The $5K Grand Seiko That Should Cost $50K
We all know that the finest watches in the world are made in Switzerland. Well, most of them are—but then there's Grand Seiko. Back in 1960, Japanese watch manufacturer Seiko launched Grand Seiko with the aim of creating timepieces on par with those of the Swiss horological houses. Well, it worked, and GS managed to craft mechanical masterpieces for thousands of dollars less than its European counterparts.
Take, for instance, this 20th-anniversary 9S Mechanical GMT (reference SBGM235). When I first saw this watch, it made me feel the same sense of awe I felt as a kid when I first saw the Death Star. Not the Millennium Falcon. Not TIE fighters. The Death Star.
It's really all about the silver radial mosaic-patterned dial. Grand Seiko's distinctive Old English font is one of the best parts of the brand—it makes me smile whenever I check the time—and the repeated “GS” and the sweet vintage lightning-bolt logos make this dial a sight to behold. It practically glows. And though anyone who knows me knows I’ve got a thing for gold watches, there’s really nothing like a steel watch when it’s paired with a blue croc strap. It’s a little unexpected, and totally undeniable. Go try one on and you’ll see what I mean. (Plus, you’ll see that the steel buckle is way more intricate than it needs to be, especially at this price.)
And unlike nearly every other watch company, Grand Seiko makes every piece of their timepiece components in-house. It’s not for nothing: According to Grand Seiko, the 9S movement has a precision of -3 to +5 seconds a day. From my experience with other GS watches, they're underestimating the accuracy.
I'm positive that decades from now, this watch will still kill, much like Rolexes from the 1960s when you look at them today. Just check out the perfect shape of that case; it looks like it's from the future and the past at the same time. Everything Grand Seiko does has that priceless, timeless effect, so it's hard to believe this watch—limited to 1,000 units—retails for a tenth of the cost of watches in its class.
A version of this story originally appeared in the February 2019 issue with the title “The Supreme Value Of Grand Seiko.”
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