Mercy Amalraj beats the clock to propel niche Indian watchmaker to big league

India has come a long way since the time it was branded as the land of elephants and snake-charmers. Now, the country has remarkable achievements in various fields and can boast of new-age companies that can vie with the best in the world.

The Bangalore Watch Company (BWC), which was set up in 2018, sealed its place on the global platform in a short span of time which is no mean feat. The firm founded by couple Nirupesh Joy and Mercy Amalraj has attracted global attention by producing luxury watches. They have put their heart and soul into scripting this success story. BWC was started as a partnership firm with husband and wife as business partners.

The Bangalore Watch Company co-founder Mercy Amalraj is one of the speakers at Manorama Online’s Techspectations, the most prestigious digital summit in Kerala. This is the fifth edition of Techspectations.

Risky venture

At one time, the world was only familiar with jewelry when referring to luxury goods from India. Mercy and her spouse were determined to change all that notion and bravely stepped into the risky watch manufacturing business. They bring out their products to the markets under the label ‘Modern Indian luxury watch’.

Two companies reigned supreme in the watch-making industry in India for decades together and they are HMT and Titan. BWC not only pitched tent on their land but also matched their level of prominence quickly. Both HMT and Titan belong to Bangalore and it is no coincidence the BMC launched its first watch in memory of HMT which had stopped functioning by then. It was named Renaissance.

BWC puts out top-quality automatic watches. These watches with Swiss movements are designed and manufactured in Bangalore. The company produces watches with varied themes like Indian Cricket Team and Indian Airforce.

Though they have extensive experience in technology-related sectors, Mercy and Nirupesh are reaping rich dividends by manufacturing luxury watches amid the barrage of smartwatches in the markets.

The girl from the temple town

Mercy studied in a Tamil medium school in the temple town of Madurai. In the beginning, she had no interest in technology; however, she gradually began to spend time on activities of her interest related to technology. One reason was that she had not much to choose from.

She visited many countries during the foreign trips that she undertook along with her husband. They stayed in some of these countries. However, all these have only further strengthened her bond with India. The journeys to many corners of the world helped her develop the ability to distinguish even the minutest of differences between various businesses, people, and cultures.

It was in 2016 that Mercy returned to India and started the spadework for setting up her watch company in Bangalore. What she had in mind was to manufacture watches of international quality from India itself. As a co-founder, Mercy now heads the ‘Ownership Experience’ section of the firm.

Rich experience and wealth of expertise

Before coming out with her own venture, Mercy served as a Quality Assurance (QA) Engineer with Unified IP Solutions during the 2006-08 period. Before that, she worked as a Build & Release Engineer with the same company. This was after she quit her job as an Applications Engineer at Ostfold Software.

Mercy obtained a Degree in Computer Science and did her Master’s in Information Technology & Management from Madurai Kamaraj University.

During her college days, Mercy excelled in sports and regularly participated in various team sports competitions. She has harnessed that competitive spirit in her and keeps the flag flying by churning out high-quality watches, which has carved out a market of its own.

Techspectations 2023

The fifth edition of the Techspectations will be held at Le Meridien hotel in Kochi on February 17. The theme of the marquee digital summit will be “Manorama@25: Absorb, Evolve, Thrive in the Digital Order” as it coincides with the 25th anniversary of Manorama Online.

Top tech experts, entrepreneurs, investors, and other stakeholders will participate in Techspectations 2023. The event will dwell on the infinite potential of the digital world and related topics.

Log on to https://www.techspectations.com for more details and to book your seats.