Swisswatches recently headed over to Hamburg in order to see and celebrate the official launch of Tudor’s second ever mono-brand boutique. Our editor Catherine Bishop reports back on what the space has to offer Tudor clients from far and wide.
When one hears Tudor, one thinks of David Beckham, the All Blacks, and of course being ‘Born to Dare’. Its hardy watches tend to be available from retailers, however the brand does also have a few mono-brand boutiques in locations such as Cologne, Dubai, and London. Most recently, the adrenalin-fuelled watchmaking company opened a new boutique in the very heart of Hamburg. The city is revered as one of Germany’s most attractive shopping cities nationwide, making this opening a fairly big deal for several reasons.
Location, Location, Location
The new boutique is based within Hamburg’s most popular luxury shopping district, Hamburger Neustadt. Its high-profile neighbours include the likes of Cartier and Porsche Design. People come from far and wide to shop in this area, including from neighbouring countries such as Denmark and the Netherlands. That is what makes the introduction of this modest-sized boutique so important: it will be visited not only by locals, but will be a crucial point of sale for those wanting to experience a Tudor boutique from further afield.
The space is located on Poststraße 3-7, which perches close to one of Hamburg’s many canals. This particular one is called Bleichenfleet, and is known for its scenic reflections of the luxury stores surrounding it in the evenings. The well-placed boutique has been created in collaboration with the prestigious Juwelier Rüschenbeck, which deals in both luxury watches and jewellery since the opening of its first jewellers in 1904, called Zur Goldecke (the Gold Corner).
A special collaboration
The opening is also important for another reason: Tudor boutiques remain rare. As Rémi Corpataux, Managing Director of Tudor Germany, explains, “The mono-brand boutique in Hamburg is our second boutique in Germany, alongside our shop in Cologne. Together with Juwelier Rüschenbeck, we are further expanding the brand network and thus continuously strengthening Tudor’s presence in the German market.”
Meanwhile, Wilhelm Rüschenbeck, Managing Director of Juwelier Rüschenbeck, was also present at the launch event for the new boutique. He had his own thoughts to add. “Highest quality, high recognisability and innovative spirit are the criteria that a brand must have for us. Tudor combines these characteristics like almost no other. Nothing could therefore make more sense than to give the Tudor world its own stage.”
A typical TUDOR experience
The new boutique is typical Tudor: the minimalist black shelves on the walls are adorned with rugby balls, books relevant to the brands, and a couple plants that benefit from the light exterior. Naturally, a sizeable poster of David Beckham takes over a portion of the back wall. Additionally, a life-size statue of a diver stands peering through the display window, wearing a Black Bay watch.
The two huge sheets of glass adorning the entrance fill the modest space with light, allowing for optimum viewing of the watches. Upon entering the store, one is currently greeted by the Tudor Black Bay 58 bronze, although the manager of the boutique explains that the watches on display are constantly on rotation.
Nevertheless, the use of bronze is important to Tudor, given its common use on watch cases – aka the Black Bay. Therefore, one entire section of the boutique is dedicated to an educational display about the creation and use of bronze by the manufacture. Customers can touch, feel, and turn over the bronze pieces in its various states in order to learn about how the cases are created.
Visiting the space
The Hamburg boutique has four well-informed employees who tend to work in twos or threes every day. Footfall varies from tourists to locals to the aforementioned shoppers from further afield, and the Tudor team offer these visitors individual advice, sales and service. The boutique is open every day, aside from Sundays, from 10:00 am to 19:00.