Alokananda Chakraborty
Media

Chitralekha group's Watch World to go beyond watches in September

The September-end edition of Watch World, the special issue launched by the Chitralekha group in June this year, will focus on lifestyle products in general

The Chitralekha group forayed into hitherto uncharted territory in June this year with the launch of Watch World, a special issue in Gujarati looking at the branded watch segment with exclusive coverage of Watch Fair, an exhibition held annually at Basel and Zurich in Switzerland, and Geneva-based SIHH, an elite exposition of Richemont Group watches including brands like Baume & Mercier, Mont Blanc, Piaget, IWC and Dunhill.

Printed on glossy art paper with a special layout and design, the roughly 80-page tome was priced at Rs 50 and had a print run of around one-lakh copies.

After the successful launch of the first issue, the group is getting ready for the launch of the second issue in September-end at the onset of the festive season. "There is a growing interest among consumers for lifestyle products," explains Bharat Kapadia, editor and publisher, Chitralekha. "Gujaratis, in particular, are interested in this segment both as consumers as well as traders of luxury watches."

However, the interesting bit is that the second issue will not only focus on watches but also on branded jewellery and other lifestyle products. "We received a fabulous response to the first issue," states Mitrajit Bhattacharya, vice-president, Chitralekha. "There were a number of advertisers from other product categories who were keen to advertise in the issue. So we thought of widening its scope to include branded jewellery as well. Essentially, watches and branded jewellery will be the core offering of the next issue."

For advertisers of premium luxury products who are constantly on the lookout for the right media vehicle to not only target the appropriate audience but also find a fit in terms of brand image, Watch World is the apt choice, claims Bhattacharya. "Regional groups do come up with special issues but it is not up to the production standards or quality of Watch World. In English, you primarily have the lifestyle magazines but they are very niche," he points out. "Watch World, on the other hand, can leverage Chitralekha's distribution network," he adds.

Apart from using the existing setup and compiling a "healthy complementary list", the group has tied up with several air carriers to place the issue in the premium J class for in-flight reading besides tying up with five-star hotels and major retail outlets to carry dispensers and copies.

Plans are in place to regularise the effort and come up with more such issues. "We are neither planning an English edition nor are we looking to spin off a separate division," says Kapadia. "However, we will consider an issue every quarter next year." © 2003 agencyfaqs!

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