Entrepreneur and TV pundit Gary Neville has joined the board of Norqain as the family-owned Swiss watchmaker prepares to launch in the UK.
His appointment follows the former Manchester United and England footballer taking a “significant” but undisclosed investment in the watchmaker, with Neville expected to play an active role in the business’s UK strategy, reported the Financial Times.
Drawn to the brand’s “values and innovative, sporty timepieces”, Neville said: “I’ve been following Norqain for some time now. As a challenger brand in the Swiss watch industry, Norqain is a perfect fit for me, and I’m thrilled to join Ben [Küffer, CEO] and the team as a partner in the business here in the UK and Ireland…
we share the same vision and challenger spirit, and I can’t wait to get started.”
Norqain’s UK and Ireland division was set up last month and is led by MD Martyn Jenkins, who has joined the business at “a pivotal moment in its journey”.
“Norqain isn’t just another luxury watch brand, it’s a movement and a community, challenging the status quo and bringing something fresh to the market,” he told City AM.
Norqain, which was co-founded in 2018 by Swiss former professional ice hockey player Mark Streit, has a history of partnering with sporting figures including tennis player Stanislas Wawrinka, who has also invested in the brand, ice hockey player Roman Josi and skier Tina Weirather. However, Neville is the first such partner to join the board, it said.
Jenkins said Norqain raised CHF7 million (£6.13 million) two years ago in a fundraising round, which also saw watch industry veteran Jean-Claude Biver become an investor and subsequently brought in as an adviser to the board.
Norqain has grown rapidly since its launch and now produces between 10,000 and 15,000 watches a year (average sale price of around £4,000 each), growing its revenues by 28% in 2024.
In distribution terms, the brand would like to be positioned in 500 and 700 stores as opposed to the 300 stores today.
Küffer said that Norqain is targeting future growth without further rounds of fundraising. “The UK is such a big market that you need to muscle up and say, ‘I’m ready to come’,” said Küffer.
“And when you come, you have to bring some money to the game; otherwise you’re not going to get far. And I think now we’re perfectly ready for that.”
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