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| Chase-Durer |
A great deal of thought is always put into a new venture, but this family is really made up of smart cookies: Chase-Durer, an anomaly in the watch industry. This is a selfmade watch company without a two-hundredyear-old history that has managed to successfully establish itself in this very staid and traditional industry in a relatively short amount of time, the watches already being displayed in hundreds of retail stores worldwide. Founded in 1992 by Marianne and Brandon Chase, the company takes the other half of its name from the Chases' mentor and friend, watchmaker Maximilian Durer. For the thirty years prior to entering the watch industry, the Chases were involved in the production and distribution of Hollywood films. Marianne's son, Christian Nagata, has also made the company his life work as its chief of operations and executive vice president.
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The most sensible thing about Chase-Durer is the transparent, consistent marketing strategy designed to support everyone from the retailer to the consumer. This is aided and abetted by an intelligent approach to the industry-feared
Internet, a concept that Christian Nagata propagates enthusiastically. Yes, Chase-Durer watches can be purchased by the consumer on its website, but they are sold for the very same price as in a brick-and-mortar store, and the company even electronically suggests the nearest Chase-Durer retailer before a watch gets shipped to a consumer. The retailers are supported in every way possible, from the Internet to advertising in various media, displaying an extensive list of retail shops that carry the distinctively designed timepieces.
The main key is, as always, the product. If the product doesn't measure up, any amount of marketing is moot. These are good-quality, Swiss-made watches at a fraction of the usual retail price. In fact, Chase-Durer has made the quest for quality one of the central themes within the company. One rather surprising fact illustrates this point as no other: About 85 percent of the mechanical collection is stamped with the Seal of Geneva, something usually reserved for high-profile luxury-watch manufactures. Another fact underscoring this is the five-year international guarantee few
manufacturers accord their timepieces. Chase-Durer watches manifest a design very characteristic to the brand. Most prominent are the functionally styled pilot's watches for men, both in quartz and mechanical versions with various, easy-to-read displays. The 2001 women's collection, Windstar, practical and fashionable while at the same time touting the ability to change straps without the aid of tools, was followed by 2002's Ladyhawke collection. Outfitted in a trendy plastic-and-diamond look, this line comes in a veritable rainbow of colors and materials. |
Chase-Durer
270 N. Canon Drive
Drive Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Tel: 310-550-7280
USA: 310-550-0830
www.chase-durer.com
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