Speake-Marin entered a new dimension last year; how did distributors react?
Very positively! After a period of observation, a number of retailers came to visit us at Baselworld, and we were able to open new doors in the United States and Singapore for example. There are also certain clients who have been loyal to Peter Speake-Marin for 15 years and who had been slightly cautious over these past two years, but are now all reassured by the new strategy and the accompanying products. We have crossed the threshold of 30 points of sale and should be able to double that in the coming years – even if what truly counts for us is still the quality and longevity of distributors, such as the new names that have recently begun representing us, whether on New York’s 5th Avenue or Harrods of London.
You surprised a lot of people by introducing ladies’ watches…
Watches for women account for a significant proportion of the watch market, from which the brand was totally absent. We took the decision to remedy that last summer, and after a great deal of work we were able to present 14 references at Baselworld. Even though the first models being sold are equipped with quartz movements, the case has been designed to house mechanical calibers if that were to prove necessary.
What will your partnership with Vaucher Manufacture bring you?
This benchmark producer of mechanical movements can follow the evolution of the needs of our brands in terms of products and volumes. This is a long-term partnership and we work together very closely, with continuous exchanges regarding our requirements, in each Peter is strongly involved.
Will your brand-new vertical double tourbillon become a flagship model?
The tourbillon has in fact always played an important role in the history of Speake-Marin, whose first creation was equipped with one. The latest model is in fact a 10-piece limited series that we are starting to deliver now. It has been favorably received on the market and we plan to do a more substantial follow-up. Grand Complications are part of our strategy and collectors will doubtless appreciate our limited series, but we are keen to maintain a human-scale approach. Speake-Marin will also be taking part in Only Watch for the first time in 2015, a project dear to the hearts of the entire team!
You have been managing the company for the past year. What have you done in this time?
I remodelled the organisation and optimised the way we operate, adding some rigour both internally and with our suppliers, but none of this would have been possible or even conceivable without the team in place. Some of them were already here when I arrived, others joined during the course of 2014. I used the management style I am used to and for which I was hired, even if it surprises some people, but it works! I am just in the middle of everything, the conductor who is tidying up a symphony. Each individual is aware of their area of expression. As Saint-Exupéry said: "I am the one who coaxes the best out of the team, who turns others into creators of strength, into inventors." In short, I am a boss who needs other people…
