According to a recent survey by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry, Omega, Rolex and Gucci were the three best-known brands among Japanese consumers aged over 20 who expressed an interest in watches priced at ¥100,000 or more. Included on the list were Tag Heuer, Breitling, Zenith, and Baume & Mercier. Japanese watchmakers are well represented by Seiko and Citizen, and the tech-crowd are catered for by the quirky inventiveness that Casio has made all its own. The recession and the popularity of the cellphone, which for many has replaced the watch as the preferred timepiece, have undermined Japan’s market for expensive wristwatches.
Yet, it’s not all doom and gloom. The rush to increase sales translates into bigger discounts and more scope for bartering at the many stores trading in used and antique watches. Also, dedicated watch retailers may yet step in to fill the gap left by weakened department stores and non-specialist outlets. “It may be the case that branded stand-alone stores might hold up because of a wider trend in luxury consumption,” says Michael Causton, a senior partner in Sensu, a Tokyo-based marketing agency. “With people buying less luxury, when they do, they are increasingly preferring to do so at one of the glitzy stand-alone stores or towers in Ginza, rather than at the smaller department
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