{"id":51552,"date":"2020-02-24T09:18:24","date_gmt":"2020-02-24T09:18:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.watchpro.com\/?p=51552"},"modified":"2020-02-26T08:52:53","modified_gmt":"2020-02-26T08:52:53","slug":"origin-story-how-seiko-rose-from-the-rubble-of-the-great-kanto-earthquake-to-reap-havoc-on-the-swiss-watch-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.watchpro.com\/origin-story-how-seiko-rose-from-the-rubble-of-the-great-kanto-earthquake-to-reap-havoc-on-the-swiss-watch-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"ORIGIN STORY: How Seiko rose from the rubble of the Great Kanto Earthquake to wreak havoc on the Swiss watch industry"},"content":{"rendered":"
Whenever I have decided to do an origin story that is Japan-related, I get very hyped up. Maybe it’s due to the fact that I’ve been to Japan enough to fall in love with it. Or maybe it’s because every Japanese brand that became an international sensation always has a legendary backstory to it? Who knows? However, Seiko is no ordinary Japanese brand, it is one of the few to lay the foundation for what became today’s booming industry, writes Ryan Yip, editor of Gentleman Pursuits<\/a><\/span>, a Hong Kong-based blog about watches and whiskey.<\/strong><\/p>\n Seiko’s founder is Kintaro Hattori, who began working at an early age of 11 at a sundries wholesale but life took a huge turn when he hit 13. Nearby where he used to work, there was a clock shop. Soon enough, he learned that the shop is making a huge profit by selling and fixing clocks. Who is not attracted by the idea of ‘making more money’?<\/p>\n Mr Hattori decided to quit selling sundries and took a job at the clock shop, learning all about clocks while earning a decent paycheck. In 1881, Mr Hattori decided to pursue the entrepreneur lifestyle and opened his own watch shop in central Tokyo, named K. Hattori.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n