Cartier's new boss must put the sparkle back in watches

The gold and diamonds of Cartier jewelry are so popular with women that the brand founded in Paris in 1847 is finding it difficult to market watches to men.

The world's biggest jewelry and watch brand in terms of combined sales generates more than two-thirds of profits for Swiss parent Richemont, but watch revenues have dwindled relentlessly while jewelry sales have boomed.

Like other high-end watchmakers, Cartier is suffering from a drop in demand in big markets such as Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland, Russia and the United States. But some of Cartier's problems are specific to the brand, setting up a challenge for Cyrille Vigneron when he takes over the leadership next month.