Movado Group Inc. in November named Thomas van der Kallen as president of Ebel worldwide, responsible for global sales and marketing of the luxury watch brand. He had been president of the luxury brand Piaget North America since 2002.

Van der Kallen replaces Guillaume Brochard—president when Ebel was still owned by LVMH—who left in December 2003. The position has been vacant since then. He was scheduled to join Ebel in January and will report directly to Efraim Grinberg, president and CEO of the Movado Group.

Ebel, based in La Chaux de Fonds, Switzerland, is best-known for its distinctive Beluga, Classic Wave, and 1911 lines. The Movado Group purchased Ebel in March 2004 from French luxury goods conglomerate LVMH. Van der Kallen, 41, previously was with luxury conglomerate Compagnie Financière Richemont SA, which he joined in 1990 as director of sales and marketing for Piaget and Baume & Mercier in the Netherlands and Scandinavia. From 1998 to 2002, he was vice president of marketing and later president of Baume & Mercier North America.

In related news, Movado announced Dec. 16 that it had made a long-term worldwide licensing agreement with Hugo Boss, a leading global fashion group, to design, produce, and market watches under the “Boss” and “Hugo” brand names. The agreement is effective March 21, 2005. Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

The agreement grants Movado, headquartered in Paramus, N.J., exclusive rights to manufacture and distribute a full collection of fashion watches, which will be sold through select wholesale distribution outlets in Europe, the United States, and Asia, as well as in Hugo Boss retail shops. The Movado Group also will take over worldwide distribution of existing Boss watch collections.