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| Joined: | Sun Sep 4th, 2005 |
| Location: | Akron, USA |
| Posts: | 28506 |
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Greetings fellow watch enthusiasts!
We've just returned from meetings on the East coast. It was a beautiful New
York day. The tree was green. The bird was singing. And exciting watch
developments were in the air from both Gevril and Nicolet.
Swiss Price Increases
In my meeting with Sammy Friedmann of Gevril, I learned that the days of
getting a Swiss mechanical movement in the three or four-hundred dollar
range are rapidly coming to a close. This may be the ideal time to stock up,
especially for special occasions later in the year.
Tightened "Swiss Made" Standards
During our visit, Sammy also shared his knowledge of the proposed pending
"80-20" rule. This is a proposition to limit the "Swiss Made" designation to
watches with 80% of production costs in Switzerland for mechanical watches
and 60% for electronic production. The current percentage is 50.1% for both.
On June 28th, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry (FH) voted in favor
of pushing the Swiss government to accept these new requirements. This
proposal comes in response to criticism that the Swiss-made label is being
used too loosely, and if passed, it will affect the future labeling of some
brands.