Bulova Still Makes Time at U.S. Department Stores

Bulova, among the earliest U.S. wristwatch makers, still has a presence at U.S. department stores. Unfortunately, it is no longer a U.S. brand as Citizen Watch Co. Ltd., a Japanese watchmaker, acquired the company in 2008.

The brand is one of the surviving American watch brands, which included a pantheon of brand names like Gruen, Wittnauer, Elgin and Hamilton.

This summer, the company continues to look to its past for ideas, including the promotion of their redux of the Super Seville, with Ryan Reynolds. He also used the brand to promote MNTN, an AI-based marketing planner for television commercials and brands with Patty Schmoyer, Bulova’s VP of marketing.

Citizen also continues to invest in the brand with point of sale and retail.

In December of 2023, Citizen opened a flagship store at 605 Fifth Avenue, steps from Rockefeller Center. There, the company shows off their brand group, including Citizen, Bulova, Accutron, Frederique Constant and Alpina. President Jeffrey Cohen, of Citizen Watch America said that it was the company’s first-ever U.S. multi-brand flagship store.

Jeffrey Cohen, Marc Anthony, Yoshitaka Ohji, Hiroshi Utsunomiya ất the Citizen store opening in New York last December. Photo credit: Rupert Ramsay/BFA.com

The Bulova name, however, still holds some goodwill, and has not been lost. They continue to release new editions, as well as bringing back new versions of old favorites.

In 1971, NASA sent a Bulova chronograph to the moon as a backup. After rediscovering the watch and auctioning it for $1.6 million in 2015, Bulova released the Lunar Pilot, a 45mm quartz-powered chronograph, as a tribute.

A bit of the timeline of Bulova:

  • 1851: Joseph Bulova born Sept. 7, 1851, in a town near Prague, Czechoslovakia.
  • 1875: Founded by Joseph Bulova in New York City, originally as a jewelry store.
  • 1919: Introduced its first wristwatch, marking its entry into the watchmaking industry.
  • 1927: Released the first clock radio, blending timekeeping with radio technology.
  • 1931: Introduced the Accutron, the world’s first electronic watch, known for its tuning fork.
  • 1960: Accutron watches became a popular choice among NASA astronauts, including those on the Apollo missions.
  • 1975: Launched the first quartz watch in the U.S..
  • 1980s: Acquired by the Swiss watch company, Citizen.

Below, views of their current department store display at a Florida Dillard’s.

Below, a brand advertisement from about two years ago.

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