Halifax’s luxury watch and jewellery store, Touch of Gold, is now on a prime corner on Spring Garden Road. The company has been on Spring Garden Road for over 40 years now, but jumped at the opportunity to move to a storefront location and includes a designated Rolex boutique along with other luxury watch brands.
“For us, Spring Garden is home. Our customers know it, and from a pedestrian traffic perspective – there is just a lot of activity down here. We are a five minute walk to the waterfront, we have universities within a ten minute walk, two major hospitals a block away, and the new convention centre just two blocks from us. It is a very useful hub of the city. It is just a young, vibrant city and has seen a lot of growth, so we just feel like we are in the middle of it down here,” says Mike Foran, president and co-owner of Touch of Gold.
Luxurious and welcoming environment
The new 3,500 square foot location is on the corner of Spring Garden and Birmingham, offering more visibility and traffic. Launch by Design, a Toronto-based firm, created the store’s interior, while Rolex’s own designers created the dedicated Rolex section.
“We are pleased with not only the number of people that have come in the store, but also the reaction people have. You can take this store and you could plop it on the high street in any major city in the world, and it would fit in.”
Rolex showroom
Foran says the store dedicates 700 square feet to its Rolex showroom.
“Having represented Rolex in Halifax for more than 40 years, we are proud to expand the brand’s presence, upholding the highest standards of quality and service. We are much larger, more than twice our size of our old store, and we are much more branded.”
In addition to Rolex, Touch of Gold also has dedicated branded areas for Omega, Tudor, and Breitling watches. The store also carries Longines, Montblanc, and Watch Winders. Touch of Gold also carries an jewellery products such as bracelets, earrings, necklaces, and engagement rings.
Beyond selling luxury watches
Touch of Gold goes beyond selling luxury items; they have created a space where people feel welcome and comfortable.
“People can come in, they can feel welcome, and they can feel comfortable. We will find people coming here throughout the day to meet their friends, to look at new watches, and to look at new pieces of jewellery,” says Foran. “Jewellery is a very personal business from that perspective. We have so many great stories of customers who buy things to memorialize an event for so many different reasons, and we get to share that.”
Touch of Gold also has strong ties within the Halifax community. Over the years, they have been supporting local charities, particularly those focusing on mental health, youth sports, and underprivileged communities.
“In the last number of years, we have given millions of dollars back to our community in the form of charitable giving. That is an important part to us, myself, my wife, and my sister, as owners. It is an important part to our staff that they are connected to the community, and it is important to our customers that they know the store they are supporting is also supporting the community around them.”
Staying relevant in the luxury watch market
To stay on top of luxury watch trends, Touch of Gold keeps a close eye on new trends and maintains strong relationships with clients. The company’s dedication is to understanding what their consumers are looking for and reflect it in its inventory.
“Our plan is evolution, not revolution. I have owned this business for over 20 years, it has evolved to a much more brand-centric and customer-centric business where we are providing a service and a product to our customers that is relevant. I can’t prescribe to you today what we are going to be selling in five, six, or ten years in time, but we will be listening to our customers and offering them a product that they want and what is relevant.”
Additionally, Foran says they go to international watch fairs and jewellery trade shows. Each year the team travels to events such as the Watches and Wonders watch fair in Geneva, as well as jewellery trade shows in the United States and in Europe. These events keep the company informed about the latest trends and innovations.
“Jewellery and watches are timeless in that the products we sell are generational, and they are passed on from one generation to another generation, and that touchstone is quality. What we have seen in times when there is uncertainty in the world, people have turned to things that they believe have performance. There is more than just a monetary value to it – there is a sentimental value that can’t be measured.”
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