Russian Watches to Be Marketed in the U.S.

Russian watches, the ultimate anti-status status symbol, will be available in the United States this summer, Gruen Marketing Corp. said.

Gruen said it had secured the rights to market Soviet-made watches, including the Russian military-style quartz watch that features CCCP (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) and Soviet on the dial, through Wenger Ltd., a Canadian watch company.

Wenger has North American distribution rights through Vremex, the official Soviet agency for Russian watches.

Gruen said it has already received commitments from a number of leading department stores, including Bloomingdale’s and Saks Fifth Avenue and will begin marketing the watches June 29. It did not disclose prices.