Philipp Rüfli is the Head of Global Sales, Atlantic Watches. He has extensive experience in international business development, particularly in the luxury watch and security industries.
Since January 2025, he has been serving as the Head of Sales at Atlantic Watches, leveraging his deep industry expertise to drive global market expansion and strategic sales initiatives.
In an interview with THE WEEK, Rüfli talks about its go-to-market strategy in India, other growth markets globally, and the uniqueness of Atlantic Watches.
Q) You entered the Indian market only last year. How do you aim to take on the competition and the existing established players in the Indian market?
A) Even before we enter any market, we study the trends in that market, which includes studying market numbers.
After having done the initial research into the Indian market, we found that it was one of the top 30 global markets for any Swiss watchmaker. We saw it as a market with potential.
In whichever market we enter, we first make inroads through a strong partner who has full understanding of the market, so in a way, we are largely dependent on our partner. Retail Interface (our distributor) and Just in Time (retail partner) are strong local partners in India.
So we are largely dependent on strong partners. Finding a strong partner is also not very easy, so we need to have a partner who is committed to developing the brand in the local market. We have a very strong Swiss watchmaking tradition, but it needs to be communicated to our new customers, and that's why we rely on very strong local partners. Now with our local partners, we found people who are committed and are fully geared towards helping our brand grow in India.
Q) How has your expansion strategy in India been, ever since you entered the Indian market?
A) Within one year of entering the Indian market, we are present across 20 retail outlets in the country across Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru and Ahmedabad. We will be making inroads in five more retail outlets in the near future.
By the end of 2026, we aim to have a presence in a total of 40 retail stores.
Atlantic has quite a bright product portfolio. Our Quarz watches start retailing at Sw. Fr. 300, whereas our watches in the automatic segment are priced at Sw. Fr. 700-750. We are basically in the mid-price segment among the Swiss watchmakers.
Currently we are selling more quartz watches here when compared to the automatic watches, but in the future, we want to increase our sales in the automatic segment as well. The focus for quartz watches is mainly driven by young working professionals who are getting attracted towards watches. For many of them in India, this could be their first Swiss-made watch.
Q) Given the competition, what is the USP that Atlantic Watches offers its customers?
A) Our DNA is like a classic Swiss-made product in the mid-price segment. At Atlantic, we always say that our brand is affordable luxury.
We convince our end consumer with a sensational price reduction plan. We offer our customers really good quality for an affordable price. Compared to others, they are at the same price level, but then I would say our quality is better. At the same time we do a lot of local marketing together with our partners and our partners are also committed to investing in marketing. In a way, we have a good collaboration with our partners which lasts long-term.
Q) Can you briefly tell us about the history of Atlantic Watches?
A) Atlantic Watches was founded in 1888 by Eduard Kummer in Bettlach, Switzerland.
Atlantic (originally EKB, or Eduard Kummer Bettlach) began by producing parts for renowned brands like Longines and Certina. The first watches under the name 'Atlantic' were launched in 1932, including one of the earliest waterproof chronographs. The brand introduced the innovative 'Speed Switch' in 1960, reinforcing its reputation for technical excellence.
Q) Any new watch models you are planning to introduce in India in the near future?
A) We usually introduce new models twice every year in spring (April-May) and in autumn (September-October). Through our collaboration with our partners in India, we are getting new ideas to make something specific for the Indian market in the future.
In the past, we have done this in many other global markets. For example, we had a specific Atlantic watch made for Romania’s independence day. We are one of the first Swiss-made brands in Romania.
We have an in-house designer who can quickly design watches. We have done similar things in Vietnam and Poland as well. We also have a strong community in terms of collectors who like our limited editions.
In India, we need to gain the trust of our customers first, and then introduce new concepts and ideas in the market. This spring season, we aim to have fashionable watches for ladies and special watches for collectors too.
Q) What are your other growth markets?
A) In Asia, we have a strong presence in Vietnam and Japan. We are also now in the Philippines. We are also present in Hong Kong.
Besides this, our major markets are in Eastern Europe (in places like Romania, Poland, and Bulgaria) as our brand was the first Swiss watch brand that was introduced in the Eastern European market. Interestingly, our watch brand runs across different generations in the Eastern European market. In the rest of the European market, we have only a marginal presence.
Q) What is your go-to-market strategy across global markets? Do you see any competition from smartwatches?
A) Besides actively being involved with our local partners in different markets, we take an active part in different B2B and B2C exhibitions across the world in different countries, such as Germany, Hong Kong, Canada and even in our home turf of Switzerland.
At such events, we connect with different partners and customers, which helps us popularise our brand.
We are not in direct competition with smartwatches, but I feel that many youngsters are coming into shops and are demanding a retro-vintage style of watches that look very classy, and our brand fits in very much in that category.