Rox is set to replicate the luxury watch offer of its Edinburgh store as it expands into England for the first time with a new store in Newcastle’s Monument Mall.
The 3,000 sq ft two-floor store will have a focus on luxury watches. The line up of brands is yet to be confirmed by Rox said that the offer will be similar to that of its Edinburgh store which carries Hublot, Bremont, Girard-Perregaux, Montblanc and Bell & Ross.
The shop is due to open in October, in time for the festive rush, and work will begin on the site this summer. The store is being designed by Graven Images, the agency that has created the retail environment of the five Scottish Rox stores.
The store will be fitted out with the retailer’s signature Thrill Room, a relaxed sales space with champagne bar that can double as an events space for evening entertainment.
Rox’s Edinburgh store marked a shift for the retailer into higher end watches with brands such as Hublot, Corum and Girard-Perregaux sold at the store in the city’s Assembly Rooms.
Rox managing director Kyron Keogh told WatchPro that the success of the luxury watches at its Edinburgh store had a knock-on effect on the watch offer in its store in Glasgow’s Argyll Arcade. This store has recently elevated its offering of timepieces and has taken on brands Hublot and Bremont in recent months with Kyron reporting strong sell through from the off.
He said: "We always had the diamond offer but didn’t have the watches to match that. We’ve now gained their confidence."
Rox also announced this morning that it will open its first own-brand store in Trinity Leeds in October dedicated to its own ranges of fine and silver jewellery, which is a first for the company. The combined opening of the two stores represents a £2 million investment from Rox and the creation of 20 jobs.
There will be no watches on sale at Rox’s own brand store in Leeds, but Keogh said that the creation of its own watch brand could be a possibility in the future but that it won’t happen within the year.
He said: "We have a road map that covers all lifestyle goods. Right now we are focusing on diamonds and silver, but we will launch at some point in the future Rox watches and lifestyle goods, but let’s take one step at a time."
