It’s March 2022, springtime in Europe. Time to get ready for Baselworld. Right?
Wrong.
The central square at Baselworld in 2019
I was on an international press trip last week, and the dinner topics often turned to whether we need fairs like Baselworld, whether we want them, and what the future might bring.
For me, those were difficult conversations. I was (and remain) one of Baselworld’s staunchest supporters. For purely selfish reasons of course: the fact that practically everything was in one location made my life as a watch journalist so much easier.
I get it that the world has changed. I get it that the brands with very few exceptions no longer show a whole year’s worth of new watches at one time (thanks a lot, digital), and I get it that the old distribution avenues have seriously changed, making trade fairs all but obsolete.
Nonetheless, few are happy with what we have in the wake of the loss of Baselworld. Watches and Wonders (formerly SIHH) can only fill part of that gap; it is not equipped to (nor do its organizers even aspire to) take on any meaningful fraction of the volume of brands across the entire industry that Baselworld housed for a week.
The Carré des Horlogers at SIHH 2016
So what we’re experiencing now is the most luxurious brands at Watches and Wonders taking up the attention of the world’s specialized and general luxury press. As it should be: it’s their shindig. But the volume of satellite exhibitions and single brands in hotel suites begging for attention has become crushing. And how, I ask, does anyone expect a journalist – or even an editorial team – to cover all of this in the space of five days?
The answer is it can’t be done. And the expectation is just wrong. Any journalist who travels to Geneva for Watches and Wonders is there to concentrate on the big brands, the ones that determine the luxury space. The rest will probably experience a rather boring week. And none of us journalists will have a complete overview. So what happens to journalism now?
As GaryG already covered the economical whys and wherefores of whether Watches and Wonders can survive (or not) in Why The 2022 Watches And Wonders Geneva Might Be The Last Of Its Kind, I’m here to remind us why we loved Baselworld by looking back on some of our previous stories.
Baselworld is dead. There is little doubt. And I mourn it.
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In honor of the death of a century-old tradition, here is a retrospective of some of our stories concerning this one-was institution that was more than a century old at the time of its death.
Baselworld Retrospective: Chronicling 102 Years From 1917 To 2019
Parting Thoughts (All 23 Of Them) From Baselworld 2019
Baselworld 2018 Round Table: What We Liked And What We Didn’t Like At The World’s Largest Watch Fair
Parting Thoughts (22 Of Them) From Baselworld 2018
Why We Love Baselworld: The Show That Never Ends
Opinions Of Baselworld 2019: Elizabeth Doerr Talks To The Watches TV
Top Baselworld Highlights From 5 Years Of Quill & Pad
Quill & Pad Baselworld 2014 Awards and Quill & Pad Baselworld Awards 2015, Ian’s humorous look back at the fair after sifting through all his photos.
You may also enjoy:
Why The 2022 Watches And Wonders Geneva Might Be The Last Of Its Kind
SIHH Horological Highlights From 5 Years Of Quill & Pad
A. Lange & Söhne Live Video Event From SIHH 2018: Remembering Walter Lange
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Of course I have never been to Baselworld. But I too am sad that The Watch Industry has decided en masse that it is not worth their time to put on a show.
Of course, nary a one them will care as long as profits are good. But it seems too much of a declaration of cynicism to be in good taste. If it is literally too much bother for Vacheron or Rolex to gather a few pieces together and lay them out in a nice exhibition space, what exactly does that say about them?
Baselworld may have advertised as being open to the public Tam, and it was, but not all of the brand booths were. Unless you had an appointment you would not get past the front reception desk of the Patek or Rolex booth at Baselworld. You would see as much in the display case of a big boutique or retailer.
It’s worth bearing in mind that for the big brands, their clients are not collectors but distributors and retailers. It’s supposed to be the job of the latter to let the public know what they are selling.
Regards, Ian
Thank you for that information. Perhaps I had a dewy-eyed notion of the event. 😊