Fortis to open regional HQ in Dubai

Swiss premium watchmakers Fortis said on Tuesday that it will open a regional headquarters in Dubai at the end of this year to strengthen the brand’s presence across the Gulf region.

In a statement, Fortis, the only watchmaker at the Dubai Airshow, said opening its new office in Dubai Gold and Diamond Park in December this year was a reflection of its commitment to the brand’s loyal following in the region as well as the solid growth potential of the market in the premium watch segment.

Commemorating the Dubai Airshow this year, Fortis also unveiled a limited edition 50 piece watch, as part of the brand’s strategic plan to associate itself more closely with premium regional events that will take Fortis more closer to the Middle East market.

 “The opening of the Dubai office will also coincide with the celebration of the 4oth year of Fortis presence in the UAE on December 2, 2011,” said Mahesh Shahani, Brand Director, Fortis Middle East.

“Over the last 40 years, years, the Fortis brand equity in the regional market has risen exponentially driven by its reputation as a watchmaker of innovation, precision and makers of rugged all-clime timepieces. The brand’s 100 year heritage and proven mettle across space, civil and military aviation squadrons across the globe also continues to catalyse its appeal,” said Mahesh.

“Our current and new strategy will be to move more closely and intimately to the market and customers and build on the Fortis image to grow sales. In this context, opening of the Fortis regional HQ will bring an unprecedented advantage,” he added.

Mahesh said Fortis will also increase its focus on Arabic models following the huge success of its B-42 Al Tayar automatic wrist watch launched last year. “Al Tayar was the world’s first fully Arabic watch and the success of the model has prompted us to enhance our Arabic focus across models. The Arabic thrust will be a great value addition Fortis will bring to the region’s market,” Mahesh said.

He said going forward, Fortis will also be looking at establishing boutiques in the retail space across the region’s markets which will exclusively stock the brand’s various models and act as a one-stop shop for the brand.

The GCC and the Middle East will be focus markets for Fortis Middle East. Currently, in the GCC, the UAE and Saudi Arabia continue to rank among the top 15 importers of Swiss watches. It is estimated that being a regional shopping hub, Dubai alone imports between 800,000 to a million premium watches every year.

He said globally the growth in the uptake of luxury watches was in line with the increase in sale of luxury goods worldwide. China is estimated to be the world’s second largest consumer for luxury goods after the US, but the emerging markets of Russia, Brazil and the Middle East also holds great potential, with the latter expected to grow at 10-12 per cent a year.