Titan places its bets on the premium segment for this festive season

Bangalore: This festive season, Titan is hoping that the overall cheer in the economy will influence buying patterns, and is optimistic about some big ticket purchases in its premium watches segment.

Titan has six new collections comprising 250 designs across its various brands, backed by a series of offers and advertising campaigns in the run-up to Diwali.

According to Harish Bhat, COO, watches, Titan Industries, "The mood all around is upbeat, the economy is looking up. The stock market is booming. An Indian is the richest man in the world. We hope this tide will lift up the Diwali mood as well. With affluence and buying power increasing, our prognosis is a brilliant festive season, especially in the premium watches segment. We expect 40 per cent of our sales this festive season to come from premium watches alone."

Of the six collections, five are in the premium category, which covers Titan Heritage, which is inspired by Indian architecture; Raga Crystals, which is studded with Swarovski crystals; Nebula Pearl comprising solid gold watches studded with precious stones; Laurent collection, under Titan Regalia; and a new collection from Tommy Hilfiger, which is Titan''s licensee brand.

The Sonata Yuva collection, which targets the youth is the only one in the mass market category.

TV campaigns are already underway for Raga Crystals and Yuva. The other collections are using print and outdoor advertising to pitch for the festive wallets of prospective customers.

Offers for Diwali include gold coins along with Nebula watches, Mont Blanc perfumes with Xylys watches, 20 per cent discount on Regalia, and messenger bags free with Tommy Hilfiger watches.

The festive season, starting with Dussehra, followed by Diwali, and then extending till Christmas, even the New Year, is unsurprisingly the highest contributor to yearly sales, bringing in almost 35 per cent of the yearly tally.