Watches in South Korea

PROSPECTS

Chinese tourists return to South Korea, supporting sales growth in high watches

Chinese tourists returned to South Korea in their droves in 2019 after 2018 saw a strong decline in the numbers of visitors from China. This was primarily due to political tensions between the Chinese and South Korean governments due to the deployment of THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defence).

Department stores at the forefront of watches retailing as high spending consumers enjoy the experience such outlets provide

Department stores dominates the retail distribution of watches and this is mainly because of the wide variety of watches available in such stores and the pleasant and pleasurable shopping experience that department stores represent. Indeed, the country’s leading department stores compete fiercely to introduce new brands and models of luxury watches to local consumers.

Rising health consciousness has implications for sales of watches

The rise of health-conscious consumers in recent years has led to strong growth in the use of health and wellness-positioned wearables, notably movement trackers such as Fitbit. However, it should be noted that smart watches have not proven particularly popular in South Korea yet.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Breitling and Audemars Piguet maintain a high profile in the fragmented competitive environment dominated by “others”

The competitive environment in watches remained highly fragmented in 2018, with “others” accounting for more than half of value sales. Some of the brands included under “others” are worthy of note.

Price increases do not deter wealthy buyers of high watches

Demand for high watches remained strong during 2018 despite unit price increases over the course of the year. Rolex and Bvlgari each raised the unit prices of their watches during the year.

Luxury watch brands increasingly self-distributing in South Korea

The world’s leading luxury watch brands are increasingly distributing their products directly in South Korea. Previously, the vast majority of luxury watch brands used local distributors and refrained from directly entering the market.

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