(Continued from Part 4) Maurice Lacroix refines its re-positioning
An excellent price/quality ratio is also at the core of the repositioning under way at Maurice Lacroix, which has just been acquired by DKSH, a Zurich group that reported a CHF 7.34 billion turnover in 2010. Active in distribution services in Asia, DKSH employs more than 24,000 people in 630 Asian and 20 European and American subsidiaries. Recently listed on the Swiss stock exchange (one of the largest listings over the last few years), this family enterprise was born out of a merger with SiberHegner, a trading firm that is also solidly established in Asia. A new CEO, Marc Gläser, has just been appointed.
After having gradually moved upmarket, heavily invested in its manufacture in Saignelégier, purchased the case maker Quéloz and launched the production unit for component parts used in movements, Manufacture des Franches-Montagnes, “we realised that we were no longer very ‘accessible’ in relation to the brand and the expectations created,” explains Sandro Reginelli, Product and Marketing Director.
Since 2008, the brand has been patiently repositioning itself, lowering the prices of watches with in-house movements from CHF 10,000/ 15,000 to CHF 6,000/9,000, and offering more accessible models, equipped with sourced mechanical movements and even quartz, priced between CHF 1,000 and 5,000.
Maurice Lacroix’s strong stylistic identity, definitely contemporary classic, that can be largely credited to Sandro Reginelli, pervades the five pillars of the brand, with the collection leader being Pontos. Until now, the brand has hardly been present in the field of sports watches, and its ladies’ collection was also weak. The focus was thus placed this year on the sports pieces and in 2013-2014 attention will shift to the ladies’ timepieces. “It is a long-term process, and one that involves the injection of more traditional watchmaking codes into our contemporary approach, which pushes us to find innovative solutions, especially in the cases, solutions that preserve our identity, but allow us to offer more accessible products,” continues Reginelli, who goes on to reveal a lovely new Pontos S with its interior rotating ring that is activated by the same crown as the start, or the very pretty Pontos Excentrique (for more detail on these new pieces, see the article by Malcolm Lakin in this issue).

When it is the market that comes to you
Another independent brand and a family-run company (even very familial since Olivier Bernheim and his two sons are at the controls), working for many years in the price segment comparable to that which Maurice Lacroix wants to re-conquer, Raymond Weil seems to be doing extremely well. Its strategy is clearly explained by Olivier Bernheim: “We have gradually increased our average price, not by increasing the prices of the models, but rather by making the pieces represent even more of the art of watchmaking.”
This approach seems to delight the strong and loyal international network of the brand’s retailers. “We have not run towards the marketplace, it is the market that has evolved in our direction, that has come even closer to the brand,” continues Bernheim. “The attitude of the large groups gives us new opportunities because we are now known for our stability, the consistency of our approach, and the solidity of our offer. The family side is also reassuring in a context of instability and frenzied consolidation of territories.”
With a network of 27 boutiques developed in partnership with local retailers, Raymond Weil has woven its global fabric through a group of subsidiaries that allow the brand to “walk on several legs”. One example is the complete reorganisation of the American market conducted directly during the 2009 crisis. This has allowed the brand, now with the market in recovery mode, to step into its historically strong positions, but with an horological added value in its collections, since mechanical timepieces now account for 40 per cent of the line. This automatic mechanical offer is also highly appreciated in China.
The spearhead for 2012 is the Maestro collection, available in 39mm or 41mm, as an automatic, with moon phase and date hand or with month, week, date, day and moon phase. Available in steel and rose-gold PVD with an irreproachably classic finishing, they are offered at around €3,500. But this is only one example, since the brand’s offer includes, with the same relevance, the large sectors of the watch market: sports, contemporary, classic, or very subtly feminine.

Consistency, consistency
We cannot help but speak of the well-understood necessity at this 2012 edition of Basel-World—the consistency and continuation of brands’ offers. In this world saturated with “story telling” it is much better to limit oneself to a particular line, and to stick to it. Let’s take the example of Antonio Calce who, at the helm of Corum, has clearly and consistently structured the brand’s offer, and allowed it to reach full maturity.
Two distinct and immediately recognisable pillars hold up the entire edifice: the Admiral’s Cup and the Corum Bridges. The two collections are strongly identifiable and historically legitimate, and offer all the successive stages of the sports watch on one hand (Classic, Sports, Extreme Sports) and contemporary mechanical invention on the other hand (with three in-house movements—automatic, manual, tourbillon). Calce’s strategy can be summed up in a few words: “don’t bank on volume but choose intelligently so that the products will leave the stores.” It is clearly a question of consistency. In passing, we must mention a world first: The Admiral’s Cup Legend 46 Minute Repeater Acoustica. With a name as long as the fifth major and sixth minor chords that the two hammers simultaneously strike on the four gongs, this minute repeater is water-resistant to 30 metres, and the repetition function can be activated by rotating the crown 27 degrees.

To come later...
It is unfortunately impossible to cover in these few columns, and even in this single issue, all of the brands visited during BaselWorld. You will, however, have the opportunity to read many other reports in the “post- BaselWorld” section of this issue by Malcolm Lakin, who had a fruitful shopping experience, as well as by Paul O’Neil, who concentrated on the new brands and, in the company of experts in the field, has assembled an anthology of the most beautiful ladies’ watches. In his articles, Keith Strandberg has tested the value for money of the most striking sports watches of the season.
And, we will return over the next few issues to many other brands, such as Bulgari and Vuitton, both under the umbrella of LVMH Horlogerie, newly managed by Francesco Trapani. On a whole other level, we will take a look at brands that maintain their consistency and are rising, such as Blacksand that has quietly created an exclusive and superb in-house calibre, or Rodolphe who, after 16 months of existence of his Manufacture Rodolphe Cattin'>Cattin, is now presenting a complete collection—for gents and ladies—of strong and inventive pieces, ranging from three hands to the tourbillon.
In our next edition, 4/12—Mechanical Watches —we will also talk about those brands that have succeeded in truly industrialising the production of their own movements, such as Ulysse Nardin and Chopard. On a more modest scale, we will also look at brands such as Armin Strom and the second generation of its very lovely manual-winding movement AMW11. It has also presented a third calibre with a double barrel, integrating carbon plates into the movement.
With the world of communication doused in tweets and other buzz coming from almost everywhere, wouldn’t it be better to take a little distance in order to filter through all the media hype… and to see what is really happening? Time will sort things out.

Source: Europa Star June - July 2012 Magazine Issue