SINGAPORE: Acquiring a luxury watch has constantly been a multi-sensory experience. There is the alluring gleam of metal and its rewarding heft on the wrist. There is the attractive tic-tic-tic noise of the internal clockwork. On higher end models, there might be the delightful spinning motion of a tourbillon regulator or the seductive shimmer of diamonds to behold.These sensorial touchpoints– not to mention the service lavished on customers– are lost during an online transaction, which goes to describing why high-end watch brands– and, as a result, their authorised retailers– have actually been hesitant to jump on the e-commerce bandwagon.But in late 2016 –, e-tailing leviathans like Net-A-Porter and Mr Porter started adding luxury watch brand names such as IWC to their item mix. In 2017, even media platforms like American watch blog site Hodinkee got in on the act, becoming an authorised merchant for brands like Grand Seiko, Vacheron Constantin and Zenith.On Jul 6, Hong Kong-based Sincere Great Watches released its online portal,. Genuine is the 3rd largest authorised watch retailer in Singapore with profits of HK$ 387 million (S$ 67.6 million). On Jul 6, Sincere Fine Watches ended up being the first of the 3 largest authorised watch sellers in Singapore to launch an e-shop.( Image: sincerewatch.com)& ldquo; In line with the ever-changing retail landscape and requirements of our clients & hellip; we are delighted to be one of the very first high-end retailers on the planet with our extremely own online retail platform, enabling us to deliver an improved, smooth shopping experience to our consumers, & rdquo; Kingston Chu, Vice Chairman and Group Managing Director of Sincere Watch Limited, stated in a press statement.On Aug 29, Cortina Watch started, revealing its own e-commerce platform,. With annual revenues of S$ 466 million, the Singapore-registered business is the island’& rsquo; s second largest luxury watch seller. & ldquo;(The platform) started because I felt that we must engage our consumers online,” & rdquo; Cortina & rsquo; s COO Jeremy Lim told CNA Way of life. “& ldquo; There are some clients who prefer the benefit of buying online. (These are) clients who are Internet-savvy, who put on’& rsquo; t have time to come and touch and feel the watch.
& ldquo;(Consumers )might need to pay a bit more due to the fact that they can & rsquo; t bargain online, however( it & rsquo; s a little price to pay)for convenience, & rdquo; he described. The company bears” the cost of shipping, dealing with, delivery and insurance coverage. Jeremy Lim, COO of Cortina Watch, with a visitor on Aug 29.( Picture: Cortina Watch )Many of the watches are priced under S$ 15,000– what Lim explained as & ldquo; mid-tier & rdquo;– so regarding draw in first-or second-time buyers. & ldquo; Anybody who wants to hand over more than S$ 15,000 – will probably be searching for a touch and feel experience. & rdquo; This, Lim revealed, is the primary aim of the site: To drive tramp to Cortina & rsquo; s physical shops. & ldquo; Brick and mortar stays our core, and will stay our core, & rdquo; he emphasised.Cortina & rsquo; s comprehensive footprint of 26 stores(’both single-brand and “multi-brand)across 6 nations(Singapore, Malaysia,” Thailand, Indonesia
, Hong Kong and Taiwan), along with its longstanding relationship with the watch brands, indicates its service warranty is identified. In spite of venturing into the e-commerce realm, Cortina Watch’s core organisation remains its traditional shops.(Photo: Mandarin Gallery) This offers Cortina a competitive advantage, and e-shoppers comfort, in the online arena, which is currently dominated by the grey market– unauthorised dealers peddling excess stock from authorised sellers at discounted prices.Brands like Omega, for example
, will not honour the service warranty if its watches are purchased from grey market retailers like Chrono24, or.All 70 watches in Cortina & rsquo; s online inventory are also readily available in shop. There are plans to release online exclusives.
2 of the 5 brands will unveil limited edition models. The first of these will be available in mid-October, while the second will debut in
November.The online exclusives will be shown in shop however not sold in shop. & ldquo; We have iPads in store which clients can use to purchase from, or they can use their own mobile gadgets. As much as the site is a way to drive traffic to our stores, we & rsquo; re also aiming to bring offline clients online, & rdquo; Lim explained.The majority of high-end watch purchasers do their research study online but make their purchases offline, due to the fact that of the simple fact that the majority of enjoy brands are still offline.More than Twenty Years after the introduction of Amazon, watch connoisseurs still can not add a new Rolex or Patek Philippe– two of the world & rsquo; s biggest brands
— wrist watch to their carts.
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