20 years of work to share watches as a "culture"
Chronos Japan, launched in October 2005, was one of the latest watch media outlets to do so. Even at the time, launching a new publication in the niche field of watches must have been quite a challenging endeavor. But founder Soichiro Matsuzaki must have had a firm belief in it, as we are now celebrating the 20th anniversary of its founding together with all of you.
The past 20 years have been a time of rapid expansion for the watch market. The revival of mechanical watches that began in the 1990s began in earnest in the Japanese market in the 2000s. This trend was further accelerated by the "dot-com bubble" and the "corona bubble" brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.
It was in this context that Chronos Japan and webChronos (launched in 2007) were born. If I may be so bold as to say so, we have been exploring the possibility of sharing watches not as luxury consumer goods, but as a "culture." At first, we approached this timidly, but eventually we became proud and confident. It was the many masterpieces, artisans, makers, sellers, and readers we encountered through the pages of the magazine that taught us that our aspirations were not empty pipe dreams.
We often hear people say that watches have become a commercial phenomenon. It's true that over the past 20 years, watches have become the most cutting-edge testing ground for luxury marketing, with many masterpieces now seen as items that display status and wealth. However, if watches were such a trivial presence, we wouldn't have made a living from them for 20 years. We are convinced that watches are, and always will be, "something more than just something that tells time."
As the market has expanded, the industry itself has changed dramatically: the introduction of new materials, the evolution of complications, the rise of independent watchmakers, the emergence of smartwatches, and so on. Though working within the framework of commercial media, this magazine and webChronos have documented, celebrated, and sometimes criticized these changes. While we sometimes feel that our work is a Sisyphean affair, we are also confident that, as long as our readers continue to read our work, it will not end in vain. That is, as long as we try to be honest with you.
The watch market and industry will continue to change, as will the people who care about watches. But no matter how the situation changes, our stance will remain the same: we will continue to say that watches are "more than just something that tells time."
Considering the long history of watches, 20 years is just a blink of an eye. However, these 20 years have also been invaluable, thanks to all of you who have taken an interest in us. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to everyone who has supported this magazine and webChronos, and I would like to say the following for now.
"We may allow ourselves a brief period of rejoicing" (Winston Churchill)
