India’s luxury watch moment is near, but capability must catch up, says Titan Watch CEO

Since the beginning of time, luxury watches in India have largely been imported aspirations. But as Indian consumers move steadily up the spending ladder, Titan believes the country's biggest watch opportunity no longer lies just in entry-level products but in premium and luxury segments where demand is rising faster than the broader market.

Despite rising demand, Kuruvilla Markose, CEO of Titan's Watches Division believes India still lacks the scale and capability associated with global luxury watchmaking hubs such as Switzerland and Japan. The challenge, he argues, is not a lack of craftsmanship but building advanced manufacturing capabilities and delivering them consistently at scale.

"So to me, India's time is coming," he tells Fortune India. "We need to be able to make those products with really good capability. If your product is on par or better than something at an equivalent price point, people sit up and take notice."

Titan has been pushing deeper into premium horology through products such as India's first professional diving watch certified for depths of 500 metres - the Titan Zero Hour 500M Professional Diver's Automatic Watches.

They also launched the country's first tourbillon watch at ₹24 lakh on their 40th anniversary, and also introduced high-end Nebula models priced above ₹40 lakh. "It's not that we haven't been able to play in the luxury segment but what we need to do is build the capability to continuously make those products on scale," he says. 

According to Markose, Indian consumers increasingly seek value alongside prestige. "There are customers who want the best features but don't want to pay ₹15 lakh or ₹25 lakh. They ask, what if I could have that for ₹5 lakh?"

He compared India's opportunity in watches with the trajectory followed by Japanese, Korean and more recently Chinese manufacturers in automobiles and electronics. "The capability exists and we can build it. This is what the Japanese did in the 1960s and 1970s, then the Koreans did, and now the Chinese are doing."

Premiumisation drives growth

Markose says India has reached an inflection point in the watch industry, with the market now evenly split between watches priced below and above ₹25,000. While volumes remain concentrated at the lower end, premium and luxury products are increasingly driving value growth.

"The market is split exactly halfway. Fifty percent is above ₹25,000 price points and 50% is below ₹25,000 price points," Markose says. "The greater than ₹25,000 segment would be growing at 25% to 30% year-on-year, while the below ₹25,000 segment is growing at about 15%."

India's total watch market is currently worth about ₹26,000 crore, with nearly ₹13,000 crore coming from products priced above ₹25,000. Of this, roughly ₹9,000 crore sits in the premium and accessible luxury categories, spanning watches priced between ₹25,000 and ₹5 lakh.

For Titan, which commands over 50% market share in the sub-₹25,000 segment, the next phase of growth is increasingly tied to consumers trading up. Analog watches grew 15% during the March quarter, supported by continued premiumisation. The company's premium and international watch brands recorded double-digit growth, even as the smartwatch segment saw nearly a 50% decline in value amid weakening demand.

Markose attributes the premiumisation trend to rising incomes and changing consumer preferences. India's per-capita income has increased from roughly $2,200 to around $2,800, while consumers are increasingly viewing watches as expressions of personality, milestones and status.

"We are seeing our own contribution from greater than ₹25,000 rising significantly. We are pretty much seeing the contribution doubling year-on-year in the greater than ₹25,000 space," he says. He expects watches above the Rs 25,000 bracket to contribute almost one-fourth of its revenue in around 2-3 years.

Titan reported consolidated total income of ₹20,300 crore in the March quarter, up 46% year-on-year, while profit after tax rose 35% to ₹1,179 crore. The watches business posted total income of ₹1,222 crore, growing 8%, with an EBIT margin of 11.7%.

Titan also expanded its retail footprint by adding 30 net stores during the quarter, including 17 Titan World stores, seven Fastrack stores, four Helios outlets and two Helios Luxe stores, as it strengthens its presence across both mass and premium segments.