Kieninger, a clock maker from Germany, is one of the leaders among the world’s high-end clock brands, and also one of the world’s oldest mechanical clock manufacturers.

Based on previous experience in the Chinese market, Kieninger hopes to take China International Import Expo (CIIE) as an opportunity to expand its market share in China by showing all of its fine clocks at CIIE, according to Liu Zefeng, sales director of Shanghai Qingya Clocks Ltd, which is Kieninger’s general agency in the country.

Liu is very excited about a series of opening-up measures successively taken by China in recent years, such as bonded sales, convenient customs clearance, tariff reductions, and intellectual property protection.

“We have very high expectations on a series of measures from the Chinese government. Especially since July 1, the Chinese government has cut down tariffs on clocks, and we look forward to further development in the Chinese clock market,” he said.

Liu also said that the R&D of clocks needs years and months with massive investment and time. Thus, to see measures for protecting intellectual property constantly being stressed by China gives them a firmer confidence in expanding the Chinese market.

Liu said Kieninger greatly hopes to achieve stable growth through the CIIE platform and use this opportunity to design more clocks that meet the values and living environments of the Chinese people, while jointly making the brand bigger and stronger through partnerships with China’s dealers.

In Liu’s opinion, the clocks of Kieninger are not only for showing the time, but also represent the inheritance of technology and value. “As one of the world’s greatest clock brands in terms of technology, Kieninger’s clocks are 60 percent more accurate than common clocks on the market at most. Its clocks are more accurate than watches, given that its clocks’ monthly time loss or gain is within only five seconds,” he said, adding that this achievement stems from the technical R&D, such as the several patents, with some even traced back to 1970s. “Kieninger’s superior quality today is a result of its long-term experience in R&D and innovation,” he said.

Liu does not agree with the viewpoint held by many industrial insiders that clocks will go weak in the digital era, as he believes that clocks offer the concepts of value and inheritance — something that cannot be replaced by digital products. He also said that since Kieninger entered Chinese market, its annual sales volume has steadily increased at a rate of 15 percent to 20 percent.

“China is the world’s biggest smart phone market, and if the role of clocks is only limited to showing time, this would not explain the stable growth of Kieninger’s sales volume in China,” he added.