Rolex and Patek Philippe top the list of the 40 watch brands that have agreed to participate in the upcoming Watches and Wonders Geneva.
The show will take place virtually from April 7 to 13, and will be followed by a physical event at the West Bund Art Center in Shanghai, the dates of which have not yet been announced.
The 2020 version of Watches and Wonders Geneva—formerly known as SIHH—was conceived as a different spin on the traditional watch fair, an event-driven celebration of the industry that would be open to the public. However, that version only took place virtually, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2021 version has now been rethought again. The upcoming Watches and Wonders Geneva will be a standard business-to-business trade show, albeit one with mostly high-end brands, and it will be held virtually. It will only be open to retailers and the press, though watch companies have the option of inviting VIP clients and collectors.
Its agenda will include product launches, a live morning show offering daily analysis, and talks led by key industry figures and influential personalities. New features include livestreaming and live video chat, as well as personalized programs and itineraries.
“Visitors [will] become actors, not just onlookers,” said a statement from the fair’s organizers, the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, the Swiss watchmaking group.
Other watch brands that will participate in the Geneva event include Cartier, Chanel, Chopard, Ulysse Nardin, IWC Schaffhausen, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Hermès, and a host of LVMH brands—including Louis Vuitton, TAG Heuer, Zenith, and Bulgari. Many of these names were mainstays of the century-old Baselworld fair, but defected last year in a dispute over fees, leading to the show’s demise.
About 14 brands have committed to Watches and Wonders Shanghai.
Organizers hope to hold an in-person Watches and Wonders Geneva fair in 2022.
Reporting by Victoria Gomelsky
Top: The Zenith Chronomaster Sport in steel (image courtesy of Zenith)
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