MASTER MECHANICS

76 RETAILER PROFILE europa star
Panama’s La Hora-Alta Relojeria
Panama is a burgeoning tourist area and the economy has now started to come back from the crisis and the H1N1
outbreak. Europa Star’s International Editor Keith W. Strandberg talked with Hamudi Waked, Luxury Director of
Grupo WISA, about the newest La Hora-Alta Relojeria retail store in Panama, which opened in October of 2010.
RKeith W. Strandberg
Europa Star: How's business?
Hamudi Waked: 2008 was great and it was
our best year since we opened the La Hora
store. In 2009, all retailers went down because
of the crisis and H1N1. This year we are up 40
per cent vs. 2009, but our goal is to achieve at
least the sales figures from 2008 and hopefully
more. We have opened a new store which is
bigger and carries only high-end brands. It is
phase two of our mission, which is to upgrade
and separate our medium and fashion brands
from our high-end ones.
We opened the first La Hora store in Panama
five years ago. It was very hard at the beginning
since all brands were already working
with retailers and we had no brands and no
know-how. We started knocking on doors
and attending conventions; and we started
taking big and prestige brands that were very
strong in Asia, the Middle East and Europe
but were not well known in our region. So
with passion, motivation and great help and
support from our suppliers, we started the
marketing campaigns for each brand.The first
brands we took were: Hublot, Blancpain,
Glashütte, Breitling and Corum. Today we
have an independent watch department that
takes care of the purchasing, another department
that is strictly marketing and PR and
now we have more experienced people in
the stores.
One thing that we have learned over the
years is that in order to succeed in this busi-
ness you need a great staff before getting the
great brands, as buying and placing the products
in the store is easy.We are a sell-out oriented
company and we only want to work with
brands that have a watch philosophy and that
want to really support their retailers.
ES: How has business changed in recent years?
HW: Now you have more retailers, good but
also bad. The problem is that the bad ones go
to conventions and exhibitions and promise
things they cannot deliver. In addition, brands
are now demanding a great deal in every way.
When you start with complex and high-end
brands, you are truly entering another level.
ES: What is the secret of your success?
HW: Humbleness, dedication, determination.