Hal Martin's Rolex Watches & more...

BaselWorld 2013 Sets New Record

 

Watch enthusiasts look forward to BaselWorld, the world’s biggest watch fair, for many months, yet the redesigned BaselWorld 2013 has closed its doors for another year and has reported a 17% increase in visitor numbers compared to 2012.

 The 41st show welcomed approximately 122,000 visitors hailing from over 100 countries over eight days, and the event featured 1,460 exhibitors from over 40 countries.

 This year's show will be remembered for a generally upbeat vibe, a new look and positive investment thanks to a hall complex re-design by Herzog & Meuron.

 The BaselWorld organizers have reported that those attending brands questioned said business volume for the first week exceeded 2012. A spokesperson for the Swiss Exhibitors' Committee said: “The past eight days were more than encouraging and give every reason to believe that results will match, if not outperform, those of 2012.”

 Keeping in mind the slow trend of the European market, the show did well for the exhibitors, and as usual watch exhibitors drew the largest response.

 There were lots of revelations from some of the biggest luxury watch brands in the business and buyers no doubt left buzzing over what they could be adorning their wrists with in the very near future.

 One such watch brand, Rolex, unveiled several new pieces at this year’s BaselWorld. Among them is the first Rolex Daytona in a platinum case featuring a distinctive color scheme of what Rolex calls an “ice blue” dial and a Cerachrom ceramic “chestnut brown” bezel. While the U.S. price has yet to be determined, Rolex says the watch will retail for about $75,000.

 “So far the luxury watch industry is on track for a record year. The first three months have been record months, and the industry is up two percent already for the year. The next few months will be slow, until around September when the industry will pick up growth again,” says Hal Martin, CEO of Hal Martin’s Watch & Jewelry Co.

 As the 2013 BaselWorld ended with a reported 17% increase in visitor numbers compared to 2012, and watch sales up already for the year, many are optimistic for the watch industry in 2013.

 

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Hal Martin's Now Buying Luxury Watches Worldwide

Hal Martin's Mother's Day Lady Watch Collection

Hal Martin’s Now BuyingLuxury Watches Worldwide

Last year, there were sales of $14 billion in brand-new Swiss luxury watches. Of those sales, only $1 billion was in the United States. “We have had record breaking sales of our pre-owned watches over the past few years due to the demand of the Asian markets,” said Hal Martin, founder and CEO of Hal Martin’s Watch and Jewelry Co.

The secondary market for luxury watches currently is for the most part untapped and under served. “The pre-owned watch industry is growing larger by the year,” said Martin, who has become a leading purchaser and seller of luxury watches, specializing in pre-owned Rolex watches, such as the Rolex Submariner.

As luxury watch manufacturers, such as Chopard, Patek Philippe, and Ulysse Nardin, introduce new ladies’ lines featuring larger sizes and Swiss-made automatic mechanical movements, along with the overall world economy, savvy watch buyers are opting for pre-owned luxury watches.

With this demand in pre-owned watches, as well as shift in ladies watches, many people are selling their smaller luxury watch and buying a larger automatic watch which has allowed Hal Martin’s Watch & Jewelry Co. to become one of the largest pre-owned luxury watch buyers.

To keep up with this demand, Hal Martin’s is now buying watches worldwide from individuals, as well as taking watches in on consignment. To help people in the process of selling their watch, they have even added another page to their website titled, “Sell My Watch.”

How much a used watch is worth is based on a number of factors. It’s important to determine the exact brand, model, age, condition, and the materials the watch is made of. In addition, is the watch a limited edition piece? Is the original paperwork and box that the watch came with available? All these factors play a part in a watches value and must be known to help watch buyers give the most accurate cash offer on a watch.

“When you are quoted a price on a watch, it is based on today's current market value as well as its condition. Unfortunately many people don’t realize this when they try to sell their timepiece,” says Martin.

Hal Martin’s Watch & Jewelry Co. has been buying watches for over 40 years and is one of the largest pre-owned Rolex watch buyers. Being a recognized retailer of pre-owned Rolex watches, the company also provides a full warranty on every time piece and also tries to make it affordable for everybody. Even the watches that are pre-owned have to undergo quality checks and no watch can be sold until they are completely approved by the watchmakers at their workshop.

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Women's sales up in 2012 as UK watch sector slows

Evolution of Hublot-Ferarri line

Women's sales up in 2012as UK watch sector slows

A report by Euromonitor International focused on luxury jewellery and timepieces in the UK reveals the sector's sales slowed in 2012, despite value growth of 5%, totalling £1.12 billion.

The Euromonitor findings show 2012 UK watch sector growth was slightly lower than 2011's growth. Economic uncertainty impacted consumer’s confidence in 2012, with shoppers reconsidering their spend.

The findings outline that despite increased traffic sources, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the hosting of the Olympics and Paralympics in Great Britain did not boost sales to the level expected by retailers.

However, those that did spend opted to invest their money in women’s timepieces, boosting the category by 4%, up from 3.6% in 2011. However men’s timepieces reported slower growth than in 2011.

Launching in the UK
Due to the many events taking place in the UK, and in London in particular last year, Euromonitor found that many brands took the opportunity to celebrate Britain. Links of London opened a new store in Waterloo just days before the Olympics and Harrods created more space its luxury watches brands.

Fledgling brand 88 Rue to Rhone chose London, and in particular Selfridges, for its international launch just a couple of weeks before the Olympics. Rolex, meanwhile, opened a franchise store in Leeds, its first store beyond London, said to be an indication of how well the luxury segment has been performing outside the capital.

In terms of competition between luxury brands, consumers continue to value brands with a long history and heritage, as well as the Made in Switzerland label. Rolex, TAG Hauer, Patek Philippe and Omega are the most popular brands in the UK market.

Outlook in 2013 and Beyond
Looking ahead in 2013 and beyond, Euromonitor said it expects the luxury watch sector to grow in constant value terms, at a stronger rate than during its research period.

Euromonitor forecasts that, owing to the double-dip recession, jewellery is expected to fare better than watches as consumers consider it more of an investment, especially with the price of precious metals increasing.

The Luxury watch sector is expected to post a low constant value compound annual growth rate of 1% between 2012 and 2017, as the economy shows no signs of recovery.

Euromonitor also said that luxury brands may begin to offer more by way of diffusion watch lines, but in a very limited and less obvious way than in the practices taken from luxury fashion brands will continue to be selective in terms of where and with whom they retail their products, with stockists and marketing chosen to keep the exclusivity factor intact.

 

- By Kathryn Bishop

Read full article at: http://www.watchpro.com/14750-womens-sales-up-in-2012-as-uk-watch-sector-slows/

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Hal Martin’s Watch & Jewelry Co. Watches on Display atChivas Regal 1801 Club Event

Hal Martin’s Watch & Jewelry Co. along with Wolf Designs recently attended an 1801 Club event sponsored by Chivas Regal and UrbanDaddy.com. UrbanDaddy is all about promoting urban lifestyle to young men 25 to 40 years old. It is a very popular site for the up and coming guy.

The 1801 Club grants members of the Chivas Brotherhood access to exclusive, invite-only events at private venues in some of the most amazing cities in the world: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Dallas, Houston and Miami. It is the perfect atmosphere to network, unwind, connect with others in the Brotherhood – and of course, partake in Chivas tastings.

Hal Martin’s had a display of luxury watches for members and guests to try on and be photographed with. Those watch lovers were then allowed to upload and post their photos on UrbanDaddy’s website to be entered into a drawing to win Wolf Designs watch winders.

“The event was a great success. It was a wonderful chance to be able to meet so many young successful people in one place and allow them to try on our watches while educating them on the benefits of having a watch winder,” says Hal Martin.

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One of the Funniest Rolex watch stories ever

Evolution of Hublot-Ferarri line

Evolution of Hublot-Ferarri line

Hublot will extend the partnership forged with Ferarri last year with the launch of new watch Big Bang Ferrari Carbon Red Magic at BaselWorld in April.

The watch, which is fitted with Hublot's in-house Unico movement, has a flyback chronograph function distinguished by the original positioning of its double coupling-clutch mechanism and a visible column wheel visible on the dial side. The watch's carbon fibre case is built using a multiple layer technique that avoids bubbles and toughens the case.

 

The Big Bang Ferrari Carbon Red Magic has been fitted with a distinctive red sapphire glass. The red colour was introduced when the glass was made, so is not a coating, meaning that it will not wear off.

As with other models in the 2012 series, the watch carries both the Hublot name and the Fereaari prancing horse logo on the dial. The watch has been fitted with a red schedoni leather sewn over rubber with a carbon fibre folding clasp.

 

- By Rachel Taylor  (Article Source)

 

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One of the Funniest Rolex watch stories ever

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One of the FunniestRolex watch stories ever

Driver of the #16 Napleton Racing Porsche Cayman and winner of last weekend's 24 Hours of Daytona in the GX class, Jim Norman found that even real Rolex watches can fool a jeweler.

After his win at last weekend's 24 Hours of Daytona in the GX class, Dr. Jim Norman went to his jeweler with this brand new Rolex winning watch. As per Jim's own words:

"Today I take my new Rolex to the jeweler right down the street from my house in Tampa to get a link taken out so it fits me better (for those of you who don't know, the winning drivers of the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona are presented with a new Rolex timepiece in Victory Lane).

The jeweler re-sizes it for me and charges me $8. I say "Wow, 8 bucks, that's not very much". The manager lady says, "well, if it were a REAL Rolex we would charge you more!". I chuckle and say "it IS a real Rolex". She says, "Nope it is not...We know Rolex watches and this is definitely a fake." My retort, "well, I guess you don't know these as well as you think!".

Hearing this, the jeweler comes out from behind his little glass window from where he is working on a frail, blue-haired lady's broach while wearing some very dorky-looking magnifying glasses and says, "I'll bet you bought that watch in New York". He puts both hands in his back pockets and sticks out his skinny "bird" chest in an attempt to be strong and assertive. "Nope" I say, "I haven't been to NYC in some time". He quickly replies, "I'll bet you $1000 you didn't buy that from a real Rolex dealer".

I say, I won't take that bet, because you are right, I didn't buy this from a Rolex dealer". "AH HA!" he exclaims, "it IS a fake!! Where did you get it??" "I got it in Daytona this past Sunday". "HA! I am right!" he shouts, almost loud enough to break some of the crystal elephants assembled as a group on one of the overhead glass shelves. "I know all the Rolex dealers in Daytona, and none of them is open on Sundays!" He is quite pleased with himself and turns to strut back to his window-enclosed, nick-knack cluttered cubby. "Maybe I didn't get it from a dealer" I state smugly. He turns and says, "well then tell me, who DID you get this FAKE Rolex from?" "Well, I stated calmly and cooly, I was presented this beautiful timepeace from the President and CEO of Rolex Watch Allen Brill while standing on the podium at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona". "OH, Sure!" he says, "and I'm Santa Claus!!".

And back into his cubby he went, oblivious to the REAL world around him. He doesn't get it... The world is passing him by and he isn't even aware that it is happening. You gotta love life and embrace life... even if it means you have to wear a fake Rolex."

- Dr. Jim Norman  (Article Source)

Swatch Group buys Harry Winston jewellery brand for $1-billion

Swatch Group AG (UHR), the biggest maker of Swiss timepieces, agreed to buy the Harry Winston watch and jewelry unit for about $1 billion, adding a luxury label in its biggest acquisition.

Swatch Group will pay Harry Winston Diamond Corp. (HWD) $750 million and assume as much as $250 million in debt, the Biel- based company said in a statement today. Harry Winston Diamond, whose name was mentioned by Marilyn Monroe in “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend,” said it will now be known as Dominion Diamond Corp. and focus on its diamond-mining operations.

The acquisition will help Swatch compete against Cie. Financiere Richemont SA’s Cartier brand in the market for high- end jewelry and watches decorated with precious stones. Swatch, the biggest purchaser of polished diamonds, had a gap in its portfolio after a collaboration with Tiffany & Co. (TIF) dissolved into a legal dispute in 2011, according to Rene Weber, an analyst at Bank Vontobel in Zurich.

“Swatch was always missing a jewelry-watch brand and Harry Winston definitely fits into that category,” he said. “After the Tiffany disaster, they now have another brand to expand.”

The stock rose as much as 4.8 percent to a record 516 Swiss francs. They were 3.3 percent higher at 508.5 francs at 12:27 p.m. in Zurich.

Acquisition Valuation

The purchase price values Toronto-based Harry Winston at an enterprise value of 23 times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, according to Weber. That compares with a ratio of 21 for LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA (MC)’s acquisition of Bulgari SpA in 2011, he said.

Swatch and Tiffany became embroiled in a legal battle after the Swiss company alleged the U.S. jeweler breached its contract by blocking development of the business. Tiffany said it honored its obligations under the terms of the alliance the two companies began in 2008, when they agreed to develop and sell watches under the Tiffany brand and share the profits. Swatch said in 2011 the venture would shut down within two years.

Swiss watchmakers have been seeking uses for their cash piles as emerging markets fuel luxury sales. Swatch Group, which had cash of 1.13 billion francs ($1.2 billion) at the end of June, is adding Harry Winston to its range of 18 brands, which include Breguet, Omega and Tissot.

Golden Globes

The brand’s range of jewelry watches includes a timepiece in the shape of a creeper vine and decorated with 84 carats of diamonds. The company’s Opus 12 watch features 12 pairs of hands to tell the time and consists of 607 parts. Harry Winston had revenue of $412 million from its luxury brands in the year through January 2012. Jessica Alba was seen wearing the brand’s jewelry at yesterday’s Golden Globes film award ceremony, the Daily Mail said.

“It ticks all the right boxes,” said Jon Cox, an analyst at Kepler Capital Markets. “Swatch has been saying for years that they want to get into jewelry and they’ve also been looking to expand in the U.S. Harry Winston isn’t as well-known as Tiffany or Cartier because it has always been much smaller, but it does have a very good position in the high-end market.”

The acquisition includes Harry Winston’s production company in Geneva and 535 employees worldwide. The brand sells through 25 boutiques globally and 190 points of distribution for its watches.

Swatch is unlikely to make any additional large acquisitions for the “foreseeable future” given the company’s aversion to debt, according to Cox. Swatch will probably seek to improve profitability at the U.S. company, he said.

“Harry Winston (HW) lacks scale and its margins are lower than other players in this space, so Swatch will work on improving margins by bring up the capacity utilization,” Cox said, adding that he expects the purchase to boost earnings per share by 2 percent in 2013 and 2014.

‘Sound’ Return

Harry Winston Chairman Robert Gannicott said the company will make a “sound” return on its investment in the brand. The two companies said they will also consider creating a diamond- polishing joint venture. In addition, Swatch will buy stones from Dominion.

Harry Winston owns a 40 percent stake in the Diavik diamond mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories and Rio Tinto Ltd. owns the rest. The company agreed in November to buy BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP)’s Ekati mine in Canada and its marketing operations for the stones for $500 million. Gannicott said in June the company was interested in Rio’s stake in Diavik.

The purchase eliminates another large takeover possibility in the luxury market. While Tiffany would be another “very attractive” target, any acquirer would be unlikely to pay a multiple as high as in this deal, according to Kepler’s Cox.

Rothschild advised Harry Winston on the transaction

- By Dermot Doherty  (Article Source)

China's Appetite for Luxury Watches Remains Strong

China continues to show strong interest in Swiss luxury watches despite a slowdown in the world’s fastest growing economy, according to a survey of Internet searches released Monday.

The Geneva office of the Digital Luxury Group, a digital consulting and marketing firm for luxury brands, said its analysis of 65 international watch brands shows that every category of luxury watches from “prestige” to “haute horlogerie” has seen an increase in interest the first half of 2012 compared to the same period in 2011, with a near 40 percent increase in aggregate searches.

In March, DLG, in its WorldWatchReport survey, revealed that for the first time, China surpassed the U.S. as the country exhibiting the highest demand for luxury watches based on Internet searches.

“This shows that the attention expressed for Swiss watches in China remains strong despite the reported macroeconomic slowdown and the economic uncertainty linked to the political changes,” according to the report released Monday.

“Interest for watches is increasing. This is opposite of what the media is taking about,” added Florent Bondoux, head of Strategy and Intelligence at DLG, in a recent interview prior to the release of the report. He did, however, stress that online interest does not reflect sales.

“We know that this information aggregation in fact does not translate to sell out trends,” he said. “The interest continues to grow, but there are indicators that the purchase cycle (as revealed by the data from the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry) has slowed.”

The World Luxury Index China: Watches measured results in five market segments: “high range,” “prestige,” “couture,” “women’s jewelry,” and “haute horlogerie” The largest growth in Internet search interest is in the “prestige” category, according to the survey. In addition, the best known international brands also received the most interest.

Out of the 65 brands analyzed, the top 10 most-searched luxury watch brands (Omega, Rolex watches, Longines, Cartier, Rado, Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, IWC, Piaget, Chanel) represent nearly 80 percent of the search market, according to the survey.

The trend toward the big names also includes models. The top models searched this year remained unchanged compared to last year’s survey but now account for more than 50 percent of all online watch searches. They are: Omega “De Ville” (19.6%), Omega “Constellation” (13.30%) Cartier “Ballon Bleu” (6.60%), Chanel “J12” (5.9%), and Longines “Master” (5.10%).

After years of growth in the major coastal cities, such as Shanghai and Beijing, interest has grown in the booming and vast interior of the country. Again, the advantage tends to lean toward the big watch brands as they are the ones who are able to invest locally in these communities, according to the survey.

Style (such as “men’s watch” or “classic style”) followed by price are the most important factors in searching for luxury watches, according to the survey. Bondoux said part of this reason is because the Chinese are becoming more sophisticated in luxury goods. It’s also easier for Chinese consumers to search for style as many of the names for models have no Chinese translation.

“Their overall knowledge is increasing,” he said. “We know that gifting is a very important factor in luxury watches. If you are buying for someone you would not necessarily look for the price but search for generic name.”

- By Anthony DeMarco,  Forbes Contributor