Movado Group, Inc. (MOV): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money

Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) is a fascinating study in navigating the luxury and fashion watch market, especially when you see fiscal year 2025 net sales land at $653.4 million, even while facing a challenging global retail environment. How does a company with a portfolio spanning its iconic namesake brand to licensed powerhouses like Coach and Tommy Hilfiger maintain a cash position of $208.5 million with no debt while still projecting $10 million in annualized cost savings for the next year? If you're looking to understand the mechanics of a multi-brand strategy in a shifting consumer landscape, especially one that delivered an adjusted diluted EPS of $1.12, defintely keep reading to see how this business model works and makes money.

Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) History

Movado Group, Inc.'s history is a dual narrative: the Swiss watchmaking heritage of the Movado brand itself, dating back to 1881, and the American corporate strategy of the North American Watch Corporation, which acquired it in 1983. This merger transformed a legacy Swiss manufacturer into a modern, multi-brand global watch and accessory powerhouse, now balancing iconic design with a portfolio of fashion-forward and digitally-native brands.

Given Company's Founding Timeline

Year established

The original Movado brand was established in 1881. The current corporate entity, Movado Group, Inc., traces its roots to the founding of the North American Watch Corporation in 1967, which later acquired the Movado brand in 1983.

Original location

The Movado brand began in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, a key watchmaking town. The North American Watch Corporation was founded and incorporated in New York, U.S.

Founding team members

The original Movado brand was founded by 19-year-old entrepreneur Achille Ditesheim, who started with six watchmakers. The corporate entity that became Movado Group, Inc. was founded by Gedalio Grinberg, a Cuban-born immigrant who established the North American Watch Corporation.

Initial capital/funding

Specific initial capital figures for Achille Ditesheim's 1881 workshop or Gedalio Grinberg's 1967 North American Watch Corporation are not publicly disclosed. Ditesheim started with a small workshop and six craftsmen, while Grinberg initially owned 50% of his company in partnership with a Swiss watchmaker and three U.S. businessmen.

Given Company's Evolution Milestones

Given Company's Transformative Moments

The biggest transformation for Movado Group, Inc. was the 1983 acquisition, which moved the brand from a Swiss manufacturer's portfolio to a U.S.-led marketing and distribution company. This was defintely a strategic shift from pure horology (the art of making clocks and watches) to a brand-management model.

You can see this strategy in the 2025 fiscal year data, which shows the company navigating a challenging retail environment by focusing on efficiency and brand mix. Fiscal Year 2025 Net Sales were $653.4 million, a slight decrease from the prior year, but the company ended the year with a strong balance sheet: $208.5 million in cash and no debt.

The most recent transformative actions center on cost control and digital engagement:

• Digital-First Brand Acquisition: The purchase of MVMT for over $100 million in 2018 was a clear move to capture the digitally-native consumer, shifting reliance away from traditional wholesale channels.
• Operational Efficiency Drive: In Fiscal Year 2025, the company implemented actions expected to deliver $10 million in annualized savings, a necessary move to protect margins against global retail uncertainty.
• Strategic Marketing Reallocation: Management announced plans to reduce marketing spend by a range of $15 million to $20 million in fiscal 2026 relative to fiscal 2025, aligning spend more closely with sales performance.

This history of adapting, from the Polyplan watch in 1912 to the MVMT acquisition, is why you see a company with a Fiscal Year 2025 Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share (EPS) of $1.12, still able to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share. For a deeper dive into the company's long-term goals, check out the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Movado Group, Inc. (MOV).

Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) Ownership Structure

Movado Group, Inc. is a publicly traded company, so its ownership is distributed among a diverse group of institutional, insider, and retail investors, but the Grinberg family maintains a significant, influential stake in the business.

Movado Group, Inc.'s Current Status

Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) operates as a public company, trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). This public status means its shares are readily available for purchase by any investor, but it also subjects the company to rigorous reporting and governance standards set by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

As of November 2025, the company has a market capitalization of approximately $413.32 million, reflecting its valuation in the luxury goods sector, particularly in watches and accessories. This structure, with a prominent family interest alongside a large institutional base, means strategic decisions must balance long-term legacy goals with the near-term performance demands of Wall Street.

Movado Group, Inc.'s Ownership Breakdown

Looking at the shareholder composition, you can see that institutional money controls the majority of the company. This is typical for a mid-cap public stock, but the insider position, anchored by the founding family, is still a powerful force in governance.

Here's the quick math: Institutional investors hold roughly two-thirds of the stock, but the insider group, including Chairman and CEO Efraim Grinberg, maintains a strong voice, especially when you factor in the 13.80% stake held by Grinberg Partners LP. That's a defintely a significant block that influences any major corporate vote.

Movado Group, Inc.'s Leadership

The company's strategy is steered by a lean, experienced executive team, led by a long-tenured CEO who is also a significant shareholder, which aligns his personal wealth directly with the company's performance. You can read more about their strategic direction here: Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Movado Group, Inc. (MOV).

The core leadership team, as of November 2025, includes:

• Efraim Grinberg: Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He has a tenure of over two decades in the top role, appointed in May 2001. His total yearly compensation is approximately $5.18 million, which is above average for similar-sized US companies.
• Sallie DeMarsilis: Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). She is also the Chief Operating Officer (COO).
• Alexander Grinberg: Senior Vice President of Customer/Consumer Centric Initiatives and a Director.

The average tenure of the management team is 6.4 years, which suggests a stable executive environment, but the board of directors has an even longer average tenure of 13.2 years. This long board tenure provides deep industry knowledge but also raises questions about board refreshment and fresh perspectives, which is a risk to monitor.

Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) Mission and Values

Movado Group, Inc.'s purpose extends beyond selling watches; it's codified in their multi-year Corporate Responsibility framework, the Make Time plan, which focuses on empowering their people, evolving their business, and enriching their communities. This strategy is the company's cultural DNA, guiding everything from product sourcing to employee development.

Movado Group's Core Purpose

For a company with a history dating back to 1881, their core purpose is about continuous forward movement, which is literally what the name Movado means in Esperanto: always in motion. This drives a commitment to corporate responsibility (CR) that is deeply tied to their financial strategy, known as Delivery 4.

Official Mission Statement (The 'Make Time' Plan)

The company's core purpose is articulated through its three pillars of Corporate Responsibility, which act as a de facto mission statement for their non-financial goals:

• Empower: Cultivate a high-performing and engaged workforce through skills development and training.
• Evolve: Improve business operations, drive innovation, and enhance sustainability through thoughtful materials sourcing and waste management.
• Enrich: Give back to communities through meaningful partnerships and philanthropy, especially in the cultural arts.

In fiscal year 2025, the company showed this commitment by empowering its workforce with leadership development, goals training, and even AI tools to help people develop skills in a shifting world. That's a clear, actionable investment in human capital.

Vision Statement

Movado Group's unified vision is to remain Always in Motion as they grow a first-in-class, sustainable company. This vision is supported by four key strategic priorities that drive their business:

• Realizing the full potential of their strong brand portfolio.
• Capturing significant market opportunities within their global regions.
• Driving innovation in all aspects of their operations.
• Connecting directly with consumers in the digital world.

Honesty, the vision is about being a modern luxury company that doesn't forget its roots, but still innovates. You can see the evolution pillar of their mission in action here; for example, their 2025 report highlighted achieving a 35% Y-O-Y cost savings on transit cartons by changing the standard size, which is both an operational improvement and a sustainability win.

Movado Group Slogan/Tagline

The company's primary slogan, which connects their heritage with their forward-looking vision, is Always in Motion. Since 1881..

• The slogan is a nod to the brand's name, which means 'always in motion' in Esperanto.
• It reflects a commitment to continuous innovation in design and business practices.

Their commitment to enrichment is concrete, too. In fiscal year 2025, they removed an estimated 30 tonnes of virgin plastic from their value chain, plus they expanded cultural partnerships, including the release of an Artist Series Collection that benefited the Studio Museum in Harlem. That's how a slogan becomes a defintely measurable action. Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Movado Group, Inc. (MOV).

Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) How It Works

Movado Group, Inc. operates as a vertically integrated watch and accessory company, creating value by designing, sourcing, and globally distributing a diverse portfolio of owned and licensed brands across multiple price points. The core mechanism is a dual-engine strategy: leveraging the prestige and Swiss heritage of its owned luxury brands while capitalizing on the broad, fashion-driven appeal of its licensed brands, all supported by a growing digital-first distribution model.

Movado Group, Inc.'s Product/Service Portfolio

Movado Group, Inc.'s Operational Framework

The company's value chain is built on a centralized yet brand-specific operational model that spans design to global fulfillment, managing both Swiss-made luxury and high-volume fashion watches.

• Design and Innovation: Centralized design teams create collections for all brands, ensuring a consistent brand identity-from the timeless Movado Museum dial to the contemporary MVMT aesthetic. Innovation includes new product categories like lab-grown diamond watches in 2025.
• Global Sourcing and Manufacturing: Movado Group manages a global supply chain, manufacturing its owned luxury brands (like Movado and Ebel) in Switzerland and sourcing components and assembly for its fashion and accessible brands globally. They maintain a focus on responsible sourcing, with a high percentage of diamonds and leather from certified suppliers.
• Distribution Channels: The framework relies on a dual-channel approach: Wholesale to department stores and specialty retailers globally, and Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) through its Movado Company Stores and a rapidly growing online retail business. Growth in international wholesale channels and online retail is offsetting declines in U.S. brick-and-mortar stores.
• Digital Platform: All direct-to-consumer brands are consolidating onto the Salesforce Commerce Cloud platform, which streamlines the digital experience and allows for better data-driven marketing and inventory management. This is defintely a key area of investment.

Movado Group, Inc.'s Strategic Advantages

Movado Group's success is grounded in a blend of brand heritage, financial discipline, and a forward-looking digital strategy, which allows it to navigate the volatile retail landscape.

• Diversified Brand Portfolio: The company controls a spectrum of brands, from high-end Swiss luxury (Movado, Ebel) to accessible, digitally-native fashion (MVMT, Olivia Burton), mitigating risk across consumer segments. Licensed brands, including Coach and Tommy Hilfiger, provide stable, high-volume revenue.
• Exceptional Financial Flexibility: Movado Group ended fiscal year 2025 with a strong balance sheet, reporting $208.5 million in cash and no debt. This provides substantial capital for strategic investments, acquisitions, and returning value to shareholders through dividends.
• Digital-First Competence: The acquisition of digital-native brands like MVMT has provided a crucial in-house 'Digital Center of Excellence,' giving the entire group expertise in social media marketing, influencer partnerships, and e-commerce operations that directly target younger consumers.
• Global Infrastructure Leverage: The company utilizes its established global infrastructure for design, sourcing, and distribution to efficiently manage both owned and licensed brands, enabling rapid scaling of new products and brands across North America, Europe, and Asia.

To understand the capital structure supporting this operational model, Breaking Down Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors is a great next step.

Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) How It Makes Money

Movado Group, Inc. makes money primarily through the wholesale distribution of watches and accessories under a dual-pronged strategy: selling its own luxury brands and leveraging highly recognizable licensed brand names. The core of their revenue engine is selling timepieces and jewelry to a global network of wholesale customers, supplemented by direct-to-consumer sales through their outlet stores and e-commerce platforms.

Honestly, the business is a brand portfolio management play, where the margin on a Movado watch funds the licensing fees and marketing for a Coach or Tommy Hilfiger timepiece.

Given Company's Revenue Breakdown

For the fiscal year 2025, Movado Group reported total net sales of $653.4 million. This revenue is split across two primary operating segments, with the Watch and Accessory Brands segment being the undisputed heavy-hitter, representing the vast majority of sales. The table below uses the most current available data (Q1 Fiscal Year 2026) to accurately reflect the structural proportions of the business model.

Here's the quick math: The Watch and Accessory Brands segment, which includes wholesale to department stores and jewelers, generated about $114.8 million in Q1 FY 2026, making up 87.1% of the total sales for that period. This segment's overall trend is relatively stable, but that hides a critical internal shift: sales of owned brands declined by 17.0% in Q1 FY 2026, while licensed brands increased by 8.3%. The Company Stores segment, which includes retail outlets and related e-commerce, is seeing a decreasing trend.

Business Economics

The economic fundamentals of Movado Group are currently defined by a strong gross margin, disciplined cost control, and a fortress balance sheet, all while navigating significant geopolitical headwinds like tariffs.

• Gross Margin Resilience: The gross margin remains healthy, holding at 54.1% in Q2 FY 2026. This is a strong figure for a wholesale-driven model, but it is under pressure from increased U.S. tariffs, notably a new 39% tariff on Swiss imports.
• Pricing Strategy: To counteract rising costs, the company is implementing selective price increases at both the wholesale and retail levels. This is a necessary move to protect the margin, but it carries the risk of reduced volume in a challenging consumer environment.
• Cost-Saving Initiatives: Management is focused on efficiency, with plans to reduce marketing spend in fiscal year 2026 by a range of $15 million to $20 million relative to fiscal 2025. This is a clear, actionable lever to boost profitability without relying solely on top-line growth.
• Balance Sheet Strength: The company boasts a phenomenal balance sheet, ending fiscal year 2025 with $208.5 million in cash and no debt. This liquidity provides a huge buffer for share repurchases, dividends (currently $0.35 per share quarterly), and strategic acquisitions. That's defintely a source of competitive advantage in a cyclical industry.

Given Company's Financial Performance

The financial performance in fiscal year 2025 showed a dip in profitability, reflecting the challenging macroeconomic backdrop, but the company's recent Q2 FY 2026 results show signs of stabilization and operational improvement. You can dig deeper into the shareholder base by Exploring Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

• Fiscal Year 2025 Net Sales: Totaled $653.4 million, a decrease of about 1.7% year-over-year. This slight decline reflects the broader retail slowdown.
• Adjusted Operating Income (FY 2025): Came in at $27.1 million, a significant drop from the prior year, illustrating the pressure on margins and the impact of higher marketing spend during the year.
• Adjusted Diluted EPS (FY 2025): Was $1.12 per share.
• Q2 Fiscal Year 2026 Sales Growth: Net sales were $161.8 million, representing a 3.1% increase year-over-year. This growth was driven by a strong performance in international markets and licensed brands.
• Q2 Fiscal Year 2026 Adjusted EPS: Reported at $0.23 per diluted share.

Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) Market Position & Future Outlook

Movado Group, Inc. operates as a resilient mid-market player in the global watch industry, strategically positioned in the accessible luxury and fashion watch segments through a diversified portfolio of owned and licensed brands. Despite facing a challenging macroeconomic environment that saw its fiscal year 2025 (FY2025) net sales decrease to $653.4 million, the company maintains a strong balance sheet with $208.5 million in cash and no debt, which acts as a crucial buffer for its planned growth investments.

Competitive Landscape

The company competes in a highly fragmented market, sitting between the dominant Swiss luxury conglomerates and the fast-moving fashion and smartwatch segments. Movado Group's core strength is its dual-brand strategy, combining its iconic, minimalist Movado brand with a robust portfolio of licensed fashion powerhouses like Coach, Tommy Hilfiger, and HUGO BOSS.

Opportunities & Challenges

The near-term outlook for Movado Group is a careful balance of cost-cutting and targeted investment to re-accelerate growth in key regions. The company is actively focusing on operational efficiency, having implemented actions expected to deliver $10 million in annualized cost savings.

Industry Position

Movado Group holds a solid, though vulnerable, position in the accessible luxury segment, often referred to as the fashion watch market. The company's strength lies in its asset-light model, relying heavily on licensing agreements for brands like Calvin Klein and Lacoste, which allows for lower capital expenditure. This is a smart way to stay relevant.

• Liquidity Advantage: Ending FY2025 with $208.5 million in cash and zero debt gives the company significant financial flexibility to navigate volatility and fund its new investment growth strategy.
• Segment Focus: The company is a key player in the accessible luxury tier, which is distinct from the high-luxury segment dominated by Rolex and LVMH.
• Operational Pivot: Management is actively pivoting, reducing planned fiscal 2026 marketing spend by $15 million to $20 million to align with sales and improve profitability.
• Brand Diversification: The portfolio spans from the high-end Ebel and Concord to the mass-market appeal of MVMT and Olivia Burton, mitigating risk from a downturn in any single consumer demographic.

For a deeper dive into the investor base and capital structure, you should check out Exploring Movado Group, Inc. (MOV) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?