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.

[brandrea]

Originally Posted by the dark knight

Someone can correct me if wrong. But my understanding of how the Swiss watch industry worked for literally 100s of years is an amalgamation of suppliers. Separate companies that had expertise in cases, specific movement parts (or the entire movement), crowns, straps, etc etc and the watch "brand" would order all these parts to their specifications and then assemble the watch.

Rolex has always been more vertically integrated on a relative basis, but we know about Aegler, Zenith, and Made in Mexico bracelets.

So to the extent these Omega suppliers are in other European countries, it might not be overwhelming cost savings, but rather chasing expertise from specific suppliers that are located in those nations. And those specific suppliers are probably not just supplying Omega, but other watch brands as well. I doubt they are Omega or Swatch owned companies, but I could be wrong there.

Nice summary

Made in Mexico bracelets?

[the dark knight]

Originally Posted by brandrea

Nice summary

Made in Mexico bracelets?

Yep!

https://www.rolexforums.com/showthread.php?t=342663

[77T]

Decades ago RUSA had bracelets made in USA as well.


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[Andad]

50 on the poll (so far) are going to be disappointed.