Citizen is really a citizen’s watch - reliable, sturdy, fashionable, user friendly and really good value for money. Its hallmark is that it is a Japanese product, known for its reliability. Post-war Japanese industries, unlike the pre-war industries, are meant to be a role model for the industrialised and developing countries. Look at a country, which lacks raw materials, yet produces world class goods.
The Japanese are famous for their capability to copy a product or design, and the imitated product turns out to be much better than the original product. Today it has captured the world market with cameras, electronic goods, synthetic textiles, handicrafts and last but not the least, watches.
I had purchased a Citizen watch in 1981 from a shop in Kabul, where I had gone as a UNICEF Consultant . I had to buy it, because my Sieko automatic watch ( a Japanese watch ! needed repairs, and I was without a watch. The dealer showed me a black beauty. It was a Citizen Ana-digi watch with a black dial, which can keep dual time.
Analog watches are the traditional watches, whereas a digital watch is fully electronic, with hourly chime, daily alarm, calendar, dual time and what have you? It was a full stainless steel one, with a fashionable band. It was waterproof also. It was a love at the first sight and I went for it. I think I paid some 8000 Afghanis for it. How many US Dollars or Indian Rupees? Wait a minute. Let me calculate. Oh, yes, it was some 1500 Indian Rupees, about 30 US Dollars at 1981 rates. I started wearing it and put my Sieko in its box. It is still there with me. I get it oiled every two years.
My Citizen gave me excellent service till 1995 ( 14 years ) when its band broke down. I was then in Jakarta ( Indonesia ). I wanted to change its band, but the price quoted for an original band was prohibitive. So I suggested to have tukar tumba . Tukar means to exchange and tumba means to pay something extra. I reluctantly parted with my black beauty with a parting kiss and got an equally beautiful white one.
It was a white dial Citizen with usual Ana-digi features. It gave me excellent service, till the other day, when it stopped working. I got it examined by a local watch dealer at Angul ( Orissa State, India ) where I leave after my retirement. I was sorry to be told that the dealer did not have the spare parts for my watch.
I am sorry to say that after sales service for Citizen watches is almost non-existent in India. Why So ? Has any one conducted a customer survey ?
I went in for Citizen although I had a Casio, Omega and Sieko watches, because of its brand equity.
I have not given up. Next time I go to Southeast Asia, I will get it fixed and use it.
Before I close. If the Marketing Director of Citizen happens to go through this review, I am sure, he would hire me to be the Brand Ambassador of the Company.