Laings appoints experienced new retail director

August 7, 2019 | Uncategorized

Luxury jewellers Laings has appointed Stuart McDowell as its new retail director.

Tasked with ensuring that customers enjoy an indulgent shopping experience he aims to strengthen Laings overall retail experience at their outlets in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Southampton..

With three stores in Glasgow and one each in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Southampton he will work with the store managers to develop them and their teams in store to ensure that every customer can enjoy the luxurious Laings experience.

Stuart is no stranger to the company and was previously based in-store as the Patek Philippe Manager. In this position, he built a strong customer base and gained an in depth understanding of what it is customers are looking for when they are purchasing a luxury product.

With this retail background, Stuart will focus on bringing attention back to the customer and will be implementing plans to ensure that the customer is consistently put first and foremost.

Founded in 1840 Laings has remained a family business ever since. McDowell understands that it’s this family-feel that allows Laings to stand out. Over the years they’ve built up a fantastic reputation for their excellent customer experience and he’s looking forward to building on this.

Stuart said: ‘It’s the ethos of the company and the family history that makes Laings such a special place. Everything we do is for a memorable occasion. Our purchases are a moment of celebration and the members of the Laings team are honoured to share these experiences with our customers. We aim to create a special memory for everyone that comes into our stores, welcoming them with the warm family-feel that Laings has.

‘Customers enjoy the luxurious experience of shopping at Laings. I hope to strengthen this, building on relationships and helping them to mark a lifetime of important moments.’

One of the Laings shops in Glasgow

With over 20 years’ experience in the industry, Stuart is an expert and highly respected in his field. After working for Laings in the past he took a break before joining the business again two years ago.

He added: ‘I decided that it was time to re-join Laings when I saw the vision that CEO, Joe Walsh, has for the company. With Joe at the helm, Laings is investing more and more in people, the staff, the customers and the stores.

‘His leadership is a breath of fresh air within the industry and seeing how he has developed the Laings experience for customers is something that I’m looking forward to continuing.’

In addition to strengthening customer experience, McDowell will also work on building relationships with the watch brands that Laings stock. The jewellers are well known for hosting an array of luxury watch brands, including Patek Philippe, Rolex, Omega, Jaeger-LeCoultre, and IWC amongst many others, and are a destination for fans of Haute Horlogerie.

He concluded: ‘I’m looking forward to working closely with our prestigious watch brands to ensure that our customers have the very best range of timepieces available. This will allow us to fully service our customer needs and again, always put the customer first.”

‘I’m excited to be part of the Laings story and their history and I’m looking forward to building on their reputation for helping customers to find exquisite jewellery and fine timepieces that they’ll treasure forever.’