Swiss luxury watchmaker Corum has forayed into the Indian market with the launch of its high-end products at select outlets in Delhi and Mumbai.
Priced between Rs 80,000 to a staggering Rs 5 crore (Rs 50 million), the watches would also be introduced soon through premium multi-brand outlets and jewellery stores in cities like Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Chandigarh, Corum's country manager Deepa Chatrath said.
"We are mainly present in North America and Europe. Now, we are looking at Asia of which Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and of course, India are our most important markets. From India, we plan to move into other South Asian countries," Chatrath said.
Only about 40,000 Corum watches were produced annually at its factory in Switzerland to maintain their exclusivity, which she said, would be increased to about 60,000 units in the next 2-3 years.
Corum followed other Swiss watch brands like Swatch, Rado, Tissot, Longinnes, Tag Huer and LVMH, which have launched their watches in the country after relaxation of import duties, which at present is about 62 per cent.
"The Indian market is itself so big that it is hard to ignore. With the country opening up, we hope to see a lot of opportunity," Chatrath said adding, sale of watches in the Rs 60,000-1,00,000 price segment was growing at a healthy 25-30 per cent annually.