Born in Portugal, Carla Duarte spent time as a commercial director in her native country before arriving in Tessin, Switzerland, in 2006.
After spending eight years in the country and moving to Le Locle in 2014, Carla started work at Vulcain and Anonimo in 2018.
She started life at the brands working in the accounts department, becoming finance manager in 2019, and last year she stepped into her current role of chief executive.
Carla reflects on this as her biggest achievement in the past 12 months, as well as her general stewardship of her brands through covid difficulties.
“Becoming chief executive of Vulcain and Anonimo has been the biggest achievement,” she beams.
“They are two great brands with such a great history to tell. Vulcain, the watch of presidents, the Cricket alarm; and Anonimo, the first brand to produce bronze watches.”
Talking of the difficulties faced by her brands in recent times, she comments: “It was difficult during [the pandemic] and as we emerged from the covid crisis to take a solid position in the market, Vulcain was expanding and needed to start over, but we did it. We restarted and, with a lot of hard work, we actually managed to open several new markets around the world.”
Next on the agenda for Carla is to bring Vulcain the light she says it deserves, while continuing to grow Anonimo alongside it.
On challenges she could face in the US watch market, Carla anticipates: “Right now, I think the biggest challenge is the long-established watch oligopoly, which makes it difficult for many meritorious brands to blossom. That said, the biggest opportunity is the fact that new consumers are increasingly eager to discover other brands, and retailers are increasingly interested to differentiate themselves.”
Outside of her professional life, Carla spends “all the time she can” with her four-year-old daughter, and loves to read.
It’s very nice that a mother wants to spend as much time as she can with her four year older kid daughter. And so she should. I spend as much time as possible with my daughter. But, then she shouldn’t be inhabiting a CEO position at two different watch companies, where her stewardship can spell success or failure for the brands. And/or she should have a second in command who is proficient enough in her absence to be able to take over those responsibilities, especially on a day to day basis. That’s basic business management. I’ve had to try to interact with Duarte regarding business with her Vulcain brand, and her follow up has been poor, and while it may be excused if it’s the exception, when it becomes more the rule then it ceases to be excusable and instead becomes an impediment. How does this happen in a modern business environment is a head scratcher!