Quote:
Originally Posted by javadog
Close, but no cigar. They aren't as vertically integrated as Rolex.
I will hand it to them in the sense that they have made a signifiacant contribution to the watch world, although some of their efforts nearly killed the part of the watch industry that I love. Given their recent innovations, at least they are looking to the future, instead of hyping the past.
JR
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Seiko, as far as I know, manufacture everything that goes into its watches, right down to the Luminova. Which is amazing when you consider the range and type of calibers and watches it produces. Thye are I beleive, far and away, the biggest manufacturer in the world.
They also offer, in JPN only, the Grand Seiko, which is equal to anything from Switzerland (at the price point).
Yes, the Japanese nearly killed the Swiss industry in the early 70s. Many of the great Swiss houses went to the wall (many have since been revived too, as marketing fronts....) But that was after the mass production of the quartz movement made watches cheap. The quartz movement ws invented by two Swiss wathcakers. the Swiss industry laughed them out of the Val de Jour. So they took it to Japan. The Japanese had learnt well from Dr Deming.....Rolex reinvented itself and pretty much, some say, staved off the onslaught of cheap quatz watches.