The watch brand currently has 3,700 outlets in 81 countries across the globe, but plans to increase this by more than 3,000 stockists next year. Founder and CEO Jean-Pierre Lutgen said the company is currently stepping up its rate of production from 250,000 watches per month to 500,000 by next October to keep up with demand.
He said: “My aim for 2011 would be to sell between three and five million watches, and we hope to increase our distribution network to have a presence in more than 100 countries, with more than 7,000 outlets.”
The brand’s watches are currently being designed in Belgium and produced and assembled in Shenzhen, China, but it now has plans to compete in the premium Swiss-made end of the market. Lutgen said: “To reincorporate the Swiss aspect, we have registered another brand called Ice-Swiss so that we can unveil a new product in a top of the range segment.”
He added that the company’s success has been down to cashing in on demand for affordable fashion watches. He said: “Our success is growing because a watch is a fashion accessory, a badge of identity and an impulse buy and ours appeals to large numbers of people.”