is currently making its appearance on the market. With its neo-retro look and reminiscent in certain details of the automotive world, the collection offers a taste of the surprising and the unexpected. Like the Tambour range, it expresses the time-honoured values of Louis Vuitton, namely creativity and expertise. Thanks to its assertive square shape, the Speedy exudes a quality of urbane elegance. Its heavy case, curved and sensual, with understated steel embellishments, houses an aesthetically rich ice-blue dial, while the back cover displays a delicately engraved chequered motif. The wristlet, meanwhile, combines exquisite alligator hide with fresh, bright colours.
In this range, aside from chronographs, enthusiasts will note above all the DuoJet models with their exclusive patented Louis Vuitton movement and two dials that work in tandem, giving travellers the possibility of adapting to special time zones that can vary by as little as a quarter of an hour. In Katmandou or on Chatham Island, the DuoJet will always give its owner the correct time!
April 12, 2005
