Over the past month, Canada’s jewellery and watch market exploded, with an unprecedented number of luxury watch and jewellery retailers opening freestanding boutiques.
Last week alone, the Richemont group opened four stores in Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre: Piaget, Vacheron Constantin, IWC Schaffhausen, and Officine Panerai, each of which are new to Canada. A week earlier, the company also opened Van Cleef & Arpels’ first Canadian boutique, which too is in Yorkdale. Richemont adds that most of these boutiques will also open in Vancouver’s Luxury Zone.
These openings follow a trend, according to Euromonitor International, with luxury watch and jewellery sales growing. Just last yeat, Canadians spent almost $2.1 billion on luxury jewellery, up 60 per cent from $1.28 billion in 2011, and $214.1 million on luxury watches, up 28.7 per cent from $166.3 million in 2011.
In order to keep up with the joneses, independent retailers must amp up the luxe aspects of their businesses. Offering exclusive services to clients, revamping the in-store experience, and working on e-commerce capabilities will help independents to succeed in a booming market.
