What are the LMVH wa­tch and cell phone brands launched till date?

The watch and jewellery division of LVMH entered In­dia in July 2002 with Tag Heuer and Christion Dior. We started from wholesale, with no individual stores. Then in 2009, we introdu­ced Tag Meridiist cellphon­es in the price range of Rs 219,000 to Rs 1,930,000 and Dior cell phones with a starting price of Rs 260,000. We also launched Zenith watches in 2009 with a st­arting price of Rs 253,000. Zenith watches are availab­le at three of the biggest wa­tch retailing stor­es in New Delhi and Chennai.

Which are your best selling brands in India? Can you also share the price brackets of your best selling items?

Tag Heuer is one of the best selling LVMH brands in India — the brand grew by 15 per cent last year. For Tag Heuer, India is one of the top 15 countries. It has got a bigger market than Christian Dior because it’s far more affordable with men’s products available from Rs 35,000 onwards. But most of our business comes from products in the price bracket of Rs 50,000 to Rs 150,000. We are yet to tap the women’s segment in a big way. Tag Heuer watches are availab­le in 25 cities including 65 multi-branded outlets and five franchisee boutiques. Dior too is picking up demand even though it is more niche with restricted distribution. We are retailing Dior watches only in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad.

Who are your main competitors?

Any brand in the price bra­cket of Rs 50,000 to Rs 150,000 is a competitor. Omega and Longines remain the benchmark competitors. For Dior, the main competitors are Omega, Chopard and Cartier.

What has been your experience of the Indian luxury retail market since your entry to the country? What are the challenges?

In India, it takes time to establish a name. We are gung-ho today because we established ourselves seven years back. People are aw­are of LVMH brands. However, retail is not well developed in India. Rental costs are high due to lack of retail alternatives. The oth­er issue is the high duty st­ructure. The Indian consu­mer is very international and, therefore, expects the retailer to charge the same price in India. So, lack of retail environment, high d­uty structure and trying to have the same price structure as in international ma­rkets are some of the problems that luxury brands fa­ce in India.

Despite the emergence of millionaires in large nu­mbers in India, do you th­ink the size of the luxury market is big enough to justify LVMH brands?

In terms of absolute market there is purchasing power, but from a marketing or sales perspective getting business is not easy unless a brand has staying power and money. India as a market is not developed enough for a watch worth Rs 4 crore but there is a stable market for watches costing Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore. As a gr­oup, we are growing more than 20 per cent every year. Since 2008 we have grown 30-35 per cent across our divisions, which is higher than the 25 per cent growth of the Indian luxury market. Sales for Tag Heuer Meridiist alone have been doubling every three months. Delhi has always been a leader in demand, followed by Mumbai.

What are your expansion plans this year?

Tag Heuer is opening a flagship brand boutique this month in Connaught Place in Delhi, and by the yearend we would open a Tag Heuer boutique in Mumbai. We also want to build the Zenith brand.

Where do you see Tag Heuer and Dior five years from now?

We want India to be among the top ten markets for Tag Heuer. From a brand perspective we want Tag Heu­er to be the biggest brand in India, and from the growth perspective we want to double every three years. We would like to expand to 150 points of sale in the next five years for Tag Heuer. For Dior, we want to open 20 points of sale in 15 cities, up from 14 at present, in next three years.