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Old 27 January 2018, 03:03 AM   #1
scarlet knight
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Fortis is kaput

I read on another site they are bankrupt. Another one bites dust.
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Old 27 January 2018, 03:22 AM   #2
Wood&Leather
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As a watch-newb, a quick scan of their offerings on some online retailers just displays a bunch of uninspired, borderline ugly watch online.

It just looks like they took Hamilton and bottom tier Oris watches, put them in a blender and spit out various offerings at overreaching(laughable) price points. No wonder they're bankrupt.
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Old 27 January 2018, 03:30 AM   #3
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R.i.p
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Old 27 January 2018, 03:34 AM   #4
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It is unfortunate that they are going under but that is what derivative design, using stock ebauche movements and punching above your weight class (pricing model) will get you.
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Old 27 January 2018, 05:19 AM   #5
Fredrik
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I am not surprised, they have quality problems. I had a Fortis a few years ago and the screw down crown was problematic. They(Fortis) eventually replaced it with a non-screw down crown and expected me to be happy with it... I just sold it and promised myself to never buy one again.
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Old 27 January 2018, 05:34 AM   #6
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Rolex uses rare elves to polish the platinum. They have a union deal and make like $90 per hour and get time and half on weekends.
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Old 27 January 2018, 05:42 AM   #7
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Time to find the most collectible, valuable and discontinued Fortis watches and mandatory they must be fitted with the legendary Lemania 5100 movement
✓ The original Fortis "Space Watch" or the Fortis Official Cosmonauts Chronograph with countdown or elapsed time bezel not tachy bezel size 38/40mm not 42
,✓ Fortis 1992 Stratoliner Chronograph West in Space LE/200
✓Fortis x Andora ( Berlin based Pop Art Artist ) early collaborations. One such example is the Andora Mir 1997 LE/350
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Old 27 January 2018, 07:22 AM   #8
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I look at some of these small brands and wonder? Who pays that much money for something like this. Now I get the answer.... no one does.
Honestly it surprises me that there are not many more brands going out of business these days. I bet if many of them did not have umbrella conglomerates supporting their failing business models it would be a bloodbath.
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Old 27 January 2018, 08:05 AM   #9
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Well, the Fortis website is still up and running.

I used to own one and loved it. Built like a tank and well designed. Like any brand, there are pretty and ugly offerings. Some of the Fortis watches were very cool, and I believe the Russians used them as their official watch for the space program.
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Old 27 January 2018, 08:50 AM   #10
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That would be too bad.
I like their application of lume right to the edge of some hands.
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Old 27 January 2018, 10:49 AM   #11
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I believe the Russians used them as their official watch for the space program.
Yes Sir and that means those Russian Federal Space Agency approved Fortis watches are qualified ONLY to be worn inside the International Space Station, space craft and NON-EVA.The certified Lemania based watches of the Russian Federal Space Agency bear the mark -->PK meaning PocKocmoc or Roscosmos.This is a highly prized motif sought after by watch collectors
In the newer later versions, B42 Fortis Cosmonaut based on the ETA 2836-2 movement, only Roscosmos and its logo are engraved on the back casing but I'm not too sure about its desirability

There is another Fortis ROSCOSMOS Space Watch very much a Holy Grail if you can find 0ne because only 300 were made. A Malaysian and fellow WIS who studied Medicine for 6 years in Kursk State Medical University managed to find such an example by sheer luck when he was in Russia. This very special GMT Fortis celebrates the 50th Anniversary of the 1st Human Being in Space. So what's the big deal about this watch? I was told now only about 100 are still known to exist in the wild but more uniquely on the case back, a stunning real likeness of Great Man in History is engraved : Yuri Alekseyevitch Gagarin
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Old 27 January 2018, 05:45 PM   #12
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Well, the Fortis website is still up and running.
As far as I'm aware, they've not gone, but simply filed for bankruptcy protection – Chapter 11 as it's known in the States.
Basically, this allows an insolvent company to continue to trade whilst they sort out a way to repay their debts.

Not all companies will remove their website, even if time still remaining with having paid hosting company in advance, and some may continue to pay the hosting fees, but remove certain elements, leaving it a legacy site.
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Old 28 January 2018, 09:15 AM   #13
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As far as I'm aware, they've not gone, but simply filed for bankruptcy protection – Chapter 11 as it's known in the States.
Basically, this allows an insolvent company to continue to trade whilst they sort out a way to repay their debts.

Not all companies will remove their website, even if time still remaining with having paid hosting company in advance, and some may continue to pay the hosting fees, but remove certain elements, leaving it a legacy site.
yup, they've filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy (reorganization), as opposed to chapter 7 (liquidation)
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Old 30 January 2018, 08:58 AM   #14
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+1 on the re-org. So they are not closed (yet).

I certainly hope that they will pull through. I still need to own the new Classic Cosmonautis Chronograph Ceramic PM on Bracelet and I need them to continue to support their product. :)
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Old 15 February 2018, 04:38 AM   #15
daveo5
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Fortis? No loss to the industry.
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Old 15 February 2018, 05:07 AM   #16
yessir69
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Don't know who cracked open the hateraid, but Fortis was a solid brand. Not every offering was a home run, but they had some good pieces. It's a shame.

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Old 15 February 2018, 05:45 AM   #17
Dan Pierce
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Don't know who cracked open the hateraid, but Fortis was a solid brand. Not every offering was a home run, but they had some good pieces. It's a shame.

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Completely agree, Kevin.

Some aren’t happy unless they can pi$$ on somebodies parade.
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Old 15 February 2018, 05:48 AM   #18
scarlet knight
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I admired their watches, but we can scratch that itch with Hamilton, Sinn, IWC and others. Hope they survive.
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