Benny Shabtai is well known in the circles of the watch and jewelry industries. His efforts for Swiss watchmaker Raymond Weil built the company in the U.S. and later Shabtai founded jewelry designer DiModolo. Several years ago the parent company bought out his U.S. distribution on the timepieces side of his business. Needless to say he did very well during 30 years but that isn’t where the story ends.
Always an entrepreneur Shabtai was a partner in Viber, an Internet company that crosses its focus with instant messaging and Skype-like services. When reports surfaced that the company was sold to a Japanese buyer last week for some $900 million, one could assume that perhaps an island in the South Pacific was in Shabtai’s future.
However, that’s not the case. According to a spokesperson the next move in Shabtai’s plans is “taking DiModolo to a new level.” In an era when more and more brands are going direct, the representative said Shabtai may have a different approach noting he “credits his retailer partners for his (past) success.”
Stay tuned!
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