Yoshikatsu Kawada, Senior Executive Vice President and Director of Seiko Watch Corporation.
“We already built a good customer base here. Malaysian consumers appreciate Seiko because of its quality, technology and craftsmanship,” says Yoshikatsu Kawada, Seiko Watch Corporation’s Senior Executive Vice President and Director when we met him at the grand opening of Seiko’s new boutique in The Exchange TRX.
The opening marks a significant milestone for the Japanese brand in more ways than one. Firstly, the opening commemorates the 100th year anniversary since Seiko introduced its first wristwatch with “Seiko” on the dial and also marks a new chapter for the brand in sharing its story with the world.
“A boutique is the perfect place for us to communicate our story. We are also very conscious about helping the local society as well and that’s why I’m so excited to have a new boutique here,” says Kawada.
Watch enthusiasts will find a diverse range of Seiko timepieces at the boutique, including King Seiko, Astron, 5 Sports, Presage and Prospex. But as online sales are getting more and more popular, Kawada believes a hybrid approach is the way to go for the brand. “Our product is a luxury item that people like to touch and feel, of course we can feed all the information on digital but I think there is still a need for brick and mortar,” he says.
A physical space is also the perfect opportunity to remind people of Seiko’s rich manufacturing heritage and unique history, a story that unfolded in 1881 when Kintaro Hattori opened a humble watch repair shop in Ginza, Tokyo. Indeed, the Japanese watchmakers have come a long way since then, growing into a global powerhouse renowned for its watchmaking approach that rivals their Swiss counterparts.
The Seiko boutique in The Exchange TRX
“We are doing our own refinement of those traditional watchmaking techniques,” says Kawada,” “We’re not just talking about mechanical watchmaking techniques. For example, we also invited the GPS Solar,” he says. “Following our founder’s saying, which is to always be one step ahead of the rest, we still follow this philosophy when we develop a product or design.
Apart from technological prowess, design is an important element for Seiko watches which Kawada says, make up the essential characteristics of a watch as a luxury item. “A watch is a product that shows who you are,” he adds. “In order to satisfy all these savvy consumers and watch aficionados, we have to come up with very innovative and creative new pieces.
To show the world how Seiko’s designers experiment in new and imaginative ways. The brand has unveiled its Power Design Project Exhibition 2024 for the first time in Malaysia. With the theme of “Incredibly Specialised Watches”, the showcase features a series of conceptual designs highlighting the technological prowess and creativity behind the brand.
Yoshikatsu Kawada, Senior Executive Vice President and Director of Seiko Watch Corporation.
This experimental initiative offers a platform for designers to break from the conventional watchmaking norms. It’s the perfect exercise to sharpen the imagination and pave the way for innovative timepieces that will continue to enthral fans of the brand.
Or as Kawada puts it: “It’s not only about functionality, a timepiece is also an emotional thing, it is getting more and more important for a designer to express personality on the product.”
