Grovana is a firm that has made a name for itself in the Swiss watch making industry through innovation and flexibility. Up to the 1970s it made mechanical watches that were always state of the art. For decades the Swiss watch industry has been renowned all over the world for the quality and accuracy of its products. Grovana began to move into new markets as early as the 1970s. This led to a collection being presented that met the requirements of the different markets and made the Grovana brand name successful. Thanks to this flexibility Grovana weathered the crises in the Swiss watch industry very well, a time when many companies were forced out of business. Grovana was one of the first Swiss watch manufacturers to start making analog quartz watches. This technological know-how enabled Grovana to open up new markets.As early as 1982 80% of Grovana's output consisted of analog quartz watches. Grovana has carefully targeted the further expansion called for new investments. Appropriate measures had to be taken in the form of constant increases in production to satisfy the demand for Grovana watches on the world market. That is why the manufacturing and administrative divisions in Tenniken were extended in 1986. Work is currently in progress on a further capacity increase. In recent years Grovana has achieved annual sales increases of between 5% and 15%. This is attributable to two factors: firstly, the further extension of existing markets and, secondly, the political changes in Central and Eastern Europe. Grovana has been able to open up significant new markets in the Baltic States, Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Romania. Today Grovana exports to more than 80 countries and presents its collection every year at numerous European and overseas trade fairs.In future the company's supreme objective will still be to produce high-quality, technically excellent Swiss watches. An attractive collection of Swiss Made watches is to be made available to the worldwide clientele, enabling Grovana to meet the different requirements of the local markets.A new building wing came into service in January 2000. The work preparation process can be optimised as a result of the extension. The entire components warehouse was brought together in this new building and at the same time new forwarding unit was put into operation. This means all work process connected with watch manufacture are now more optimally organized. Special attention was also paid to the repair service. New, clearly laid out warehouse facilities make it possible to quickly assemble spare parts for our agents. This means Grovana can continue to guarantee that our spare parts can be despatched to the agents within 48 hours. New production facility was taken into operation to be used exclusively for the production of REVUE THOMMEN manufacture movements.The Grovana Company will continue to make further substantial investments in the existing buildings over the next few years. Grovana is convinced that in this way we will be able to enter the next millennium confidently. This business policy will further strengthen the sales markets and also bring much pleasure to the owner of Grovana watches in future.
P**H
Excellent Swiss Watch at a Bargin Price
This Grovana watch executes the Rolex Submariner design at 1/10 the price. The fit and finish are excellent, though some details, such as the logo on the crown, are missing. Also, the numbers for the date are not perfectly centered in the date window. These are very minor nits though. The movement is smooth, and the hands align precisely with the markings on the face of the watch. The screw down crown works nicely, and the second hand stops when the crown is pulled out, which allows for setting the time to the second accurately. The band is comfortable and secure, and the size of the watch is good for the average male wrist. After 24 hours, the watch has gained about 15 seconds, which I think is reasonable for an automatic watch. The movement has only been operating for a day, so I will see if this changes as the mechanism breaks in.I also looked at a few Tudor watches, which I thought were excellent in their look and feel, and I find that the Grovana compares very well. The Rolex and Tudor watches do have cosmetic details that are missing on the Grovana. Also, the lume on the Tudor and Rolex appears superior to the Grovana, but in all, Grovana holds its own. I am pleased with my purchase, and find the Grovana enjoyable to wear.-------------------------------------7/25/2014 - UpdateI decided to take my Grovana to a watch maker for an adjustment of the regulator, which I hoped would improve the accuracy. When the watchmaker opened the watch, he informed me that the movement was not a 25 jewel Swiss ETA movement, but was instead a 26 jewel DP24 movement, which is actually a re-branded Sellita movement. As the watch was examined further, it was found that the hairspring was slightly bent, and this caused the movement's timing to vary considerably over the five different crown positions. After some minor repairs, the watch was regulated, and in my normal use, now runs about 7 to 8 seconds fast per 24 hours.I was very curious about the discrepancy in the movement, and after some research, came across an excellent review by someone who had a similar experience: http://forums.watchuseek.com/f67/grovana-coral-reef-diver-300m-94266.htmlI spoke with the watchmaker a bit, and he indicated that watches purchased over the internet are often a few years old, and may have been moved between different locations. It is possible that the slight damage to the hairspring was caused by shock or vibration during shipment between warehouses, or possibly from shipping to my address.The question arises as to how this information should impact my feelings about the watch. If I was not aware of the discrepancy in the movement, and got my watch back with improved time keeping, I would be writing a glowing update to my initial review. All the things that I stated during my initial review are still true. However, after learning about the movement, I feel that Grovana was not entirely straight forward in its advertising. While Sellita is also a Swiss manufacturer of automatic watch movements, it is not the proven ETA movement. The watchmaker indicated that Sellita had some manufacturing issues when it first introduced its automatic movements. Because I am not sure of the true age of the watch, I cannot be certain if this is a first generation Sellita movement, or an improved later version. This does detract from my enjoyment of the watch a little bit.On a more positive note, I replaced the metal bracelet with a NATO strap, which greatly improves the comfort of the watch for me. I also had a chance to observe the date change, which occurs very crisply at approximately 12:15 AM. I have been using the bezel regularly, and this moves nicely, and aligns well to the watch face.I will leave my rating at 5 stars for now, since I think most people will not "look under the hood"; however, I can now understand part of the premium that Tudor and Rolex command, as these brands honestly represent their product.-------------------------------------7/28/2014 UpdateThough I was initially disappointed when I learned about the movement, after wearing the watch extensively, I can say that I am completely satisfied with my Grovana. The movement has settled in, and is now running about 2-4 seconds fast per 24 hours, which I think is quite good. The NATO strap is extremely comfortable, and allows me to wear the watch for any activity. My main recreation is cycling, for which the watch wears very well, and actually seems to keep better time when I am down in the drops of my road bike (due to this being the optimal crown position for my watch).My only caveat is that on-line retailers might be selling a watch that has been warehoused for a few years, so a quick trip to a skilled watchmaker might be in order to ensure that the watch is still properly lubricated and regulated. Otherwise, I can recommend Grovana without reservation.
A**O
False advertisement
I bought one of these diver watches by Grovana a little over two years ago because i was under the impression that it had an Eta 2824-2 swiss movement. As it turns out it wasnt an Eta movement. Instead it came with a DP24 26 jewel supposedly swiss made movement. I was swindled. Had i known it wasnt an eta movement i wouldn't have purchased the damm thing.
E**L
Looks very sharp
I've had this watch for a few weeks and I'm very pleased thus far. I did a fair amount of research before I bought the watch. It's clearly modeled after the Rolex Submariner. If you can get over the fact that it's not really an original design, it's a high quality watch at a very good value. When I bought it from Amazon, it was at least 30% cheaper than on other sites on the internet.Grovana apparently has a pretty good name (in this space of the market), although it's much bigger in Europe. It also makes the Ruvue Thommen brand watches, which are more common in the U.S. and which also have a pretty good name. These watches earn consistently positive reviews on Amazon and elsewhere from what I've seen. The common theme in these reviews is that these watches have the quality/components of more expensive watches at reasonable prices.Regarding a previous poor review for this watch on Amazon, I don't at all see any signs of poor quality, crooked luminescent material, dark spots, etc. The watch looks very sharp, seems to be very well crafted and has performed flawlessly for the period I've owned it. I do agree that there is no "G" mark on the band, but this wasn't a deal-killer for me.
G**L
Low quality
I ordered this watch with blue bezel and will be returning it immediately. First of all, the luminescent material is poorly applied making the markings appear crooked. For a watch in this price range this is just unacceptable. Next I noticed that the watch I received has no "G" markings on the band and crown as indicated in the pictures. There also appears to be a tiny dark spot in the middle of the black dial that is not a shadow or reflection. I would not recommend purchasing this product.
L**Z
Five Stars
nice looking watch, keeps good time.
Trustpilot
1 month ago
1 day ago
