MiniatureBinoculars.com

Japanese External Reverse Porro Prism Binoculars. VIRTUAL MUSEUM

Distribution of Japanese Miniature Binoculars . Miniatur Fernglas Verteilung. Jumelles Miniature Distribution. Миниатюрные бинокли распределения. 小型双眼鏡配布 . Miniatyr Kikare Distribution. Prismáticos en Miniatura Distribución. Distribuzione dei Binocoli Giapponesi Miniatura.

The mechanisms by which products, including binoculars, are exported, imported, and distributed through wholesale and retail channels are seldom transparent. If you don’t believe that, just take a current product that you don’t know anything about and try to define the channels of it’s path prior to your possession. There may be a number of reasons for distributors to be discreet, but among them is that they do not want to be bothered with consumer inquiries, complaints, returns, or warranty issues. To the degree that distribution channels for current products are difficult to analyze, they are much more so for 60 year old products. I have invested time in trying to research the distribution of these miniature binoculars, and I am happy to share the information. If you have additional first hand information, or if you know what additional importers and distributors were active with Japanese binoculars in the 1950’s and 1960’s and 1970’s in the US, Canada, the UK, Scandinavia, Australia, Ireland, Germany and elsewhere please send me the info at miniature.binoculars@gmail.com .

Notes on the Distribution of Brands of Binoculars & Associated Manufacturers. Annerkugen uber Marken –Verteilund und Verbundene Hersteller. Notes sur la Distribution de Marque et les Fabricants Associés. Примечания на бинокли торговой марки распределения и связанного с ней Производителей. Anvisningar för Distribution av Kikare Varumärken och Tillhörande Tillverkare.Notas Sobre los Prismáticos Distribución y Fabricantes Asociados.

Binocular History Research List of Importers and distributors

This is a listing of the documented distributing entities of these miniature binoculars which encompasses Importers, Exporters, Distributors, Trading Companies, other wholesalers, importing Chain Stores retailers, and Mail Order Resellers who I have been able to identify through documents, and who I believe had some significant role in the sales of THESE SMALL BINOCULARS SPECIFICALLY at some point in time. Plus the brand names that have been associated with those distributing entities. Plus the Japanese assembling manufacturers and Japanese parts manufacturers documented as being associated with those brands (miniature pattern binoculars only). This gives a kind of snapshot of the web of relationships between the various entities between the company that assembled these binoculars usually from an army of parts producing sub contractors and the purchasing consumer who looked at the binoculars in a local retail shop or bought them from a magazine mail order retailer or catalog mail order retailer. It is provided only for historical background to help understand the history of these binoculars. So any errors or misinterpretations in researching who worked with who, and in what role, are entirely unintentional and I will be more than happy to correct any errors brought to my attention. If you know of omissions, please contact me at miniature.binoculars@gmail.com For greater detail about the distributing entities including trademark ownership details of brands see the sections DISTRIBUTION #1 through DISTRIBUTION #9 , and to find the distributing entity of interest search for them by name in the INDEX #1 and INDEX #2 , and for those companies where the museum may own and have scanned an original catalog search the sections BINOCULAR CATALOGS #01 through BINOCULAR CATALOGS #10 . This list is certainly partial, and I will try to expanded it periodically.

The Casual & Proprietary Use of Brand Names & Logos. Der Gebrauch von Markennamen und Logos. L’utilization. Occasionelle et de Propriété Industrielle Marques et des Logos. Повседневные и патентованные использования торговых марок и логотипов. La Casual y Propriet Uso de Logotipos y Marcas.

Brand names may exist and may be used on an informal basis, or alternately proprietary rights may be assigned for a specific period of time for a specific group of products for a specific country through trademark registration. That trademark may be for a word, word in a specific typeface, word or letters in a design (logo), or created artwork. Also a word indicating a feature (such as “Broadfield” indicating wide angle may be trademarked. For these small binoculars, all of these things seem to occur, though casual use is more common. Casual use usually leaves little or no documentation to be found this many decades after, and few with direct first hand knowledge or 1950’s and 1960’s binoculars distribution are still alive, and I have encountered virtually none. Additional confusion may also occur when two unassociated companies use the same brand name at different points in time, and/ or in different markets, or when the owners of brands change their structure though takeovers, mergers, bankruptcy, or other business changes. For information on trade marked brands see the section DATA BINOCULARS BRANDS and for information on trade marked binoculars logos see the section TRADEMARKED LOGOS . Also see the section below Notes on the Distribution of Brands of Binoculars & Associated Manufacturers. Also there is some information within the alphabetical lists of miniature binoculars in the BINOCULARS BY BRAND lists, and analysis of brand and distribution in the nine sections DISTRIBUTION.