A comprehensive e-business framework for luxury watch companies
Creators: name: Dähler, Rico
Publisher: name: ZHAW Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften
Year: 2017
Subjects: 658.8: Marketingmanagement

description: After years of prosperity and growth, the luxury watch industry is standing on a burning platform. On top of declining exports, increased competition and changing customer habits, a much more fundamental challenge lies ahead. The digitalization disruptively reshapes the way how goods are bought, delivered and marketed worldwide. This means, that the way of purchasing a luxury watch by consumers is increasingly influenced by an organization’s digital channels. So far, the traditional watch industry has been very reluctant in adopting to this change. Now, companies are in a situation where they must hurry up. One of the main problems is that there are neither role models nor guidelines that managers could use as an orientation point. In other words: Luxury watch companies are in uncharted waters.

This thesis identified, which parts of the business of a luxury watch company are affected by digitalization. Furthermore, it prioritized and described the constituent parts of an e-business strategy. The results were then combined to provide guidance for managers in form of a comprehensive e-business framework.

In the first part, secondary research was conducted for the elaboration of a theoretical fundament; this resulted in a first version of the e-business framework. It is followed by the empirical part, which comprises four interviews with experts from different industries. This allowed for a more holistic view on digital implications on luxury watch companies. All interviews were conducted on the basis of the theoretical e-business framework, which ensured the final version to be better applicable and relevant for practical use.

Digitalization allows companies to reach billions of potential customers, which makes the segmentation of customers extremely important. This is a radical change for the luxury watch industry, as companies did not have to segment their customers very precisely so far. Such developments also demand a better understanding of the journeys of targeted customers. A clear e-business strategy typically consists of two interconnected areas: the digital channels of an organization and the organizational foundation which supports these channels. The overall goal of improving a customer’s experience with the brand is achieved by analyzing data about and from channels (e.g. gender distribution in combination with transaction data). It is suggested to start market pilots with an easy to grasp amount of data. Much more than the selection of channels or whether they are online or offline, the question is how they are designed and integrated.

New technologies and the generation of digital native customers challenge the traditional mindset and business model of Swiss watch companies. E-business therefore must start at the top and should be organized inter-divisional. Based on a clear picture about a company’s target segments, it gives answers to the selection, design and integration of online and offline channels. Luxury watch companies do good in implementing a continuous cycle of learning about consumer’s journeys on a never ending mission towards a superior customer experience.