What do customers appreciate most about A. Lange & Söhne timepieces?
Our customers are above all connoisseurs and collectors and they recognise A. Lange & Söhne timepieces as being one of a kind. They recognise the superior quality of finishing and the strong link with tradition, since every watch we develop has been inspired by historical Lange pieces.
People who are more interested in the technology inside the watch appreciate the unique innovations that we have in the more complicated and high-end watches. Historically, Lange is famous for developing new solutions in mechanical timekeeping.
You cover a large geographic area that has had an eventful year. What have been the highlights in terms of sales?
Our product portfolio is quite broad because we try to offer the right watch for every kind of connoisseur. This year the Lange 1 Time Zone has been very successful. It is a well-balanced watch in the Lange family. It is also my personal favourite because the time zone change and reading is intuitive. The 1815 Tourbillon that was presented two years ago at the SIHH remains very popular. The Terraluna is also popular, but it is very difficult to get hold of one.
What is your overall impression of the European market for this year? Do you think it will pick up next year?
Both this year and last year, which was also a challenging one, we had double-digit growth in my region and we are setting new sales records almost every month. In reality, we have exactly the right kind of product for this type of challenging period, because our customers are investing in the brand for the long term because of its rarity and the quality of the watches, which offer the best guarantee for their investment.
What are the strongest markets for A. Lange & Söhne in Europe?
We usually allocate watches to markets according to demand and the sophistication of the market. In a market where the knowledge of high-end watches is higher, we obviously try to serve them with the grand complications. Other, more tourist-oriented markets, appreciate the more simple models more than the innovation.
It might seem an easy job just to manage demand but in reality you need to keep people waiting without offending them, because there are limits to their patience. I also have to allocate watches among top customers without privileging one over the other. The notion of balance is important, just as it is with the watches. As an example, the time to market for the Terraluna is 12 months and we have orders for the next 5 or 6 years, so we need to keep these customers loyal to the brand as they wait for their watch. This is our challenge.
Tell us about the situation in Russia…
We cannot hide the fact that the situation is not good. In addition to the sanctions the depreciation of the rouble has had an impact even at the high end. In a few weeks we will celebrate the first anniversary of our monobrand store in Moscow, which started very well but had a slow-down during this period. But over the past three months it has performed extremely well, giving a sign that the market is perhaps ready to restart. This is something that we have also heard from colleagues at other brands. After the psychological impact of everything that has happened over the past six months in Russia, customers are ready to start spending and enjoying life.
And in Ukraine?
It’s a strange situation because apart from in Kiev business has stopped completely. There is still a market for high-end jewellery and watches, however.
