BREITLING, the iconic Swiss watchmaker, inaugurated its first stand-alone boutique in Southeast Asia in Makati, last week. It?s just the vote of confidence the Philippine luxury market needs.

Eight prestige watch brands under the Lucerne Group opened their respective boutiques in Greenbelt 5, Makati, Tuesday last week, among them John Travolta?s watch brand of choice.

Founded in 1884, initially as a company creating aviation instruments, Breitling has been in the country for 15 years. Freestanding stores isn?t Breitling?s style, but its general manager for Asia Pacific said the company is confident Lucerne ?can develop the brand to another level.?

?It?s also good that we?re side by side [with the other brands] so we create a watch hub,? Mike Neo said. ?This is our chance to give the entire brand equity to the people, its philosophy, and to showcase the entire collection.?

The timepiece supplier of the British Royal Air Force in the early 20th century, Breitling is now known the world over, not just as a precision tool for pilots but as a prestige watch brand. Its longtime brand ambassador is Hollywood actor Travolta, who is a licensed pilot.

?You don?t have to be a pilot to wear a Breitling watch,? Neo said. ?Do you think all those people wearing diving watches are divers? Watches today are no longer just utilitarian, but symbolic of who the [wearers are].?

Given its heritage, the company prides itself for timepieces that are, foremost, functional. Its user-friendly features are standardized; for instance, it has oversized hands that ensure easy readability, and its crown can control multiple functions. The glass case is 99 percent glare-proof. It guarantees absolute sturdiness? shock-proof, and corrosion- and water-resistant.

Very accurate

Breitling has also developed the so-called Superquartz, which makes it 10 times more accurate than any other watch brand. It?s also the only brand that has all its timepieces ?chronometer-certified? by the Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres (COSC), the official Swiss chronometer testing institute. Only 5 percent of all Swiss-made watches are COSC-certified.

Owing to its roots, Breitling is still predominantly a male brand, but it hasn?t ignored the female market. ?For many ladies, size matters,? said Neo. ?They like legibility ? A watch is no longer an instrument to tell time. It has become a statement of who and what you are ? In Hong Kong, Singapore and even in the Philippines, women are very assertive of who they are. They are feminine but also have strong characters.?

As a result, Breitling has designed women?s watches, some of which are with jewels, ?but in sporty shapes.?

Neo acknowledged the effect of the financial crisis on the Breitling business. ?We do feel it a bit. Those who say they aren?t are telling a big fat lie. That?s why we have to work harder and create products that are different.?

At the Greenbelt 5 boutique, watch aficionados can peruse the entire brand collection, including the Breitling for Bentley line, created in collaboration with the luxury carmaker. But Neo was especially proud of the B Emergency watch he was wearing. It had a built-in microtransmitter that can send an SOS signal to any aircraft within its range. It first hit the market in 1994.

?This is the bottom line for us,? he said, ?to create products that are stunning and have strong character.?