Early Direct-to-Consumer Strategy

This week on The Business of Watches, a Swiss brand that resonates with much of the Hodinkee community, Doxa. Founded in Le Locle, Switzerland, and now based in Biel/Bienne, it has more than a century of history and is responsible for designing and producing some of the most iconic dive watches ever built. With links to legendary figures, including Jacques Cousteau and author Clive Cussler, Doxa has served as a case study for how to revive, rebuild, and grow a brand by zeroing in on the best parts of its story while keeping prices approachable at a time when the industry trend is tilted very much to premiumization.

Jan Edocs is the executive leading Doxa these days, and in a wide-ranging interview recorded last year, he lays out the brand's plans for measured but steady growth. Once available only online, Doxa is now in retailers across the U.S., Japan, the Middle East, and Australia, with plans to eventually be in more than 300 retail locations.  At a time of cost inflation and tariffs, a significant challenge is keeping prices approachable while telling Doxa's unique story and history to fresh customers with new products. There are plenty of lessons on how to position a brand and company to weather both storms and sunny beach days, where a Doxa might just be the ideal wristwear. 

But first, Hodinkee Deputy Editor Tim Jeffreys drops in for his BoW debut. We talk about Grand Seiko's big move to sign baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani as a global ambassador and what it might mean for the brand. 

Show Notes 

1:30 Tim Jeffreys 

4:46 Shohei Ohtani Joins Grand Seiko As A Global Ambassador 

7:41 Akio Naito and Munehisa Shibasaki On Grand Seiko In America And The Future Of All Things Seiko (Hodinkee) 

10:04 Jan Edocs, CEO of Doxa  

11:40 Doxa History 

12:56 Jenny Watches may be a Brand you've Never Heard of, but it's left a Significant Mark on Dive Watch History (Monochrome) 

14:22 Walca Watches 

16:19 Doxawatches.com 

21:05 The Incredible Calypso: Jacques Cousteau's Crazy Exploration Vessel (Calum YouTube) 

21:50 Introducing The Doxa Sub 300T Clive Cussler Special Edition (Live Pics) (Hodinkee) 

23:30 The Doxa Sub 200 (Hodinkee) 

43:00 CHFxUSD 44:20 Watchmaking in Biel/Bienne (Swiss Tourism) 

47:36 The Doxa SUB 250 Ahmed Seddiqi 75th Anniversary Limited Edition (Monochrome) 

49:00 Introducing Doxa Sub 300 Carbon Seafoam Limited Edition (Hodinkee) 

1:07:45 The Doxa Sub 200T – A Smaller Take On The Classic Doxa Design