Brand Profile: Why Citizen Watch America Is Fully Committed to the IRR Market
“Citizen Watch America has one of the oldest and most respected in-house dedicated corporate sales divisions," says Jeffrey Cohen,
(1).jpeg)
President, Citizen Watch America. Corporate sales remain “a very strong part of the overall company’s business. It speaks to the importance of brands in the marketplace. The brand name is what resonates, tells a story, and which provides the ultimate value to the recipient. For this reason, having the No. 1 and No. 2 brands has an impact on this market.” Citizen Watch America, he says, “is dedicated to this channel. You must be able to meet demands that are very different from retail.”In addition, Cohen adds, “The exposure of our broad portfolio of recognized brands in the business-to-business market highlights our overall national marketing campaigns and gives further ripple effect of the company’s messaging.”
Citizen Watch America is one of the few consumer brands that has a Corporate Sales web site. It is a member of the Brand Media Coalition, which is dedicated to educating the business world on the power of brands for engaging key stakeholders.
Adrienne Forrest, who was promoted to Senior Vice President of Sales earlier this year, probably holds the
highest-ranking corporate sales job at a large brand in the industry. “As one of the oldest and trusted brands in the corporate gifting, rewards, and recognition business, Bulova is a recognized market leader. The Bulova brand’s 147-year-old history of innovation and its influence on pop culture are part of what sets us apart.”Further, she adds, “Citizen has been a leader in technology for the last century. We recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of the titanium watch and have a super titanium model. It’s hypo allergic, stronger than stainless steel. These are the kinds of innovations that speak to our brand story.”
Forrest has been in the corporate sales/special markets industry for over 40 years, having
spent 20 years with Wittnauer, before joining Bulova in 2001 upon the purchase of Wittnauer by
Bulova. Adrienne has continued to build the corporate sales business for Citizen Watch America
and has seamlessly transitioned the corporate sales division to be multi-branded as head of
corporate sales across all brands under the CWA portfolio with the senior vice president position.
CWA supports the US market with a network of incentive representatives, with the ability to serve organizational needs at the regional level. What’s essential to success: “We must stay true to our brand’s DNA. Quality must remain a top priority. Authenticity continues to be a trend nowadays and will continue to play a key role with discerning, younger, more brand-conscious recipients.”
Why does she think so many brands overlook this industry despite its enormous size? “Most companies are not set up to address the need for personalized service and support for our corporate resellers and the requirements for customization. This is what sets us apart.”
For More Information
Adrienne Forrest
Senior Vice President, Corporate Sales
Citizen Watch America
212-497-7388
aforrest@citizenwatchgroup.com
