For Rolex boss Jean-Frédéric Dufour, the watch is the “last purely mechanical product,” as he recently explained in an interview with “”. It is therefore almost a personal concern for the head of one of the most well-known brands in the world to offer his industry a large, dazzling stage once a year with the “Watches & Wonders” watch fair.
Rolex is calling – (almost) everyone is coming
Almost everyone follows his call, so the list of well-known exhibitors is very long: Cartier, Chanel, A. Lange & Söhne, Hublot, IWC, Rolex, Tudor, Nomos, Piaget, Van Cleef & Arpels and many more are showing in Geneva the in-house studios provide. There are even visitors from Japan, which was once so dangerous for the Swiss watch world: Grand Seiko, of all things, is the company’s luxury brand presenting its mechanical creations, which laid the groundwork for the quartz crisis in the early 1970s and the proud world of high-quality watches for years unhinged.
The threat to the watch industry now looks completely different: either young people no longer wear watches at all, or they opt for a smartwatch with a screen. But it turns out that both worlds can exist in parallel – mechanical clockworks still arouse great enthusiasm among people and offer a rare opportunity for digital detox, i.e. a break from the digital world.
Watches for 600,000 euros – and models for under 2000 euros
And so this year the world is once again looking with excitement to the cradle of the watch world in Geneva, where there are once again many exciting innovations to discover. As always, the more complicated, the more expensive: highlights from luxury brands such as A. Lange & Söhne, Bulgari or IWC cost well into the six-figure range and are therefore not suitable for everyday use.
But normal watches also find their target group in Geneva: Nomos, with over 30 different color combinations, is aimed primarily at a younger audience and keeps the price below the 2000 euro mark, while Oris and Tudor also keep their models at a low price.
Host Rolex, however, seems to be taking a different direction. Only one new crown this year is made of stainless steel, the rest are either made of gold or platinum. In terms of price, Rolex is moving further and further away from its sister brand Tudor.
A selection of this year’s trade fairHighlights can be found in this picture gallery
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
