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Woman to Watch

Jessica Barouche discusses the inspiration behind RAYMOND WEIL'S newest collection, the Lady Freelancer watch. Here's how (and where) she wears it.
By D Partner Studio |
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Ben Vogel
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Woman to Watch

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For Jessica Barouche, free-spirited adventure is a way of life. The Parisian-born entrepreneur started two of her own businesses in Dallas—Oui Please, a French subscription box service, and Be FRNCH, a style and marketing consultancy—and now serves as marketing director for RAYMOND WEIL Swiss luxury watches. She joined the company almost a year ago and recently spearheaded the launch of the new Lady Freelancer. We caught up with Barouche to find out more about her new favorite watch, plus how, where, and when she wears it. (Spoiler alert: It’s a timepiece that’s up for every adventure.)

D: Tell us about the Lady Freelancer—it’s a reimagined version of the men’s freelancer collection by RAYMOND WEIL.
JB: The freelancer has been our flagship collection for a long time, and it was actually inspired by Raymond Weil himself. He was a very unique man, a free spirit and entrepreneur. We’d never had a Freelancer collection for ladies, and we wanted something really unique for them.

D: How did you and your team come up with the creative inspiration behind this new collection of women’s watches?
JB: I was born and raised in Paris and graduated with an MBA in international luxury management. I moved to Dallas six years ago, where I started Be FRNCH and Oui Please. About a year ago I had a chance to meet the CEO of RAYMOND WEIL, and discovered they were in the process of launching an eCommerce platform. Between my ecommerce and luxury retail experience, it turned out to be a great match for RAYMOND WEIL.

D: What kind of woman wears a Lady Freelancer?
JB: For women today who are very active, a watch needs to have some kind of personality. … The Lady Freelancer talks to today’s modern woman who embraces her free spirit and need to follow her instincts. During the day she’s a lady, she’s focused, she goes to work—I feel like each woman is on the way to find inspiration somewhere. If you’re a working woman, you find your drive somewhere. It can be sports, it can be yoga, it can be music, it can be all kinds of things. The woman we’re talking to—she’s bold, she’s adventurous, she’s inspiring, and, of course, she’s a lady freelancer.

D: Tell us about the watch’s features.
JB: It comes in two sizes—26 millimeter, which is perfect for more petite women, and 29 millimeter. The watch has a quartz movement and is very user friendly; the date display is at 3 o’clock, and you can either have 12 diamonds or 67 diamonds on the dial—it’s up to you! It’s water resistant up to 100 meters, so you can take it everywhere. It’s the idea accessory, whether if you’re going out, working out, in a meeting or just running errands.. And the price point is really unbelievable—you still have a quality watch, but it’s affordable.

D: Which model Lady Freelancer do you wear?
JB: I wear the 29mm rose gold with the black dial. I think it’s really trendy right now for winter and fall. It’s my personal favorite. I like the black dial because it gives a little character and personality to it.

D: How do you anticipate women in Dallas wearing the Lady Freelancer?
JB: Dallas has had so much going on lately; it’s just constantly growing. It’s so interesting to see the city becoming the way it is right now. … There are also a lot of businesswomen and very empowering women here in Dallas who are making their paths slowly but surely into the world—and worldwide as well. It can definitely be a source of inspiration for a lot of women to just go for it. The Lady Freelancer is all about that: Following your instincts, which is what I’ve always tried to do.

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