From August 29 to September 2, watchmaking professionals meet at the Rotonde Montblanc, in what remains the cradle of the watchmaking industry. Luxus Plus is a partner.
On the program: watchmaking novelties, conferences, breakfasts with industry leaders, entertainment, not forgetting a charity auction.
And the fact that 39 industry CEOs – including five of the founding brands – were in attendance was a clear sign that the sector is not in crisis, far from it.
An optimistic front in troubled times
Geneva Watch Days can pride itself on having succeeded in bringing together the heads of 39 leading brands, as well as official partners, alongside Delphine Bachmann, State Councillor of the Canton of Geneva, in the Department of Economy and Employment.
The inauguration of this fourth edition was marked by the exceptional presence of five visionaries and guarantors of watchmaking expertise, brought together on stage for a conference: the legendary Jean-Claude Biver, former head of LVMH’s watchmaking division, now at the helm of his eponymous brand, as well as Jean-Christophe Babin (CEO Bvlgari), George Kern (CEO Breitling), Patrick Pruniaux (CEO Girard Perregaux) and Maximilian Büsser (owner and creative director MB&F).
The event is an international showcase for Swiss watchmaking excellence, with exports forecast to exceed 24 billion Swiss francs (25.066 billion euros) by 2022.
Delphine Bachmann, State Councillor for the Economy and Employment, agrees, stating that “almost half of these exports come from Geneva, which is extremely gratifying for our canton’s economy”.
The event the industry has been missing
The Salon was founded in 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, following the cancellation of other existing Salons (in particular Watches & Wonders and Baselworld), by 8 illustrious Houses, namely: Breitling, Bvlgari, De Bethune, Girard Perregaux, H. Moser & Cie, MB&F, Ulysse Nardin and Urwerk.
This gathering of the industry is part of a modern and original philosophy based on a spirit of cooperation without complexity. The organization here is self-managed, light, flexible and agile, offering brands a common space to exhibit their new products, while leaving them the freedom to express themselves in decentralized venues.
Despite the end of the pandemic, the event has not only endured, it has changed dimension. A sign that watchmaking know-how has lost none of its exceptional resilience.
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Front cover photo: © Geneva Watch Days
