Tourneau's New Concept Store
- Counterless Store goes QLess for Service -

New York, NY – (July 6, 2011) – Timing is everything and when Tourneau, the luxury watch manufacturer and marketer, opens its new store in mid-town Manhattan this week, the store will offer its patrons one of the most reverent customer experiences, including a QLess (Q=queue less) encounter.

For the opening of the new Tourneau TimeMachine MegaStore located at 510 Madison Avenue in Manhattan , the company has contracted the web-based service, QLess, to eliminate any amount of time-wasting, standing-in-line for everyone.

The public can call-in, text-in, log-in on the Internet, or utilize the in-store kiosk to make an appointment, see the current wait time, and choose to join the line. If choosing to join the Tourneau QLess “Virtual Queue”, customers can participate in their normal routine or other activities, and he//she will be notified by mobile phone call or text to provide updates on their position in the line.

Andy Arluck , VP of Customer Service at Tourneau, said, “Our new store is an ultimate customer encounter and QLess is a key component of that experience. Tourneau is pleased to offer its customers the most pleasurable, meaningful and prompt interaction. And, as we roll out QLess into our new store in New York , we look forward to bringing it to all of our retail outlets across the country.

In addition, Tourneau added the QLess option for people to push themselves further back in the line if they are enjoying another activity and are not prepared to get back at their scheduled time.

Alex Backer , President of QLess, said, “QLess is ideal for Tourneau. When time is the highest priority to everyone involved, from exacting manufacturing and craftsmanship to business agendas and personal enjoyment, everyone is entirely satisfied when their time is valued.”

QLess is an easily catered installation. The system is very easy to use and provides everyone with a personalized encounter. There is not any need for up front cost. QLess is software as a service, so it utilizes a business’ own existing hardware and online services, and then caters the online presence to an existing web address.

“In less than a couple of hours, we were able to provide complete training of the staff and administrators to run the Tourneau queue flawlessly and efficiently,” Arluck said.

“Considering that the average person spends more than two waking years of their lives waiting in line*, people have a lot more time doing other, more productive things,” Backer said.

Tourneau now joins numerous other retailers, such as Vodafone and T-mobile, as well as many other businesses in Manhattan using QLess.

Tourneau is a great example of how QLess is effective, however Backer is quick to explain, “QLess is more than just for retail. QLess can be used anywhere that there is a potential for a line. QLess is also employed by several healthcare providers, such as the Mercy Health System, and many government offices on the local and state levels, such as the Department of Motor Vehicle offices in Kansas , Missouri and New Hampshire , as well as the government offices of the City of Austin . Texas . QLess can be completely catered to any size business in almost any industry. We have individual doctor’s offices and school registrars using QLess and several other businesses looking to utilize QLess. If a line exists, we’ll get rid of it.”

To add QLess to any business there is a fee for set–up and then the service operates on a monthly fee per customer. The fee is a scaled cost depending on the amount of patrons or traffic that utilizes the Virtual Queue for that particular business.

About QLess:
Since 2007, QLess has been eliminating lines from the face of the Earth. The company is the world's first and only mobile queuing solution. Utilizing a business’ existing computer hardware, QLess is the software as a service employed to hold your spot in a virtual line and notify you on your mobile phone when it is your turn. QLess increases customer satisfaction, customer spend and return rates while reducing no-shows, turn-aways, wait times and employees' workload. It lets customers enter a virtual, mobile line from their cell phones, a kiosk, in-person with a host or hostess, or the Web, and then lets them roam while they wait. For more information about a QLess business that you may frequent, or to learn about how QLess can help your business, please visit www.qless.com

About Tourneau:
Beginning at the turn of the twentieth century, the Tourneau family established a business of selling watches and opened its first U.S. location in New York in 1925. Today, Tourneau has stores in 14 states and continues to be an innovating presence and retail leader in the global watch industry. The company’s sales division offers over 100 watch brands and 8,000 styles that range from $25 to $250,000. For additional information, please visit the company website at www.tourneau.com

* Perspectives on Queues: Social Justice and the Psychology of Queueing by Richard C. Larson, Operations Research Vol. 35, No. 6 (Nov. - Dec., 1987) (http://www.jstor.org/pss/171439