HMT, the undisputed leader of the wristwatch market before Titan's entry completely neglected the quartz watch segment. Titan successfully filled this gap. Its wide range of designs, high profile advertising and distribution network helped it gain a substantial market share in a short span of time.

The Titan brand was essentially positioned as a premium brand. As a result the lower segment was left uncovered. After it entered into a joint venture with Timex, it made inroads into this segment too. Internationally, Timex is seen as a mid-priced quality watchmaker. Its association with Titan in India led to wrong segment targeting. Here, the middle and higher income groups were buying its watches. In 1998, this association came to an end erasing Titan's presence in the lower segment. Since then, it has launched the Sonata range of watches that is in direct competition with the Timex range.

In the overseas market, especially in Europe where it is competing with Swiss and Japanese watches, it is positioning itself as 'value- for- money': reasonably priced (less than Swiss watches and higher than Japanese), attractively styled and of good quality.

However this strategy can be applied mainly to the lower range or digital range of Titan's watches, as the concept of 'class' remains constant over a period of time. Attacking yourself may sacrifice short-term profits, but it has one fundamental benefit. It protects market share, the ultimate weapon in any marketing battle. Any company that hesitates to attack itself usually loses market share and ultimately market leadership.

Ø Occasions: gifts, special occasions

Brand Price Range No. Of Models(Approx)

Some common words found in the essay are:
Titan Titan, HMT Titan, Esprit Swatch, Titan India, Mid Premium, Swatch Irony, Ladies Rs, Titan Industries, Gents Rs, Research Development, priced rs, ladies rs, gents rs, market share, watches priced rs, watches priced, premium segment, segment market, foreign brands, titan segmented, rs 7500, titan segmented market, rs 800 rs, share short span, segment market seeks,
Approximate Word count = 3540
Approximate Pages = 14 (250 words per page double spaced)