Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie

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The Watch@Tablet® wins new fans in Asia

Published: 14 June 2009

The Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie sent two representatives to Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo. Four markets for the Watch@Tablet® and as many reactions. Read about the highlights of this Asian adventure.

Rana Karam, Project Manager, and Pascal O. Ravessoud, Development Director, were recently in Asia to present the Foundation’s Watch@Tablet® and other projects to retailers, journalists and the Foundation’s partner-brands.

On course for a Watch@Tablet® in Chinese

First stop Shanghai, where the Foundation presented the advantages of this touchscreen tablet PC for the Chinese market. Its training content is of particular interest in a country where retailers want their staff to be better informed, and sales associates are eager to learn.
Chinese retailers also need content in Mandarin. The Foundation therefore plans to have the Watch@Tablet® translated before launching it in this vast, high-potential market.

Price and product come first in Hong Kong

Sales associates in Hong Kong prefer to advise their customers, many of whom are Chinese, "the old-fashioned way." Staff are well-informed about the products, as are customers for whom brand and price are important considerations. For these reasons, Hong Kong’s retailers afford less importance to the Watch@Tablet’s® training content and more to the catalogues they can consult from the Foundation’s partner-brands which they carry in their stores. This is a major advantage, particularly as retailers can download new catalogues and updates onto the Watch@Tablet® via an Internet connexion, thanks to which stores can provide their customers with up-to-the-minute service.

Training is a priority in Singapore

Singapore is very much a mature market which attracts a clientele of connoisseurs. Affluent collectors and aficionados, many from Indonesia, appreciate the choice of prestige models and the quality service which retailers provide. The three main retailers in this island republic show a keen interest in the Watch@Tablet®. As sales teams change on a frequent basis, this touchscreen PC allows retailers to quickly train new staff so that the most demanding customers will continue to benefit from expert advice.

Planned distribution in Japan

In Japan, sales take place at stores but also through gaishos. These are sales associates who visit the homes of customers who prefer not to frequent stores. Each gaisho has his personal address book of customers, and one in two sales in Japan is made this way.
The Foundation took due note of Japanese retailers’ request to indicate prices in the Watch@Tablet®. Another priority for this market is for content in Japanese. Deliveries are scheduled for early 2010.

Adapting the Watch@Tablet® to the Asian market

Back from Asia, Rana Karam remarked how "with regard to the tablet PC, Asian countries sometimes have alternative solutions to Europeans. If retailers wish, they could therefore purchase just the software. As a specialist in this field, the Foundation provides quality content."

The Foundation will also take steps in two other areas:

• translate the Watch@Tablet® into Chinese and Japanese;
• develop single-brand versions for stores that carry only one brand.

"In an ageing industry, the Watch@Tablet® is something of a revolution! The Foundation, which is a veritable institution, is embarking on an innovative venture. The Watch@Tablet® was given the reception we were hoping for, particularly in Japan and Singapore. Chinese retailers are also delighted at this opportunity to train their sales staff at a lower cost," concluded Pascal O. Ravessoud.