Watchmaking in Japan

Watchmaking in Japan

A year of symbols for Japan

EDITORIAL

By Serge Maillard

June 2024

An interesting development, perhaps even a major shift, is taking place in Japanese watchmaking. The Japanese watch industry has long set itself up to be everything that Swiss watchmaking is not, focusing on volume and accessibility while the Swiss produced fewer pieces at higher prices. However, the “Swiss model” of heading upmarket seems to be gaining traction in Japan as well. Although synonymous with its heavy industry, Japan can also boast an age-old artisanal heritage and an extremely refined culture.

A year of symbols for Japan

EDITORIAL

By Serge Maillard

June 2024

A year of symbols for Japan

An interesting development, perhaps even a major shift, is taking place in Japanese watchmaking. The Japanese watch industry has long set itself up to be everything that Swiss watchmaking is not, focusing on volume and accessibility while the Swiss produced fewer pieces at higher prices. However, the “Swiss model” of heading upmarket seems to be gaining traction in Japan as well. Although synonymous with its heavy industry, Japan can also boast an age-old artisanal heritage and an extremely refined culture.

T

he pandemic’s effects on the structure of the watch industry, including lower sales volumes and a focus on tried-and-true, heritage and iconic models, coupled with the onslaught of smartwatches, are giving Japanese watch industry strategists food for thought. Although the move upmarket had already begun before 2020, this new era only confirms the trend.

The international success of Grand Seiko (and soon Credor?) is driving change in the global perception of Japanese watchmaking. At the same time, the emergence of a growing number of independent Japanese watchmakers, the best-known being Hajime Asaoka, has brought greater diversity to the ecosystem as a whole. The Japanese watch industry is capable of supplying calibres to the world and, in parallel, producing some of the rarest and most refined watches. This dimension is also reminiscent of the rich community of independents who have been instrumental in elevating Swiss watchmaking creativity across the industry.

The year 2024 is symbolic in a country already highly attuned to symbols, due to the coincidence of an extraordinary number of anniversaries: the 100^th anniversary of the first Seiko wristwatch, the 100^th anniversary of the Citizen watch, the 50^th anniversary of Casio watches, the 50^th anniversary of Credor and more. And that’s why we thought it would be a good idea to dedicate this issue to a watchmaking industry that no doubt has many more surprises up its sleeve. Come with us on a journey of discovery through the highly diverse faces of Japanese horology.

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A year of symbols for Japan

WATCH FILES
Watchmaking in Japan

Credor: 50 years of understated sophistication

Credor: 50 years of understated sophistication

Founded in 1974, Credor is both the most understated and the most sophisticated brand in the Seiko galaxy.

Grand Seiko Dô: the way of precision and elegance

Grand Seiko Dô: the way of precision and elegance

Travellers to Japan in the 2000s discovered that Seiko offered a collection of beautifully made, fine quality mechanical watches. This range, named Grand (...)

100 years of the Seiko wristwatch

100 years of the Seiko wristwatch

A century ago saw the first wristwatch bearing the Seiko name on the dial – the start of a new endeavour that would change the global horological landscape. (...)

“Japanese brands have all come to the same conclusion: move upmarket”

“Japanese brands have all come to the same conclusion: move upmarket”

Hirota Masayuki has been the face of Chronos Japan magazine for two decades. He is also one of Japan’s leading watch market specialists. We asked him about (...)

Naoya Hida: Japan's handcrafted watches for vintage lovers

Naoya Hida: Japan’s handcrafted watches for vintage lovers

Naoya Hida, a Japanese watch sales professional for several decades, was able to develop a hobby brand into a solid brand and a full-time profession. Since (...)

Orient Star is rising

Orient Star is rising

Orient Star denotes the top range of mechanical watches from Orient, a watchmaker with a history dating back to 1901 but fully integrated into the Seiko (...)

Miyota: from movement-maker to brand name

Miyota is on a mission to convince the global mid-range segment of the virtues and importance of mechanical calibres. In other words, to put the movement (...)

Watch Q&A with... Akio Naito – Seiko, Grand Seiko

Watch Q&A with... Akio Naito – Seiko, Grand Seiko

“A unique sense of beauty rooted in traditional Japanese aesthetics – sublime, yet understated and restrained”

Grand Seiko unveils its first mechanical complication

Grand Seiko unveils its first mechanical complication

Grand Seiko’s new Constant-Force Tourbillon Kodo combines a constant-force mechanism and a tourbillon as one unit on a single (...)

King Seiko: a 1965 classic is re-born!

King Seiko: a 1965 classic is re-born!

Never before in the company’s history had there been a period of such creativity and achievement. From the first Grand Seiko in 1960 to the automatic (...)

Orient revives the M-Force Sports collection

Orient revives the M-Force Sports collection

Orient is bringing back its popular M-Force model, a much-loved member of the Orient Sports Collection. The first four models of the new third generation (...)

Citizen Super TitaniumTM

Citizen Super Titanium^TM

WHEN INNOVATION MEANS MATERIALS

As illustrated on the cover of the lastest edition of Europa Star, in 2020 Citizen is celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the first titanium (...)

Grand Seiko's new addition to the 60th anniversary collection

Grand Seiko’s new addition to the 60th anniversary collection

The revolutionary automatic caliber 9SA5 and a powerful new look are completing the Japanese brand’s celebration. Discover the three innovations that set (...)

Grand Seiko's chronometric quest

Grand Seiko’s chronometric quest

INNOVATION AS A CONSTANT FORCE

To widespread surprise, in September Grand Seiko presented a wholly unprecedented concept movement, the T0 (T-Zero) Constant-force Tourbillon. Its (...)

Grand Seiko's special relationship with nature

Grand Seiko’s special relationship with nature

The brilliant blue sky over Mt. Iwate at dawn that greets the watchmakers and technicians of the Grand Seiko Studio Shizukuishi inspires a new limited (...)

Seiko Presage Sharp Edged Series

Seiko Presage Sharp Edged Series

Sharp, angular and refined: a new Presage series features a Japanese Asanoha or hemp leaf pattern, familiar in Japanese culture for its use in design since (...)

Seiko Prospex LX line Limited Edition

Seiko Prospex LX line Limited Edition

The LX line was introduced in 2019 from the Prospex collection as the pinnacle of Seiko sports watches. The line’s name, LX, hints at the Latin word for (...)

The Grand Seiko Studio Shizukuishi opens its doors

The Grand Seiko Studio Shizukuishi opens its doors

A new chapter in the 60-year history of Grand Seiko opens with the inauguration of an entirely new studio dedicated to the production of Grand Seiko’s (...)

Grand Seiko celebrates its 60th Anniversary

Grand Seiko celebrates its 60th Anniversary

BRAND FOCUS

This year, Grand Seiko is celebrating 60 years of existence. Called “kanreki”, this anniversary is especially important in the Japanese culture. To mark the (...)

Citizen: the titan of titanium

Citizen: the titan of titanium

COVER STORY

Exactly fifty years ago, in the golden age of the Apollo missions, Japanese brand Citizen introduced a new material into watchmaking that had hitherto been (...)

Citizen sets its sights on the moon

Citizen sets its sights on the moon

SPACE

The world’s first commercial lunar exploration program, HAKUTO-R, will be equipped with Citizen’s Super Titanium™ on components used in the lunar lander and (...)

A history of sports timekeeping

A history of sports timekeeping

1964: A TURNING POINT FOR SEIKO

The Olympic Games held in Tokyo in 1964 changed Seiko for ever. That edition, the first ‘technological’ Olympics, brought the Japanese company into the (...)

Seiko: “We want to go beyond functionality”

Seiko: “We want to go beyond functionality”

JAPANESE BRANDS

How to convey not only the functional aspect of Seiko’s and Grand Seiko’s collections, but also the Japanese sense of beauty found in these timepieces? An (...)

The secret calendars of Japanese prints

The secret calendars of Japanese prints

HISTORY

To circumvent the state monopoly on calendars, ingenious Japanese craftsmen designed prints that revealed – to initiates only – the alternation of short and (...)

Visiting Seiko Dream Square in Tokyo

Visiting Seiko Dream Square in Tokyo

CONCEPT STORES

Last December, Seiko inaugurated this space, which differs greatly from a traditional boutique. Rather than simply displaying watches, the Japanese giant (...)

In the world's largest movement factory

In the world’s largest movement factory

REPORT

A quartz calibre is produced every second at the Saku factory operated by Miyota. The Citizen Group’s movement manufacturer equips a plethora of entry-level (...)

Orient: the watch brand of Epson

JAPANESE BRANDS

Orient, which specialises in automatic watches, wants to take advantage of Epson’s global infrastructure to make itself better known (...)

Minase: Japan's best-kept horological secret

Minase: Japan’s best-kept horological secret

REPORT

Minase is a good example of how technological innovation in Japan can also be an ode to nature. We paid a visit to this family company in Akita, in the (...)

Visiting Tissot's new boutique in Tokyo

Visiting Tissot’s new boutique in Tokyo

CONCEPT STORES

This year, the Swiss brand opened a new boutique in the Daikanyama district, which is popular with designers and has many art galleries, bookstores and (...)

Casio: “We must do better in the metal analogue watch”

Casio: “We must do better in the metal analogue watch”

JAPANESE BRANDS

The first generation of G-Shock used plastics, the second one incorporated metal, and the new one is made of carbon. Simultaneously, the brand intends to (...)

Citizen: “Reaping the benefits of our acquisitions”

Citizen: “Reaping the benefits of our acquisitions”

JAPANESE BRANDS

The Japanese giant is active on a number of fronts: developing record accuracy with the Caliber 0100, moving towards the connected world with the Eco-Drive (...)

Japanese watchmaking wants to change its image

Japanese watchmaking wants to change its image

ANALYSIS

Seiko, Citizen and Casio now offer models at prices that were unthinkable a few years ago. Japanese companies intend to move from a highly technological (...)

Master of the swords

Master of the swords

PORTRAIT

Swordsmith Sadanobu Gassan works with Casio to craft watches for a dedicated MR-G line. The heir to six generations of artisans, he explains how he works (...)

The enigma of Japanese youth

The enigma of Japanese youth

ANALYSIS

Japanese people aged 20 to 40 are much less into luxury than their parents, who experienced the country’s industrial boom. They prefer to save for their (...)

A new era for Japanese watchmaking?

A new era for Japanese watchmaking?

EDITORIAL

As demand for Japanese quartz movements continues to fall, due to declining interest in the fashion watch, and as the arrival of the smartwatch causes (...)

Citizen Caliber 0100

Citizen Caliber 0100

THE ONE-SECOND CHALLENGE

In a world first, the Japanese brand is introducing three new Eco-Drive watches that achieve an accuracy to within ±1 second per year. They draw directly on (...)

“Strengthening the appeal of G-Shock for mature buyers”

“Strengthening the appeal of G-Shock for mature buyers”

INTERVIEW WITH SHIGENORI ITOH CEO

G-Shock is 35 years old in 2018. Among the most striking anniversary models that Casio has launched this year are the Red Out, the Gold Tornado, the Big (...)

Minase, a window on the watch

Minase, a window on the watch [Video]

JAPANESE CRAFTS

Originally a family company specialized in the production of cutting tools in the Akita province of Japan, Minase is a growing-up watch artisan aiming at (...)

Japan: towards a revival?

Japan: towards a revival?

2017

In 2017, Japan’s watch market showed some very interesting trends. Following the return of tourists from greater China, inbound demand is showing a gradual (...)

What about Japanese independents?

What about Japanese independents?

FAR EAST TRAVEL JOURNAL

The independent Japanese watchmaker Hajime Asaoka has produced a grand total of... 19 watches! They are the result of meticulous craftsmanship, performed (...)

Reflections and travel notes on the japanese watchmaking market

Reflections and travel notes on the japanese watchmaking market

FAR EAST TRAVEL JOURNAL

Exports of Swiss watches to Japan seem to have decreased again this year. Rolex, Cartier and Omega remain the top brands sold in (...)

Japan transitioning from technology to luxury

Japan transitioning from technology to luxury

JAPAN

All have developed a continuum of unparalleled technological innovations, from the use of quartz to solar energy. All have continued to produce large (...)

Seiko has grand plans for the future

Seiko has grand plans for the future

INTERVIEW

This is the oldest Japanese watch brand, with more than a century of history. It has been in on every technological innovation. But 2017 will remain (...)

Citizen: a strategy of acquisitions

Citizen: a strategy of acquisitions

FAR EAST TRAVEL JOURNAL

Unlike its two fellow watchmaking companies which are launching an offensive internationally by moving their own products upmarket, this giant has opted (...)

Japan: Philippe Dufour, a master in his empire

Japan: Philippe Dufour, a master in his empire

FAR EAST TRAVEL JOURNAL

Having seen the portrait of the watchmaker Philippe Dufour, who hails from the Swiss canton of Vaud, at the Seiko research and development studios, Europa (...)

A brief history of Seiko mechanical chronographs

A brief history of Seiko mechanical chronographs

CHRONOGRAPHS

In the mid-60s, a race was raging: who would manage to release the first automatic chronograph wristwatch?

Casio: a question of age

Casio: a question of age

JAPAN

How to win over the generations of G-Shock lovers, those teenagers who have since matured? Can ultra-high-tech quartz watches sell for the same price as (...)

In Japan, the breakthrough of Seiko and the failure of lifestyle marketing

In Japan, the breakthrough of Seiko and the failure of lifestyle marketing

ANALYSIS

The Japanese market is relatively stable and mature. Regardless of economic trends, luxury watches have been constantly appreciated in the (...)