[imperio]

Originally Posted by Jostack

I agree with you.

I’ve always been ‘interested’ in wristwatches since I was a young boy. I knew what a Rolex was by the age of 9 or so. I don’t remember how exactly, but I’m sure I heard the adults talk about it.

I spent $500 on a Casio Oceanus for my first ‘real’ watch in my 20’s. I still have it and admire it often. I stumbled along with a god awful tank of an invicta at some point. Still have it as well, but less admired. Then I started studying more earnestly and while it was clear that Swiss watchmaking was the leader of the pack, Seiko was always mentioned here and there. More often as the cause of the ‘quartz crisis’, true or not, but I never got the impression that Seiko was highly regarded by anyone. I often wonder what things would look like today if the Swiss would have embraced quartz? To me it seems like the whole watch industry pushed very aggressively against quartz and the Japanese watch companies, and their influence significantly tarnished public perception of the Japanese watchmaking industry to the point that even today, all but the very informed believe that Seiko, and any other Japanese brand is cheap and of inferior quality.

I’m not saying the general public are stupid or ignorant, but marketing is very powerful. Marketing=Propaganda. The political and social environments in those days were very different, and ripe for the backlash that occurred.

I think because of the evolution of the watch industry from pocket watches to now, there is still a lot of the history that most of us grew up with, wether we realize it or not, that colors our perception of ‘other than Swiss’ watches.

The general practitioner that has cared for me and my family’s health for the last 40 years wears a Seiko. It is simple and beautiful. He absolutely can afford a Rolex.

My drivel is not to knock any watch company or promote another. But sometimes it is hard to move out of your comfort zone and look at things from a different perspective. Things aren’t always what they seem.

If you have the means to have any kind of claim to a ‘watch collection’ maybe you should spend $500 on a Seiko and live with it for a few days. Get out the loupe and be critical. No, it is not a Rolex. But I think you may be surprised by the offering from a value perspective.


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Totally agree on the marketing part. Rolex is a marketing genius, I'll give them that.