Attire Accessories - May/Jun 2019 (Issue 76)

64 Tell me a bit about how the company started, and what was the goal of the business? Mode9 (UK) was started with the aim of supplying our family-owned jewellery stores on the islands of St. Maarten and St. Thomas with branded fashion watches at a price point ranging from £100 to £400. The goal was to find brands that were exciting and unknown in that part of the world, which would be able to compete and thrive next to established ones. Growing up in London, using the talking clock provided by BT, we already knew of Accurist. We had hoped to connect with the company when visiting Baselworld in 2004. While at the show, we came across Storm of London, which had some interesting watches on display. By the summer of that year, we had managed to sign up both brands and were ready to ship to the stores just in time for the Caribbean cruise season. How was the portfolio of watch brands developed, and what response have you had? Accurist was tough to get going. Most of the American tourists to the islands were getting confused, assuming it was part of Accutron. Because of the name conflict, it was difficult for the brand to gain traction, and we dropped the line at the end of the 2005 season. With the styles and designs in the Storm of London watch collection, we found the brand was able to stand its own ground and was selling at a decent pace in both locations. The brand generated a lot of interest from neighbouring stores, which turned into enquiries and sales. Storm of London watches are now being sold in jewellery stores on a number of islands in the Caribbean and Alaska, targeting the local fashion-conscious consumer in addition to the visitors coming to the islands on their vacations. As we progressed, we decided to add more lines for the Caribbean and Alaskan client stores. At the same time, we took the decision to take our first steps into the UK market. What challenges were overcome when the company was starting out in the Caribbean and then again in the UK? The main challenge when working with unknown entities was getting the brands into retail stores. We had to look at the competition within the store, the price range of each brand being sold and the styles on offer. This allowed us a chance to evaluate the possibilities of supplying to prospective stores. The next step was providing marketing support, which we did with specific adverts in the islands’ consumer magazines and local newspapers. When we started selling in the UK, we found that social media platforms are a valuable tool to connect with consumers. We now post daily on multiple platforms, with a number of posts being sponsored to gain more exposure for our brands. We also started advertising in British trade and consumer magazines with regular monthly and bi-monthly adverts in specific titles. To assist us in taking our brands further, we signed up with Cherish PR in January 2019. We decided to take this step to help us increase the awareness of our brands in the consumer marketplace. Finally, we put an agreement in place to work with a Swatch Group-certified service and repair centre that deals with any issues we have in the UK. This means that as long as you have purchased a watch from one of our brands, whether from a UK-based retailer or on your travels, we will take care of all issues. What sets you apart from your competitors? First, I would say that you will be hard-pressed to find a company that serves the UK and the Caribbean and Alaskan markets. Second, I would have to say the retail price range of brands that we carry allows us to work with and target a huge range of possible clients. How important is your location to the company in its success? When we started out, we were a London-based company supplying British brands to the Caribbean market. This was a good USP when visiting clients stores in the Caribbean and Alaska, especially with Storm watches in our Portfolio. Today, we are a London-based company supplying the UK, Caribbean and Alaska with luxury Swiss watches, as well as European fashion watch brands.