No slowdown in luxury retail: LVMH

LVMH, the French luxury-goods group that includes Louis Vuitton, TAG Heuer and Moet & Chandon among its brands, plans to aggressively'' catch up with the leading watch rivals, Omega and Rado over the next three to five years, and attain leadership in the country.
The company which has witnessed a steady double-digit growth'' since its foray in India a decade back, plans to double its sales and over the next three years, by focussing on untapped markets'' like Mumbai and other metros, says LVMH Watch & Jewellery India GM, Franck Dardenne, adding that there is no sluggishness in sales due to the economic slowdown, even in Europe which accounts for a third of the company's sales globally.
Tag Heuer which is amongst the top three luxury watch brands globally, has 92 retail points in the country, with seven exclusive boutiques, while Dior has 16 points of sale, and two boutiques.
The company's high-end luxury brand, Zenith was launched two years back and has six retail points at present. Imports of Swiss watches into the country showed a 6% growth during January-June this year, as against the corresponding global figure of 16% for the same period. India is a modest market, with a small share, but is showing a strong growth, he says. Globally, June was exceptional (sales), while July has been slow, he says adding that the slowdown has not impacted the luxury retail market yet, though there are certain pockets like Greece which are not doing well.
Dardenne said that the luxury group is planning to retail Bulgari jewellery in the country soon. "Branded jewelry was heavily taxed and customers thought they could have the same quality asking local jewellers to reproduce some jewels. Long also jewellery was also perceived as an investment only. But things are changing quickly", he says.
Talking about the grey market for luxury retail in the country, he says, "Around 60% of the watches above $5000 are bought by Indians abroad, whether officially or through grey market. We do not believe in its future. Our bet is to sell our products at the same price as abroad, reducing our margins temporarily. This way we expect to clean the market in India and give the customer a wholesome luxury experience."