Shinola To Install 4 City Clocks Downtown

**jw101** · February-20-14, 09:20 PM

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...luding-at-cobo They've been sooooooooooooooooo successful that they're putting 4 city clocks, based off of the design of their new pocket watches. The first will be installed at Cobo Center before March 9th, the rest are yet to be unveiled. But, who cares, right?

**DetroiterOnTheWestCoast** · February-20-14, 09:26 PM

A great way to raise their profile too. Sounds like they are doing well.

**DetroitPlanner** · February-20-14, 09:32 PM

Shinola is not being benevolent, it is marketing its watch to its best market.

I find it ironic that Shinola won't make the clocks.

**DetroiterOnTheWestCoast** · February-20-14, 10:08 PM

Originally Posted by DetroitPlanner

Shinola is not being benevolent, it is marketing its watch to its best market.

I find it ironic that Shinola won't make the clocks.

Why is it ironic that a watch maker would contract for a large clock? They are, after all, vastly different. And nobody said they were being benevolent, but public clocks make a nice addition to the street scape

**DetroitPlanner** · February-20-14, 10:55 PM

Originally Posted by DetroiterOnTheWestCoast

Why is it ironic that a watch maker would contract for a large clock? They are, after all, vastly different. And nobody said they were being benevolent, but public clocks make a nice addition to the street scape

JW mentioned they were doing this because Shinola has been soooooo successful. I doubt this. It is purely to get their name out there. Smart move on their part. It is ironic, but it is logical.

**KJ5** · February-20-14, 11:14 PM

I'd like to see the other clocks on Gratiot, Grand River and Michigan. We have the Kern's clock on Woodward, so it would be nice to have some on the other major spokes of the original street grid.

**MikeyinBrooklyn** · February-21-14, 12:00 AM

This is weird but quite cool. I wonder: will the clocks be permanent? Who will maintain them?

**noise** · February-21-14, 09:30 AM

So these clocks will be American-made while their watches continue to be Swiss-made?

**bailey** · February-21-14, 09:48 AM

Originally Posted by noise

So these clocks will be American-made while their watches continue to be Swiss-made?

Good question. But but...they are assembled in Detroit! 'Merica!

I would imagine no one thinks a Subaru assembled in Indiana is an "American Car" ...but apparently this group has better marketing.

This NYT takedown of Shinola was pretty interesting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/22/fa...roit.html?_r=0

**WaCoTS** · February-21-14, 09:59 AM

i think they should get the faces to the old Detroit City Hall clock out of storage [[or is that the old Union Depot clock?) and make that bastard tick again. now THAT would be a publicity stunt.

seems everything is about dusting off old relics these days, and doing the retro thing, ie, the Kern clock, and bringing the Bagley Monument back.

**Gistok** · February-21-14, 10:01 AM

Originally Posted by noise

So these clocks will be American-made while their watches continue to be Swiss-made?

Well not exactly... this should clarify the situation on what is actually Swiss made. The Shinola watches don't qualify as such... regardless of where the components are made...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Made

**noise** · February-21-14, 10:16 AM

Originally Posted by Gistok

Well not exactly... this should clarify the situation on what is actually Swiss made. The Shinola watches don't qualify as such... regardless of where the components are made...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_Made

I'll be certain to differentiate "Swiss Made" from "made in Switzerland"!

**Gistok** · February-21-14, 10:21 AM

Originally Posted by noise

I'll be certain to differentiate "Swiss Made" from "made in Switzerland"!

Per the Swiss, you can't even say "Swiss Made"... if the components aren't "encased" in Switzerland. So these watches don't qualify for that either...

**noise** · February-21-14, 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by Gistok

Per the Swiss, you can't even say "Swiss Made"... if the components aren't "encased" in Switzerland. So these watches don't qualify for that either...

Right, but you can say that the pieces were made in Switzerland, I believe.

Although Shinola does say "hand assembled from 84 Swiss-made components".

**One Shot** · February-22-14, 10:39 AM

Is the name pronounced CHIN ola or SHYN ola?

**lpg** · February-22-14, 02:10 PM

Wonder how long they will last before the scrappers get to them ?

**DetroiterOnTheWestCoast** · February-22-14, 02:30 PM

Originally Posted by One Shot

Is the name pronounced CHIN ola or SHYN ola?

The latter. Since the original product was shoe polish, I assume it was a play on "shine'.

**MikeyinBrooklyn** · February-22-14, 02:40 PM

Originally Posted by lpg

Wonder how long they will last before the scrappers get to them ?

Beyond scrapping [[which is a possibility), I want to know who maintains them. Detroit 2024 doesn't need rusting broken clocks all around town. The city shouldn't pay to maintain an advertising art project even if it had money to spare. As much as this could be a cool thing, it should only go forward if there is a long-term plan, not just putting the things up and walking away.

**Spartan** · February-22-14, 02:40 PM

Originally Posted by DetroiterOnTheWestCoast

The latter. Since the original product was shoe polish, I assume it was a play on "shine'.

Are you saying it's a long I? I've always thought of and hear it as a short I.
[shin-O-la]

**Brock7** · February-22-14, 05:39 PM

^You don't know shit from shinola. [[couldn't help myself)

**CrashDummy** · February-23-14, 05:15 PM

Originally Posted by bailey

Good question. But but...they are assembled in Detroit! 'Merica!

I would imagine no one thinks a Subaru assembled in Indiana is an "American Car" ...but apparently this group has better marketing.

This NYT takedown of Shinola was pretty interesting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/22/fa...roit.html?_r=0

No, a Subaru assembled in Indiana is not an "American car", but it is "made in America". Just like a Ford made in Russia is just that, but it is still an American car. Shinola is a Detroit company and they are assembled in Detroit, therefore they are "made in Detroit". If you want to play the game of part origin, it's not quite as easy as it seems.

**noise** · February-23-14, 05:21 PM

Originally Posted by CrashDummy

No, a Subaru assembled in Indiana is not an "American car", but it is "made in America". Just like a Ford made in Russia is just that, but it is still an American car. Shinola is a Detroit company and they are assembled in Detroit, therefore they are "made in Detroit". If you want to play the game of part origin, it's not quite as easy as it seems.

Perhaps, but the heart of a Shinola watch is certainly not "made in the USA".

**fjw718** · February-25-14, 03:29 PM

Originally Posted by noise

Perhaps, but the heart of a Shinola watch is certainly not "made in the USA".

That 'Made in Detroit' gimmick is BS.

I live/work in NYC and they have been actively recruiting for management here in NY. They want to hire the talent from NYC and move them to detroit.

**SpartanDawg** · February-25-14, 05:49 PM

Originally Posted by fjw718

That 'Made in Detroit' gimmick is BS.

I live/work in NYC and they have been actively recruiting for management here in NY. They want to hire the talent from NYC and move them to detroit.

sooooo yes, they are made in detroit. i don't give a rats ass where the employees are from, as long as the HQ and factory are here, that's good enough for me

**Gistok** · February-25-14, 06:41 PM

Originally Posted by SpartanDawg

sooooo yes, they are made in detroit. i don't give a rats ass where the employees are from, as long as the HQ and factory are here, that's good enough for me

Amen to that!

And with all the grief on this thread, the biggest mystery is why Shinola would want to put up those 4 clocks in Detroit to begin with??

Oh I know.... they can scrap that idea, put them up in my burb of SCS... where there will be volunteers to maintain and plant flowers around them.

Then the posters here can complain instead... why Detroit was overlooked as a site for them...