DOXA Asia what is it???

[DM71]

Hi guys,

My first post on the official Doxa forum, I used the search engine first but couldn't find anything on the subject so... I'm not a Doxa owner yet, but certainly a Doxa lover and I'm kind of disgusted by what I just found out. I was browsing the net and came along Doxa Asia (hope it's ok to post the link to the site so you can see what i'm talking about): The site is very different from the one i'm use to and they have many models that I never heard of and have to say that these models are close copies of Rolex and other known brands I just cannot believe that Doxa SA is aware of what is going on there. I know that China lives on it's own planet and have no respect for intellectual properties rights, but to advertised these as DOXA watches is kind of disturbing to me.

Can anybody clarify this please? Is this site legit? Are these watches only made for the Asian market? Are they really Doxa watches? What you Doxa lovers think about that?


Reply from DOXA
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Dear members, this site is the new Chinese DOXA website, it is operated by DOXA in China which is a, This site is under construction and should actually not be online yet, it contains outdated DOXA models that are partially 15 to 25 years old and are out of production.

The Site will be edited and especially, alle the references to former DOXA service centers worldwide, especiall the joke with the US service center being in Djibouti.

We are working to fix the problems and are sorry for the inconvenience.


As you know, one the strengths of DOXA is listening to our customers all over the world and giving them what they expect form DOXA, meaning that, we must offer different collections for different demographics, where those collections are not offered outside the demographics they were designated for.

So although you might consider this or that model ugly, cheap or whatsoever, this is what the Asian market has chosen, and in fact prefers to the classic collection we are offering in Europe and the US. Please understand that our work over the past decade reflects how true we have been to our roots, and as we have listened to the US and Western European customer, we have done the same in Hong Kong and China.


DOXA
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[squashbear]

Doxa manufactures in other markets. A search in the forum would tell you this.

Happy watch hunting.

[Uber]

Oui c'est vrai....

mind you it is funny that the US service centre is apparently located in Djibouti:

ETS OSMAN GUELLE FARAH
23 Rue de Paris,
B.P. 239, Djibouti
Tel: 352 355

Lucky for you there is one in Montreal!
VALANGIN INC.
1470 Peel Suite 352,
Montreal H3A 1T1, Canada
Tel: (514) 845 2259 50

if you get a chance can you pop in and tell us all about them?

[sharkfin]

Oui c'est vrai....

mind you it is funny that the US service centre is apparently located in Djibouti:

ETS OSMAN GUELLE FARAH
23 Rue de Paris,
B.P. 239, Djibouti
Tel: 352 355

Lucky for you there is one in Montreal!
VALANGIN INC.
1470 Peel Suite 352,
Montreal H3A 1T1, Canada
Tel: (514) 845 2259 50

if you get a chance can you pop in and tell us all about them?

Cool, didn't know they're service ctr for Doxa.
They're good people there, friendly and knowledgeable. Lots of tools/watch parts along w/servicing.

[DM71]

Well this is amazingly wrong to me. Are these models made by Doxa? I cannot even find the usual Divers on this site... Like I said, I used the search engine but after going through 7 pages without any clues, I just ask the question. If this has been discussed already, I would like to be pointed in the right direction so I can read more on the subject.

Uber, I will definitely let you know if I do visit this store, and I should.

[Eric L.]

I wonder if its a mistake - surely the US service center would be either in the USA or Switzerland, not Djibouti!

[HR F1]

That is kind of strange. I remember that there was at least one US service center for Doxa in California.

[TheWalrus]

I think I found the same website you're referring to - and it feels very wrong. There's no link to the main Doxa website. No reference to all the Doxa models we know and love - aside from one reference to the 5000T (though no references to the Sharkhunter, Pro, etc. etc.). No reference, really, to the "real" Doxa watch company. Or to Jenny. Their 'history' of the brand looks like a crude cut and paste job from other sources. And the news section is actually pretty funny - evidently they had a 'retro party' at one point. The emails for contacts all seem to go to some third party website.

My guess this is just a copy-cat / intellectual property e-theft of sorts. Way too much unsettling about that site to make me think it's legit.

[Mr.Boots]

If the price is right, I'd try one of the Shark Ceramic models. If Doxa has a other lines around the world that are right and reasonable for the market they are competing in,more power to them.

Billy Cobham, the jazz drummer, once said earlier in his career that he accepted that he had to make two or three "commercial albums" to be able to afford to record an eclectic artistic album and be able to absorb the costs if it wasn't for everyone.

By that example, if selling more commercial, middle of the road watches in a different price-point market is what it takes to have the financial wherewithal to design, and bring to fruition in limited numbers, the upper-level market watches that some of us take for granted, thanks Doxa.

[DM71]

If the price is right, I'd try one of the Shark Ceramic models. If Doxa has a other lines around the world that are right and reasonable for the market they are competing in,more power to them.

Billy Cobham, the jazz drummer, once said earlier in his career that he accepted that he had to make two or three "commercial albums" tbe able to afford to be able to record an eclectic artistic album and be able to absorb the costs if it wasn't for everyone.

By that example, if selling more commercial, middle of the road watches in a different price-point market is what it takes to have the financial wherewithal to design, and bring to fruition in limited numbers, the upper-level market watches that some of us take for granted, thanks Doxa.

I understand what you're saying and your argument makes sense. My biggest problem is to see Doxa doing Rolex Sub and Daytona clones and other watches that have bezels that looks like Breitlings ect. For me Doxa is a company that is known AND copied for it's amazing cushion case and because they are innovators in what they do IMO. Maybe my vision of the company was wrong. I understand that specific market will have specific needs. I'm in the high end cars business and the product we sell in Canada is far different from the one sold in Egypt or Asia, let say. Jaguar will probably start building cars in China and India in a few years from now, and I have no problem with that, since these cars will be produced for these specific markets only and we will never see these Chinese cars here in NA. But still, they will built the same XF's, XK's or XJ's models. They will not redesign their cars to look like BMW or Mercedes. Anyway, looks like this is the world we live in! Everything to make money! You have to give the customers what they ask for and I guess that Asians asks for these models. I think it sad but I understand. I was just not expecting that from Doxa.

Anybody is aware of other companies that have very different and specific models for different market like that? It's the first time I see that, but there's a lot I havn't seen yet so...

[Doug507]

I dunno, that website looks legit to me...

[Sean779]

+1

plus I don't see the "close copies of Rolex and other known brands." That's a bit alarmist, IMO.

[Uber]

http://forums.watchuseek.com/f34/dox...ca-400039.html

[TheWalrus]

I dunno, that website looks legit to me...

Yeah, checking it from home it looks much better (my computer at work tends to result in lost web page functionality).

That said, while some of the watches look similar to popular brands - there's one that's clearly 'inspired' by the Tag Aquaracer 500M - I certainly wouldn't call any of them clones or copies.

[Mr.Boots]

+1

plus I don't see the "close copies of Rolex and other known brands." That's a bit alarmist, IMO.

Yep. They may be "in the style of" or bear some close resemblence, but I don't see them as "Clones" or "copies."

[DM71]

I have to admit that after I spent more time looking at the models more in details, COPIES might be a bit alarmist indeed. Now that I calm down I see strong inspirations for sure but I certainly used the wrong words, my apologies for that. It's just that I was shocked when i saw the site I thought it was fake and went a bit fast on the alarm after I couldn't find any info on it :oops: Yeah, we can get exited sometimes. Anyway, it's still interesting to see that Doxa is sooooo different in Asia. Sorry again for my paranoia, i'm ok now

[Johnny P]

Yep. They may be "in the style of" or bear some close resemblence, but I don't see them as "Clones" or "copies."

That's the correct term close resemblenceLike this one.

[DOXA Forum Administrator 1]

Reply from DOXA
************************************************** **************
Dear members, this site is the new Chinese DOXA website and is operated by DOXA China, This site is under construction and should actually not be online yet, it contains models that are partially new and partially 15 to 25 years old and are not being manufactured anymore.
The Site will be edited and especially the mistake with the US service center being in Djibouti.

We are working to fix the problems and are sorry for the inconvenience
DOXA
**************************************************

[doubledee]

I've seen some over-moderation in the Doxa sub-forum but this takes the preverbial biscuit.

[TheWalrus]

I've seen some over-moderation in the Doxa sub-forum but this takes the preverbial biscuit.

What's been over-moderated? I can't see a single reply that's been deleted. In fact, aside from the answer to the question, I don't think anythings been changed.