JOIN USIndian streets a bright mosaic: Omega chief
Luxury Swiss watchmaker Omega inaugurated its renovated watch store and also launched its new ‘Constellation Manhattan’ collection in UB City on Thursday.
Bollywood actress and ‘Omega friend’ Vaani Kapoor and Jean-Claude Monachon, vice president, product and customer service, unveiled the collection.
The ‘Constellation Manhattan’ collection has 101 new models for women. In a quick chat with Surupasree Sarmmah,Jean-Claude Monachon spoke about the brand’s relationship with the Indian market, their competition and his first time in Bengaluru.
Tell us about the relationship that Omega has with the Indian market? How has it grown over the years?
Our relation with India goes many decades back and it has always been very cordial. Over the years, we have increased our market share in this country.
Omega is a premium watch brand. Are you planning to launch a line that’s affordable for the masses?
No. We have other brands under the Swiss Group (our parent company) like Hugo, Longines, Tissot and Swatch that are positioned lower than Omega. We don’t want to take away their bread and butter. Every brand under the Swiss Group has a category of people we target. Also, though we are in the luxury segment, we also have accessories like bracelets that people can buy for starters and hopefully go on to own an Omega one day.
Who do you look at as your competition?
Rolex for men and Cartier for women are our competitors.
How many visits have you made to India?
I have visited India almost 10 times. I visited this country for the first time in 1998. However, this is my first visit to Bengaluru. I have been to Delhi,Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai previously.
What I like about India are its colourful people. I like how people here are always dressed up in bright colours. The streets are like a mosaic. This is something unique to me. In Bengaluru, I have noticed that there are many green spaces; something I couldn’t see in all the other cities I have been to.
Talking about food, I love Indian food; it is full of flavours. I have tried the lentils, bread and tandoori dishes here.
What will you take back from your first visit to Bengaluru?
I will take back mangoes for sure (laughs). This was a short trip and I couldn’t visit many places but I will certainly remember that people here are very kind; you don’t find that in every place.