Watch brand of the celebrities makes its store debut in Leeds

Beaverbrooks, which has had a shop in the city for over 30 years, has redesigned its 904 sq ft store on Commercial Street to include a TAG Heuer boutique, which has its own separate entrance from the street as well as access from within the main jewellery store.

The boutique will sell TAG Heuer watches, including the Haute Horlogerie range, as well as mobile phones and lifestyle accessories.

Beaverbrooks, which is already a TAG Heuer stockist, would not reveal how much it spent on the refurbishment, which took seven weeks to complete, but regional manager Simon Smith said it was a “substantial” investment.

“We have refurbished the entire retail space,” he said. “It’s a new design layout with more seating areas and a more luxurious feel. We have invested a substantial amount of money in creating the new look for the main store and the TAG Heuer boutique area.”

The new store is due to be opened on Saturday by Sam Warburton, Lions Rugby Captain, who is an ambassador for the brand. TAG Heuer has a number of ambassadors including Hollywood actress Cameron Diaz and British Formula One driver Jenson Button.

The move comes a year after Rolex invested £800,000 in its first standalone store outside London on the same street. Mr Smith said that was a major factor in the decision to bring the TAG Heuer boutique to Leeds.

“Commercial Street has a great reputation now in terms of jewellery retailers, with Omega and Rolex, so we felt it was an ideal opportunity for TAG Heuer, which has an extremely strong product group and is a luxury brand that is well known. The location is ideal.”

He added: “We’re thrilled with our new TAG Heuer boutique – it really is the best place to choose a prestigious watch outside of London and we look forward to offering our customers some of the most exclusive TAG Heuer lines only available in our boutique.”

Although watch sales were hurt during previous recessions, this time the industry has enjoyed a boost. According to the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry, last year set a record for watch sales.

Demand for Swiss watches has been helped by a growing appetite for luxurious timepieces in emerging markets, particularly Hong Kong and China.

Mr Smith said: “The jewellery and watch market is always very competitive. At Beaverbrooks, we want to provide high levels of service regardless of what the customer is wanting.

“We are finding a cross-section of products are selling well, in particular, some of the more luxury brands, as well as diamond rings, engagement rings and eternity rings.

“There is a high sentimental attachment to jewellery and people also look to treat themselves.”

TAG Heuer was founded in 1860 when 20-year-old Edouard Heuer set up a watchmaking workshop in St Imier in the Swiss Jura region.

The first TAG Heuer patent was granted in 1869 when Heuer patented a keyless crown-operated winding system for pocket watches. He established a subsidiary in London in 1876.

There are currently no plans to roll out more boutiques across the country but Mr Smith said Beaverbrooks would continue to work with TAG Heuer as and when new opportunities arise.

Beaverbrooks has 65 stores nationally, including seven in Yorkshire in Leeds, the White Rose Centre, Meadowhall, Doncaster, York, Huddersfield and Hull.

It has recently refurbished all its Yorkshire stores apart from Hull, which will be updated later this year.

Beaverbrooks, which was founded in 1919, is a family-owned business and is featured in the Sunday Times Best 100 Companies to Work For.

Mr Warburton will be in the TAG Heuer boutique from midday to 3pm to answer questions about his career highlights and his association with TAG Heuer.

Orla McKeon, retail director for TAG Heuer, said: “We’re excited to open our new Boutique in Leeds in partnership with Beaverbrooks.

“We hope our customers enjoy the opening day as well as meeting Sam who is a fantastic ambassador for TAG Heuer.”

Moving with the times

From its first chronograph mechanism patent in 1882, to the introduction of a new automatic movement in 2004, TAG Heuer has been at the forefront of a number of significant innovations in watchmaking history.

The first TAG Heuer patent was granted in 1869 when Heuer patented a keyless crown-operated winding system for pocket watches.

In 1895, TAG Heuer was granted the patent for one of the first water-resistent cases for pocket watches. In 1908, it received a patent for a pulsometer dial, still used today by doctors.

In 2004, the company created the Monaco V4 Concept Watch, replacing the traditional pinion and gear transmission with a belt-driven movement.