Tsuyosa - Date

Since 1924, when CITIZEN released its first pocket watch, one ideal has been passed on within the company: We make watches that are an integral part of our customers' lives. Founded in 1995, The CITIZEN was conceived as a brand that would embody that ideal.

By incorporating and refining technologies that bring joy to the wearer, The CITIZEN has played a leading role in our never-ending search for the essence of the watch. The challenge to create the next ideal continues.

In 1920s Japan, most watches sold were pocket watches imported from abroad. Determined to create a Japanese competitive product, the Shokosha Watch Research Institute, the forerunner of CITIZEN, launched its own pocket watch in 1924. As a first product, it was wonderful - but it lacked a name. Mayor of Tokyo, Count Shinpei Goto, was asked to suggest one. The name he came up with was "CITIZEN," an expression of the hope that as many people as possible - citizens - would use and cherish the watch for a long time.

With the founding of the Citizen Watch Company in 1930, the name of that first pocket watch became the name of the company. A watch that is an integral part of people's lives. This is the brand concept of The CITIZEN, something we have strived for since the early days of the company and that first pocket watch.