WORLDTEMPUS - December 18, 2009Bill Shuster
Steve Shonebarger, the former senior vice president and director of wholesale North America for Bulgari Corp. of America, has been named the new executive vice president and chief operating officer of Corum USA, in Irvine, California, the U.S. subsidiary of Swiss luxury watchmaker Montres Corum Sàrl.
The announcement was made Dec. 16 by Antonio Calce, chief executive officer of the parent firm. Corum Sàrl bought back Corum USA on Oct. 1 to regain exclusive distribution of its watches in North America and the Caribbean and to build a stronger presence for the brand in the American market.
Calce remains president and CEO of Corum USA, though based at company headquarters in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.
“For me, it is crucial to confirm my status as president in this market, since it reflects the importance of the U.S. market [to Corum],” said Calce. Despite its current economic difficulties, the U.S.A. “remains a key market for our brand that has not reached its true potential yet.”
The reorganized U.S. subsidiary, under the lead of Calce and Shonebarger, “aims to unify all our forces to regain the trust of our retailers, strengthen our relations with our partners, and give Corum the success it deserves in the U.S.,” he said.
He praised Shonebarger—who has held top U.S. positions at luxury jewelers and watchmakers Harry Winston and Bulgari--as a man with “sound experience” in the U.S. market. As Corum's new brand ambassador to that market, “he will closely manage the business … supported by a [U.S.] team of 18 people, as well as by every department at Corum headquarters” in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, said Calce.
