Multibrand watch retailer, Ethos, which sells about 35 brands, expects its entry-level fashion and youth format to be the major volume driver in the next few years. The company expects to clock a 40 per cent growth in its revenue, help-ed by the increase in number of stores as well as the growth in the watch market.

Speaking about the company’s plans, Yashovardhan Saboo, CEO of Ethos, said, “The fashion and youth segment, which retails watches with the range of Rs 5,000-50,000 will be the fastest growing segment in terms of volume, number of stores and customer base. At present, this category contri-butes about 20 per cent to the company’s revenue, but we expect this category to become a major contributor owing to the large youth population in India.”

He added that young professionals form a big chunk of the company’s customers and with their spending power increasing, this format will drive growth for the firm. “Presently, our flagship vertical, Ethos, which retails watches ranged between Rs 50,000 and Rs 2 lakh, generates about 50 per cent of our turnover,” Saboo said.

Ethos’s luxury format – Ethos Summit, retails wat-ches priced over Rs 2 lakh and enjoys an active loyal customer base. The company, which clocked revenues of Rs 100 crore for the financial year ended March 2011, expects to register a 40 per cent jump over last year and maintain this pace for the next couple of years.

“We plan to add 14 stores by the end of this year, taking the total to 40. We also aim to have a total of 100 outlets across formats in the next 5 years,” he added. The company has earmarked investments of Rs 7 crore for its expansion drive. Funding will be done through internal accruals as well as loans.

According to a Techno-pak report, the total size of the Indian watch industry is estimated at Rs 4,000-4,200 crore. The industry has witnessed growth of 8-10 per cent for the past few years. However, the market is expected to grow faster at a rate of 12-15 per cent in next few years. A large part of this growth is expected from youth and the premium segment. By volume, the market is estimated at 4.6 crore pieces annually.

The organised players control 40 per cent of the volumes while the unorganised market, which consists of smuggled watches, cheap imported watches, watches assembled by small players, watch wholesalers and repairers, contribute the rest. By value around 60 per cent of the market is controlled by organised players, the report said.