Forbes Asia — December 2017

12 Indonesia

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

The watch and fashion retailer’s established presence and reputation for quality

leaves it well placed to satisfy Indonesia’s growing appetite for luxury.

TIME INTERNATIONAL:

SECOND TO NONE

With rising affluence fueled by a robust

economy, more Indonesian consumers are

opening their wallets and spending their

money on a range of luxury items—from

fashion and timepieces to accessories

and footwear.

This puts Time International, the coun-

try’s leading luxury watch and fashion

retailer, in an enviable position to capture

a big slice of this growing market.

The company has a dominant presence

across Southeast Asia’s largest economy,

holding exclusive retailing rights or

authorized sales points to more than 80 of

the world’s most renowned timepiece and

lifestyle brands.

“Despite the current challenges that

are happening in the region, we believe

that with Indonesia’s current strong and

growing domestic market, we can remain

optimistic and benefit from the situation.

We have seen good growth over the

years in the luxury sector, particularly in

the watches segment, which is our core

business,” says Irwan Danny Mussry,

Time International’s President and Chief

Executive Officer.

The company was established in the

1960s to assemble, service and manage

the wholesale distribution of watches.

Since then it has expanded into a leading

retailer of high-end timepieces and other

premium lifestyle categories.

Today, it operates close to 100 stand-

alone mono and multilabel stores,

exclusively representing, among other

brands, Audemars Piguet, Breguet,

Cartier, Chopard, Fossil, Hublot, Rolex

and TAG Heuer, as well as fashion brands

including Berluti, Chanel, Diesel, Fendi

and Tory Burch.

This presents plenty of touch points

in an economy that relies heavily on

domestic consumption, with consumer

spending at a massive 57% of gross

domestic product. This is significantly

higher than the corresponding figures

for neighboring nations such as China,

Malaysia and Thailand. The growing

number of wealthy consumers in

Indonesia each year is also contributing

to a positive outlook for luxury goods in

the country.

Furthermore, an estimated 90 million

Indonesians will join the ranks of the

consuming class by 2030, according to

a report by management consultancy

McKinsey & Company. Only China and

India are likely to surpass this increase in

numbers of consumers.

To cater to growth in all market

segments, Time International has been

aggressively pursuing a multibrand

approach. The company’s flagship

timepieces boutique, The Time Place,

carries the most luxurious brands, while

INTime caters to a younger, trendier

clientele that still values premium quality.

As for Urban Icon, it looks to attract a

younger demographic that is both fashion

forward and value conscious.

“We have a wide variety of custom-

ers in our portfolio, but a few key fac-

tors remain consistent: they are sophisti-

cated, knowledgeable, brand-conscious

and want the finer things in life. These

days, they are also very tech-savvy,”

says Mussry.

Despite the growth of e-commerce,

Time International’s physical boutiques

are a key channel in reaching its

Time International exclusively represents a range of luxury brands. well-heeled audience. According to

The Time Place is the company’s flagship timepieces boutique.