Swiss Watch Makers Confident Over 2019 Sales Despite China Slowdown -Reuters

--Swiss watch makers are confident they can grow their sales this year despite slowing growth in the all-important Chinese market, executives from LVMH, Patek Philippe, Oria and Hublot tell Reuters during the Baselworld fair.

--Privately-owned brands like Rolex and Patek Philippe are seeing better demand than listed counterparts because they manage their business for price rather than volume, and have therefore avoided the inventory gluts that hurt those of their rivals that sought to tap a boom in Chinese demand a few years ago, says Swetha Ramachandran, who manages a luxury brands equity fund for GAM, speaking to Reuters.

--There were fewer brands in attendance this year in Basel, with more and more watch makers--most notably Swatch--dropping out as they focus on building their own on- and off-line boutiques and trimming down their third-party retail network, Reuters reports.

Full story: https://reut.rs/2Yee2RX

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March 22, 2019 06:56 ET (10:56 GMT)

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