TW Steel CEO and co-owner Jordy Cobelens was in Sydney last week to celebrate the opening of the company’s first Australian flagship store.
Speaking at the store’s official launch party on Wednesday night, Cobelens said it was an exciting time to be launching the flagship store.
“It (the flagship) truly delivers the world of TW Steel to the consumer and allows us to showcase our full collection,” he said.
“We will obviously monitor closely the success of the Sydney store and if we’re satisfied with its commercial success I’m sure we’d then look to expand to other areas in the likes of Melbourne and Queensland.”
He said that TW Steel, a privately-owned family company founded in Amsterdam in 2005, has enjoyed a footprint in Australia for several years.
“I think Australian tastes undoubtedly helped to establish TW Steel in the region,” he said.
“Consumers weren’t afraid to be bold and make a statement by wearing a large timepiece.
“The early challenges (of establishing the brand locally) were obviously in convincing retailers that we were here to stay and we weren’t a ‘fad’ brand that would be big one year and gone the next.
“Having chosen to invest directly into Australia helped ease any of those fears and I think through having the likes of an amazing brand ambassador like Mick Doohan, we’ve shown we’re serious about the Australian marketplace.
“We’re closing in on 200 retailers carrying the brand.”
He said the company would continue to deliver product that is both appealing and priced appropriately for Australian consumers.
“Our relationships with retail partners are critical and our sales team will build on those while developing new opportunities for the brand.
“On a marketing level we’ll continue to use the likes of Mick Doohan, who’s been a fantastic ambassador for us.
“We’ve also enjoyed visits by the likes of Kelly Rowland, another amazing ambassador for TW Steel, and we’ll keep networking in with our global marketing platforms at the likes of the Australian Grand Prix with our partners Sahara Force India, and in MotoGP through our partnership with Yamaha Factory Racing.”