by: Joseph Scurro
website: www.discount-watches-guide.com
Bulova wrist watches: On Wednesday, October
4th, 2000 Mayor Rudolph Guiliani, declared Bulova Day in New
York City. This year marks Bulova’s 125th anniversary.
In recognition of the numerous social and economic contributions
the Bulova Corporation has made in its 125 years in existence,
the Mayor proclaimed this special day at City Hall in New
York City. Mayor Guiliani presented a commemorative proclamation
plaque to Herbert Hofmann, President and C.E.O of Bulova and
Andrew Tisch, Chairman of the Board of Loews Corporation,
Bulova’s parent company.
For the past 125 years, Bulova Corporation, internationally
renowned for its fine Bulova wristwatches and clocks, has
been a proud participant in the economic and social life of
New York City – drawing inspiration from the city’s
vitality, employing thousands of its citizens, and initiating
countless charitable and civic endeavors.
The company’s founder, Joseph Bulova, an immigrant
from Bohemia, was only 23 years old when he began his pursuit
of the American dream by opening a small jewelry store on
Maiden Lane in 1875. Spurred by the unquenchable hope and
energy of so many New York newcomers, Bulova went from retailer
to manufacturer, establishing a consistent record of innovation
and creativity.
During the post-WWI era, Bulova became the first company
to introduce full lines of men’s and ladies’ Bulova
wristwatch models, following up in 1928 by producing the world’s
first clock radio and, three years later, the first electric
clock. With the development of its revolutionary Accutron
timer mechanism, the company not only made the first leap
in timekeeping technology since the invention of the mechanical
clock, but became an important part of the U.S. space effort,
with Accutron timers used by NASA from the late ’50s
through the first moon walk in 1969 and the 1973 launch of
Skylab.
As a marketing pioneer, Bulova changed advertising forever
in 1926 with America’s first national radio spot commercials
– taking a further leap fifteen years later with the
world’s first television commercial, broadcast at the
start of a Brooklyn Dodgers – Philadelphia Phillies
game on July 1, 1941.
A major source for the company’s success has been
the talent and dedication of its New York staff. Concentrating
most of its facilities in Queens, the Bulova watch company
has employed as many as 8,200 hard-working New Yorkers in
a single year, including immigrants from six continents. Encouraged
to contribute ideas and communicate with senior executives,
Bulova’s employees have demonstrated extraordinary loyalty.
While recent Bureau of Labor Statistics data set the average
job tenure at 3.6 years, over a third of the Bulova staff
has been with the company for 20 or more years.
The Bulova watches company, in turn, has long been committed
to improving the quality of life for all New Yorkers. A well-known
advocate of rehabilitation and vocational training, Arde Bulova,
son of the founder and his successor as chairman of the board,
was particularly dedicated to meaningful civic action. In
addition to forming the philanthropic Bulova Foundation, in
1945, Mr. Bulova established the Joseph Bulova School of Watchmaking,
located in Woodside, primarily to offer new opportunities
to disabled WWII veterans. Mr. Bulova also served the city
as chairman of the Mayor’s Committee for a Quiet City,
a major focus for his energies in his later years.
Today, from its headquarters in Woodside, the Bulova men's
wrist watches Corporation, now a subsidiary New York’s
Loews Corporation, continues to be an important force in the
timekeeping industry and the economy of New York City. # #
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