Citizen Watch Co. announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Frederique Constant. Under the mid-term business plan, “Citizen Global Plan 2018”, Citizen is implementing a multi-brand strategy and seeking to complete its brand portfolio by acquiring Swiss brands.

This particular acquisition will enable Citizen Watch Co., Ltd. to strengthen its brand portfolio: Frederique Constant Holding SA brings the brands Frederique Constant, Alpina, and Ateliers deMonaco.

The present management personnel and staff will continue to hold the same positions after this acquisition.

“We have a great opportunity to expand the sales of Frederique Constant through our current distribution channels of Citizen branded watches, particularly in Japan and the U.S.” said Toshio Tokura, chief executive officer of Citizen.

“With the acquisition of Frederique Constant, the Citizen Watch Group will be able to augment its portfolio of brands and occupy the space in the markets where some of our competitors operate and further expand the presence of the Citizen brand in the market.” He added “Citizen will be able to achieve great synergy for sharing technologies and infrastructures in the future.”

Aletta and Peter Stas, the founders of Frederique Constant Holding, also reacted: “As we feel a tremendous commitment to the Frederique Constant Group and its people, we started to explore a potential collaboration to secure the company beyond ourselves. We have become increasingly impressed by the innovative technologies of the Citizen Group. We see the opportunity of Swiss-Japanese partnership to develop and market accessible luxury watches for the 21st century and beyond.”

Frederique Constant in its current form was established in 1988. The company is involved in all stages of watch production, from initial design to final assembly and quality control. Frederique Constant develops, manufactures, and assembles in-house calibers, offering 19 different versions since 2004. Frederique Constant watches are defined by their high quality, precision in design and manufacturing, and accessible prices.