Telling time, Italian-style

Q&A: ROMAIN LE CHEVALLIER

Romain Le Chevallier

Romain Le Chevallier is the brand manager-Middle East for Panerai, the Italian watch brand. He joined the company in December 2003 in Dubai and launched the brand in the Indian market last year, after considered market research. He speaks to Business Standard about the company, its history and future plans.

Most established watch companies have a rich history. What is Panerai's like?

The company actually goes back to 1860, when it was founded by Giovanni Panerai; from the late 19th century onwards it was making navigational instruments. In 1936 Panerai produced the first military watch for commando divers and became the official suppliers for the Royal Italian Navy.

However, it was only in the late 1990s that we entered international markets as a brand, launching our watches in 20 countries.

Why the shift from being a military watch?

It started in 1995, when Sylvester Stallone "" an ardent watch collector "" asked us to produce some limited-edition pieces for him and his friends. We produced a line of "Slytech" watches (after the actor's nickname) and that was really the beginning of our venture into the general market.

Having said that, we're not looking at mass appeal but at exclusivity. Rarely (if at all) does anyone go in for a Panerai model as their first watch. Our models tend to appeal more to watch collectors.

What are Panerai's distinctive features?

Well, all our timepieces use a mechanical movement "" you won't find a single battery in our collection! The watches are unisex and in keeping with the history of the company our designs tend to be mostly utilitarian. We still have big, luminescent numbers, for instance "" because commando divers needed them back in the old days.

One distinct feature, for which our company even has a patent, is the bridge on the side of the watch, which covers the crown. It was developed to protect the crown and to help in water-resistance.

What's your take on the Indian market?

We have noted an increase in the sales of tourbillon (a gravity-defying movement) watches; it seems to be a recent trend in the Indian market. We are optimistic about India, because you have a small segment of people with high purchasing power.

We've already been told about Bollywood actors sporting Panerai watches in films, as a status symbol. We'll be targetting the upper segment "" like I said, we're not looking at a mass market anyway.

We had a soft launch in India in October last year and launched with events in Mumbai and Delhi in February 2005. Our objective here is to build brand awareness.

What future developments can be expected?

There's a major product development coming up this year "" we have developed our own mechanical movement and will be launching the first watch with a 100 per cent in-house Panerai movement by the end of this year.

It's a three-barrel movement that has taken around four years to develop. This should strengthen our position as a Swiss watchmaker and we are very enthusiastic about it. The watch will be available in a limited edition of 250 pieces "" 150 in yellow gold and 100 in platinum.

Do you customise your watches based on the markets you are entering?

Not as a rule. We have done it once in the while "" for the Chinese market, for instance, and we also did some Jules Verne engravings for the French market. Occasionally, special pieces have been made for high-profile customers. But we prefer to stick to our brand's core strengths.