Are you ok with "Swiss made" watches having Chinese-made parts?

[ajw45]

Originally Posted by omar-rye

Right, so that brings me to my second point. If the rumors are true and Omega is outsourcing production outside of Switzerland, it can’t be for the same cost saving reasons that companies turn to China. I find it hard to believe that countries like Germany, France, or Italy offer production and labor that are cheaper, or at least not by much, compared to Switzerland.

It's complicated? Specialization, unique machinery, tariffs, response times, etc etc. Even if the exact same widget is cheaper in China, I might still get it made in Germany as well because it might be a critical component and/or just by having two suppliers competing for the same business my average cost is equal to or lower than the cost if it had been single sourced. If one of the two suppliers isn't doing a great job, I'll add another to give them a try even if it costs more now and renegotiate one, both, or all three later depending on results. Again, this isn't just Omega, this is all part of doing business in lots of industries.