Launching of the 2021 season

Created by GMT Publishing, the tour is used by Geneva Tourism to promote its beautiful city and celebrate the history of horology past and present. This topic is the subject of a special summer insert in GMT, which is available here and invites you to learn more about the cradle of watchmaking. Does Geneva need a Watchmaking Officer?

After nearly a decade of economic and structural transformations in terms of the stores along its route, the Geneva Watch Tour will celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2022. While the number of single-brand retailers has remained stable, the waltz of the logos of the best-established big names continues. Only those multi-brand retailers that have succeeded in building customer loyalty, as well as constantly adapting to new consumer trends and to the commercial logic of the major watch groups, have managed to keep afloat. Most brand and retailer showrooms have moved to upper floors so as to avoid dissuasive ground-floor rents, and in doing so, have gained an enhanced sense of privacy. Specialists in the sale of pre-owned watches, whether certified or not, have progressed and are operating both physical and online stores. Fine watch lovers now have a broader, albeit more complex, field of choice. Whom can they trust? Sites such as Geneva-based worldtempus.com can prove extremely helpful. As far as its historical and cultural side is concerned, the Geneva Watch Tour remains as consistent and relevant as ever, based around flagship entities such as the not-to-be-missed Patek Philippe Museum and dozens of historical monuments intrinsically bound up with watchmaking. Season after season, events with worldwide impact such as Watches & Wonders, Geneva Watch Days, the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève, and Only Watch as well as the watch auctions held by the giants in the sector each spring and fall, all contribute to reinforcing Geneva's role as the world's watchmaking capital. So when can we expect to see a Watchmaking Officer appointed for the city and orchestrating this impressive wealth of activities?