G-Shock staying relevant amid smartwatches

New York

G-SHOCK creator Kikuo Ibe sits in a makeshift showroom, surrounded by dozens of G-Shock watches that include a prototype model from 1982. It still works, his translator proudly proclaims. Durability is what people love about these watches, after all.

Soft-spoken but with a lively sense of humour, the bespectacled Japanese engineer then goes through the history of G-Shock in English, telling the story of his life's work.

"I have a harder time now, rather than enjoying it," Mr Ibe says afterwards, back to using the translator. "It's different from the old days."

He's been doing this for a long time. As the story goes, in 1981, Mr Ibe dropped a watch given him by his father, shattering the precious possession. He started to work at building a heavy duty timepiece for Casio that could surviv…