IN-DEPTH: The land of the rising sales
From digital workhorses to haute horlogerie, Japanese watchmaking is thriving. As the big Swiss groups have struggled for revenue and profit growth in recent years, Japan’s equivalents have only been looking up. What’s making the country’s exports chime with watch fans? Journalist Amy Wakeham finds out.
Switzerland may be struggling with sluggish sales but the same can’t be said about the Japanese. In recent weeks Seiko, Casio, Citizen, and Orient have all posted booming sales figures, and in the last fiscal year the first three companies — Japan’s largest watchmakers — all made CHF 1 billion or more in sales. Why are Japanese watchmakers soaring, while Swiss exports are falling?
Seiko Group Corporation (SGC), the parent company of Seiko and Grand Seiko, has seen a meteoric rise in both turnover and profit in the last decade, with sales up almost 50% and operating profit almost trebling since 2018.
Seiko is a prime study in why Japanese watchmakers are proving resilient in trying macroeconomic times. It manufactures a large proportion of its components in-house, controlling its supply chain and making it more resilient to shocks. It also serves a range of audiences while providing value at every price point, whether that’s an entry-level Seiko 5, a utilitarian diver, or a limited-edition King Seiko. And, as it celebrates its 145th anniversary in 2026, it has the global brand recognition and status of a legacy watchmaker. It’s also known for leaning into new technology, from developing the Quartz-Astron, which precipitated the Quartz Crisis in the 1970s, to the world’s first GPS watch, the Astron Solar GPS, capable of automatically adjusting to local time zones anywhere on Earth.
Grand Seiko, which was set loose as its own standalone brand in 2017, is the diamond in the SGC crown, and is seen as a Holy Grail watchmaker by many collectors. It has only been available outside Japan since 2010, and to this day many of its models are still sold only there. Its success is built on a combination of exceptional finishing, its proprietary Spring Drive movement (which gives the brand significant engineering clout) and a strong Japanese design identity that’s distinct from Swiss brands.
Customers aren’t the only ones looking East, with Swiss watchmakers increasingly turning to the country for inspiration and collaboration.”
“Grand Seiko has always remained true to its original 1960 ideals: to make the most accurate watch possible, within the balance of precision, wearability, and legibility,” says Junichi Kamata, Grand Seiko’s design director. The way its aesthetic elements are given the same importance as functional elements also sets it apart from the crowd. It also leverages limited edition models to create an impression of scarcity, fuelling interest from collectors.
Newer to the UK market than Seiko, but nevertheless thriving, is Orient, which launched here in 2023. Comprising both Orient and its premium-brand sister, Orient Star, it has seen an increase of 24% in average revenue globally year-on-year since 2017, while in the UK it saw 100% year-on-year sales growth between 2024 and 2025. Further growth of 50%–75% is expected for 2026.
Its strategy has centred around building long-term, sustainable success through strong retail partnerships, careful distribution, and brand visibility with the right audiences. “The focus has been on establishing credibility within the traditional watch space while gradually expanding reach through both independent jewellers and larger retail partners,” says Wiebke Bird, head of Orient in Europe.
These key retail relationships include Ernest Jones, F.Hinds, and soon Wolf & Badger. “This combination of strong product, thoughtful positioning, and targeted expansion has allowed Orient and Orient Star to gain momentum in a relatively short period of time,” adds Bird.
She also notes that consumers are increasingly looking for watches that feel authentic and mechanically impressive, while still remaining accessibly priced. “There has been particular enthusiasm around the reliability of the movements, the distinct Japanese design philosophy, and the balance between classic styling and innovation,” she says. “This has contributed to strong month-on-month growth and increasing demand for new launches and limited edition models.”
Orient works closely with UK distributor Time & More, which also represents brands like Briston and Columbia. “We knew from the outset that we had a brand that would quickly grow into being a main player in the Japanese watch brand marketplace,” says Duncan Harris, managing director. “The superbly designed collections along with the history and heritage of the company make for a great storytelling opportunity.” The fact that Orient manufactures its calibres and assembles its watches in-house — like Seiko — also sets the two brands apart from many competitors, he says.
Citizen Watchmaking Company, which has also posted strong sales and profit results, is, like Seiko and Orient, vertically integrated, making most of the components across its mechanical and quartz ranges, as well as things like dials, hands, cases, and bracelets. It owns Miyota, a Japanese movement maker, as well as the prestigious Manufacture La Joux-Perret in Switzerland. The company’s share price has quadrupled since Covid, while its watchmaking category increased 10% year-on-year in 2025. Its watches offer buyers value at compelling price points, with the company undertaking much of the manufacturing process in-house instead of paying margins to multiple external suppliers. Like Seiko, it’s built a reputation for technological innovation: its Eco-Drive watch became the world’s first modern solar watch when it was launched in 1996, building upon Citizen’s legacy of having introduced the world’s first light-powered analog quartz watch back in 1976.
Casio has also had a strong few years, with its watchmaking division’s revenue up 11% and operating profit up 34% from 2024 to 2025. Like the other Japanese watchmakers, it has also embraced tech, albeit in the digital watchmaking sphere. Its unbreakable G-Shock model, introduced in 1984, has evolved from a practical tool watch into a global cultural phenomenon.
As much as Japanese watchmaking may be flourishing, it’s important not to overstate Swiss weakness in the industry.”
“The G-Shock was born at a time when watches were accepted as fragile items that would eventually break,” says Warren Halliwell, senior content & campaign manager at Casio UK. “We solved that and that ethos is found in every Casio timepiece. Customers have an expectation of us and our products — that quality, reliability, and reputation that our parents and grandparents resonated with back in the 1970s is still there. We’re a part of people’s history and that’s what connects us to our customers.” Today, a Casio is often cited as the ideal everyday watch to have in a “two watch collection” (with the other model something a bit juicier, but perhaps not for daily wear).
But customers aren’t the only ones looking East, with Swiss watchmakers increasingly turning to the country for inspiration and collaboration. Zenith has a new partnership with Japanese independent watchmaker Naoya Hida & C, a project that has seen the Japanese watchmaker reimagine the G.F.J. Calibre 135 in platinum with a solid silver dial, bringing its signature understated aesthetic to the timepiece. Limited to 10 pieces, it’s the first of Zenith’s new Double Signed Program of collaborations. It’s significant that, for the launch of the programme, Zenith chose to partner with a Japanese watchmaker.
In May, Audemars Piguet released a limited edition Royal Oak Concept Flying Tourbillon designed with Japanese creative duo Yoon Ahn, a fashion designer, and Verbal, a rapper and music producer. The collaboration brings a fresh perspective to the design icon, reimagining it with a shimmering black aventurine dial and a punchy red tourbillon. The result is a futuristic take on the design icon that, like the latest Royal Pop pocket watch, appeals to a younger audience.
And Tudor has just announced a new partnership with the Japan Sumo Association, with the brand drawing similarities between its values of discipline and daring, and those of the sport. Chances are we’ll see a new watch emerge from the tie up.
As well as providing quality, durability, and innovative technology at competitive price points, Japan also has a growing reputation for exciting world-class watchmaking, with Japanese watchmakers increasingly visible on the awards circuit. Last year was the strongest year ever for Japanese representation at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie Geneve (GPHG), with four Japanese brands on the official shortlist. One of them was Tasaki’s Face of Tasaki black mother-of-pearl watch, a refined design inspired by the brand’s pearl farms. It was created in collaboration with Swiss-based Scottish product designer Fiona Kruger, and was shortlisted for the GPHG 2025 in the Time Only category. Grand Seiko, plus independents Kurono Tokyo and Otsuko Lotec, were also nominated in other categories.
And the winner of the 12th F.P. Journe Young Talent Competition was a young Japanese watchmaker called Shin Ohno, who won for his creation ‘Fuyu-Geshiki’ (‘Winter Landscape’), a beautiful grande et petite sonnerie tourbillon clock with a quarter repeater. He made it while working as an engineer at Seiko Epson Corporation’s Micro Artist Studio, which is the atelier behind Grand Seiko’s Masterpiece collection of standalone timepieces.
Ultimately, however, as much as Japanese watchmaking may be flourishing, it’s important not to overstate Swiss weakness in the industry. At the luxury end, names like Rolex, Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, and Omega remain the most profitable in the world, generating record revenues and maintaining long waiting lists. That said, with the exception of Grand Seiko, Japanese watchmakers are thriving precisely because this is not the segment that they are targeting. It’s a good reminder that most watch wearers can’t afford — or even want — to buy an ultra-luxury watch. Japan’s current success comes from appealing to these buyers, and exploiting what’s known as the mid-tier: watches that cost between £300 and £5,000 — a segment that’s under increasing pressure as the watch market stratifies. With their technology, accuracy, reliability, and value, Japanese manufacturers are proving to have significant appeal.
This article first appeared in the June 2026 edition of Watch Insider.
