Giving a stiff competition to other brands, He is proving to be Challenger in the Game
Over the past few years, technology has evolved with a wide range of products following the latest market trends. Creating a forte of their own in the luxury products section, the watches have made a place for themselves. Nonetheless, luxury watches tend to be sensitive to a person’s income or wealth, meaning that as wealth rises, so do purchases. But, how does one determine how much purchase capacity the consumer has? Keep your thoughts at ease, to answer all our qualms, let us know about Cyril Ratel, a Swiss Entrepreneur who has established an opulent watch brand named ‘Ratel’.
The Ratel brand was born from the pursuit to create watches that are both timeless and aesthetic, blending modernity and creativity with the highest level of Swiss craftsmanship. The combination of these elements brings innovation to a mostly traditional industry in Switzerland. Each watch mixes versatility with fashionable features to perfectly create distinctive pieces ideal for a demanding global clientele.
The Global Watch Market was valued at USD 92.75 billion in 2021 and is projected to register a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5.02 % during the forecast period (2022-2027).
As majority of the establishments struggle to break into the market, watch brands like Ratel continue to soar to incredible heights; all due to the perfect brand strategies applied by Cyril Patel.
Being a serial entrepreneur and Brand Strategist – Rosin Abdul Rahman has a deep understanding of global markets along with the digital advertising media. This takes work and research to learn. He says, “Digital media for luxury brands is a multidimensional landscape but each brand gets to change their chunk of that landscape in ways that work best for it. So, it’s very crucial to have social media presence.”
Cyril Ratel, a Geneva born entrepreneur after completing his Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) launched this brand. It was in 2004 when Cyril Ratel founded CRG Watches which was later christened the eponymous brand ‘Ratel’. Observing the history and the latest technological changes, the timepieces of the brand are inspired by the swanky lifestyle of the entrepreneur. At the onset of the launch of this watch brand, Cyril installed and created Swiss-made timepieces that were exported across the Gulf countries and Russia after which the regal timepieces went on to become a massive hit across the UAE, Mexico and other parts of the world. The exceptional watchmaking company and its exquisite timepieces are adored by a majority of the people in Dubai. The most loved collection of ‘Ratel’ is VI Degrees. Under this collection, there are a series of watches including Chrono, XL Calendar, Open Heart, Skeleton, Skull and Elements. These distinctive watches respond differently as per the different atmospheres.
When asked about what made him create this watch brand, the entrepreneur said, “I was fervent about luxury as a forte in the business sector. Zeroing down to timepieces, I always intended to launch personalized and exclusive Swiss-made timepieces. It feels great to see the brand flourishing from scratch and reaching potential customers all over the world.” He did not forget to mention the efforts of his team especially his artisans whom he cares for the most! Praising them he says, “The artisans working for the watch designs make sure to utilize creativity, thus setting a monopoly in the luxury markets.” Apart from direct selling, ‘Ratel’ has established a relationship with the reseller boutiques where the timepieces are available for sale.
Does social media work for luxury watches? Cyril gives a quick answer to this saying, “But only if you know how to make it work! When a brand uses social media, people tend to like that brand more and it’s becoming almost impossible for luxury brands to resist the pull of social media.”
According to Cyril Ratel, social media marketing for luxury watches is different to marketing an average brand for one main reason: Luxury watches are different to everyday products. They exude exclusivity, craftsmanship, heritage and the higher prices signal superior quality. As such, Cyril’s social media marketing strategy revolves around creating an exclusive lifestyle focusing on creating a value-added customer experience based on brand storytelling. Cyril Ratel has garnered more than 22.5K followers over his Instagram handle within a short span of time! And Why Not! He pays special attention to creating content that’s entertaining, current and stimulates engagement with his audience. Being an Influencer himself, he strikes a chord with his audience and Posts stories and reels for grabbing attention and showcasing the lifestyle his brand.
Due to increasing popularity among the masses, throughout Ratel’s watchmaking journey, Ratel has collaborated with Aston Martin UAE which is the world’s only independent luxury car group, to paint the creative picture of watches through the combination of global inspiration and Swiss quality. Through this brand collaboration Ratel watches came up with the bespoke and symbolist brand. The collaboration has taken the brand to a new thriving levels on account of the creation of an exclusive and unique timepiece inspired by the DB11 model of the iconic luxury British sports car.
Cyril has faced a lot of challenges in his life and career and this has made him a man with humility. Let us know a bit more about him. Cyril Ratel was born in Geneva, Switzerland, the city where Swiss watchmaking originated in the 16th century. Coming from a city with this historical influence impacted him greatly. He developed a passion for luxury watches at a young age, admiring their precision, craftsmanship and opulent appearance. In the last 15 years he created an independent brand that challenges traditional watchmaking with his innovative vision. Cyril has travelled to over 100 countries to build Ratel into a distinguished niche-brand. Cyril’s Swiss origin and family business of watchmaking appeared for him as a blessing in disguise, which aided him and his watchmakers to come out with delicate and opulent brand of watches to please the conscience of watch lovers. The brand came into existence through hard work, experience and skills garnered his brand much praise globally.
