[이데일리 백주아 기자] Swiss luxury watch brand Rolex replaced the CEO of its Korean subsidiary. In the industry, it is said that in August, Rolex Korea’s official customer service (CS) center dispatched a representative directly from the Swiss headquarters to take responsibility for the process of resolving a series of incidents after permanently damaging a watch that was over 70 years old and inherited from his grandfather. Analysis comes out. Photos of the dial before (left) and after receiving repairs at the Rolex Korea official customer service (CS) center last April. (Photo = Informant Kim) According to Rolex Korea, Rolex’s Korean subsidiary, on the 27th, Rolex headquarters appointed new CEO Cedric Muller to replace CEO Kim Gwang-won. The new CEO, Muller, previously served as general manager of Rolex Spain.
CEO Gwang-won Kim, who announced his resignation, is a professional manager and former head of IBM Korea’s public relations office, and has been in charge of Rolex’s domestic marketing. CEO Kim is known to be the son-in-law of Chairman Lee Yoon, who founded Rolex Korea in 2002.
There is talk in the industry that the recent controversy over the Rolex Korea CS Center may have played a role in the resignation of CEO Kim.
Last April, Rolex Korea’s official CS center in Yeoksam-dong permanently damaged a 70-year-old watch handed down by a customer, Mr. Kim, from his grandfather. At the time, Rolex Korea said that the watch face that Mr. Kim had entrusted to him was determined to be a ‘fake product’ and ordered him to pay an additional fee of 1 million won to repair the watch.
However, Mr. Kim later requested the Swiss headquarters to determine the authenticity of the product and complained to Rolex Korea. Rolex Korea then reversed its original stance that it was a counterfeit product and stated that it was a ‘genuine product’ and that it would proceed with normal repairs.
In the end, Mr. Kim received a permanently damaged watch with erased dial ink from the Rolex Korea CS Center, and this fact was brought to the surface through a report by Edaily on the 10th of last month.
Rolex headquarters officially apologized to Mr. Kim on the 15th of last month and stated, “(Head office) is taking this incident very seriously” and “We are discussing and investigating the issue with Rolex Korea to restore customer trust in Rolex.” reported.
An official in the luxury goods industry said, “From the perspective of a global luxury brand, there is no choice but to hold the Korean branch responsible for the serious damage it has done to its brand image due to its complacent and passive response.” “As this incident has become a huge controversy in the industry, Rolex headquarters has also “Once they were aware of the situation, they appear to have taken responsible action,” he said.
Currently, Rolex Korea has been reaching an agreement regarding compensation for Mr. Kim’s permanently damaged watch for a month, but no meaningful results have yet been achieved.
A Rolex Korea official said, “There were personnel changes within the organization, but the CEO was not replaced due to the incident.”
2023-09-27 03:29:47
#단독Rolex #headquarters #Switzerland #replaces #Rolex #Korea #CEO
