Cartier has opened its first wholly-owned store in the Gulf at Dubai's BurJuman shopping mall and intends to open 10 outlets in the Middle East within the next two years. Most of them will be in the Gulf and possibly Lebanon.

Asked whether this strategy is financially risky, General Manager Philippe McGarry said, "Not at all. With the Gulf markets opening up and agency representation becoming less of an issue, for us it's the most logical step.

"In fact, we would like to become more exclusive in these markets. There are a lot of outlets in Dubai which are selling Cartier products, and we want to bring about a reduction in their numbers. We do not want to be like Pierre Cardin."

There are no more legal issues with the International Business Group (IBG), which held the regional rights to Cartier until last year. "There are no outstanding or legal issues with IBG as far as we are concerned.

They may have some excess stocks of an average six months. But that's fast depleting since we stopped all supplies last year. There are no moves on our side to buy the stocks out. "Since we terminated our relationship with IBG, our business in the UAE has been virtually nothing in the past 12 months. The same is true of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia."

McGarry denied any damage was done to the brand by the IBG episode. "If at all, the damage was only marginal. Our customers rapidly understood that the whole issue related to IBG and not to Cartier." The agreement with Dubai's Rivoli Group to distribute Cartier eyewear is an exclusive arrangement, McGarry added.

"They were already representing the Dunhill and Mont Blanc ranges, which are part of the Richemont stable. And Rivoli was doing a good job of it, which is why there is the tie-up. But there are no plans for any more."

"Each store in the region will have the same prices and product ranges as those anywhere else. A Cartier owner is someone who travels a lot, and there is no way we can have a markup here." There are over 200 Cartier boutiques worldwide, most of them owned by holding company Richemont, which has a base in the Dubai Airport Free Zone.