How is the 2026 edition shaping up?
The 2026 edition is looking extremely positive, potentially record-breaking. In 2025, we already crossed a significant milestone with 55,000 visitors, representing growth of more than 12%. We welcomed 1,600 journalists and 6,000 retailers, while public days recorded 23,000 entries, up 20%. Every indicator is pointing in the right direction, and we are now anticipating close to 60,000 visitors for 2026. These figures confirm a deeper trend: the show is getting younger. Today, 25% of tickets are purchased by a young audience, with an average age of around 35. This is pushing us to go even further in the experience we offer, making it more immersive, more cultural and more open.
How are you evolving that experience?
We are strengthening every experiential aspect of the show. This includes an enriched city programme, "In the City", new partnerships and a more ambitious cultural offering. For instance, the Montreux Jazz Club will animate a dedicated space each evening, while we are developing a genuine ecosystem around discovery and transmission. The "watchmaking village" perfectly illustrates this ambition. It brings together schools and the Swiss watch industry employers' association to present the trades and career opportunities to young people. We also organise workshops and children's activities, and continue our collaborations with institutions such as ECAL and HEAD. Students will notably present installations exploring the notion of time, integrated directly into the show. Since opening to the public in 2023 and launching the "In The City" programme, we have been moving further in this direction with each passing year, a gradual, step-by-step evolution that allows us to broaden our audience while enriching the overall experience.
Do you manage to reconcile this openness with the standards expected of luxury watchmaking?
This is an essential point. Even as we grow, we remain very attentive to the quality of our welcome and the level of service we provide. Public days are deliberately kept limited in order to preserve these standards. Watchmaking is an industry built on emotion and dreams: we must deliver a flawless experience, where hospitality and excellence remain at the heart of everything we do.
What were the key milestones in organising this new edition since the last one ended?
Organizing Watches and Wonders is an intensive, continuous process that spans well over a year, and projects several years ahead. As soon as one edition closes, a strategic phase immediately begins: defining spaces, engaging with exhibiting brands, and refining formats. This is a pivotal moment that sets the tone for everything that follows. An operational phase then takes over, involving the construction and coordination of an extraordinarily complex infrastructure. The show mobilises up to 7,000 contractors, all of whose interventions must be carefully orchestrated. The permanent team of around thirty people doubles in size in the six months leading up to the event to absorb this surge.
Logistics also represent a major challenge: from the moment the show ends, teams are already booking the next edition, managing nearly 50,000 room nights for brands, retailers and press. Everything is centralised to optimise flows and the overall experience. But beyond organisation, the heart of the project lies in close collaboration with the brands. Watches and Wonders is conceived "by the brands, for the brands." Exchanges are constant, both formal and informal, sustained by regular meetings, notably through the exhibitors' committee, which convenes every six to eight weeks to validate major orientations. In parallel, the foundation board steers long-term strategic decisions.
This ongoing co-construction allows the show to adapt to its recent evolutions: opening to the general public, developing city activations, growing the number of brands (from 38 in 2022 to 65 today) without any significant increase in team size. This capacity for adaptation, combined with a strong culture of service and hands-on engagement, is today one of the show's principal drivers of success.
What is the main change that exhibitors should welcome?
More than a change, it is a continuous evolution: each year, we go further in our ability to serve the brands. This notion of service is truly at the heart of our approach, whether in our interactions, the digital tools we develop, or the solutions we provide throughout the year. Our role is first and foremost to showcase the brands. We remain in the background, even as the platform gains in visibility, particularly during show week. The objective is clear: to give exhibitors the best possible conditions to shine. This constant improvement translates into our working methods and the tools we make available. Feedback from the brands has been very positive, both on the quality of our year-round exchanges and on how these materialize during the show itself. It is this continuous, service-centred progress that makes the difference today.
What is the main change that professional visitors should appreciate?
Several developments should particularly appeal to professional visitors, starting with the arrival of new brands, which further enrich the offering and strengthen the show's appeal. But beyond the exhibitors, it is above all the programme that is gaining in depth and relevance. New spaces and content complement the experience, including an exhibition in partnership with the Museum of Art and History focused on watchmaking alarm mechanisms, as well as a LAB that is gaining significant momentum. This year, 14 projects selected from 60 startups have been chosen, centred on key themes such as artificial intelligence, holograms and interactive devices. The objective is clear: to make Watches and Wonders a concrete platform for innovation within the industry. The show is thus establishing itself as a genuine hub for exchange and acceleration across the entire watchmaking ecosystem, from the great maisons to independent craftspeople, all of whom find visibility and opportunity here.
Finally, the very structure of the event, with four days exclusively dedicated to professionals before the public opening, guarantees an optimal setting for business meetings, press appointments and strategic exchanges, while extending the experience to a broader audience at the end of the week.
What is the main novelty that the general public should look forward to?
The general public should appreciate the strengthening of the "In The City" programme, which remains free of charge while reaching a new level this year. One of the highlights will be the partnership with the Montreux Jazz Club, which will bring the city to life each evening with a programme showcasing emerging artists, echoing the new generation of watchmakers also present through the schools. This cultural dimension is expanding further with the participation of museums and numerous new partners, helping to create a genuine watchmaking buzz across the entire city. Throughout the week, each day offers a different experience, punctuated by a variety of events and activations. Watches and Wonders thus extends beyond the confines of a trade show to become a global, immersive and vibrant event.
Within Palexpo, visitors also enjoy direct access to the brands and their products. They can discover collections, engage with the teams and handle the pieces in conditions close to those enjoyed by press and professionals. This proximity, highly sought after, explains the enthusiasm seen from the moment ticketing opens. The experience is also designed to feel more personalised: each visitor can plan their programme in advance and sign up for workshops, masterclasses or guided stand visits.
Do parallel exhibitions strengthen the appeal of Watches and Wonders?
By offering different formats and brand selections, they contribute to the watchmaking excitement in Geneva throughout the week. Watches and Wonders nonetheless remains the beating heart of this dynamic, with an unrivalled audience. These parallel events add to the overall energy of the sector, while benefiting in turn from the gravitational pull of the main show.
Quelle est la principale nouveauté dont devrait se réjouir le grand public ?
Le grand public devrait apprécier le renforcement du programme “In The City”, qui reste gratuit tout en franchissant un nouveau cap cette année. L’un des temps forts sera le partenariat avec le Montreux Jazz Club, qui animera chaque soir la ville avec une programmation mettant en avant de jeunes artistes, en écho à la nouvelle génération d’horlogers également présente via les écoles. Cette dimension culturelle s’élargit avec la participation de musées et de nombreux nouveaux partenaires, contribuant à créer une véritable effervescence horlogère à l’échelle de la ville. Tout au long de la semaine, chaque journée propose une expérience différente, rythmée par des événements et des activations variées. Watches and Wonders dépasse ainsi le cadre du salon pour devenir un rendez-vous global, immersif et vivant. Par ailleurs, au sein de Palexpo, le public peut s’offrir un accès direct aux marques et aux produits. Les visiteurs peuvent découvrir les collections, échanger avec les équipes et toucher les pièces, dans des conditions proches de celles de la presse ou des professionnels. Cette proximité, très recherchée, explique l’engouement dès l’ouverture de la billetterie. L’expérience se veut également plus personnalisée : chacun peut préparer son programme en amont et s’inscrire à des ateliers, workshops ou visites guidées sur les stands.
Les expositions parallèles renforcent-elles l’attractivité de Watches and Wonders ?
En proposant des formats et des sélections de marques différentes, elles participent à l’effervescence horlogère à Genève durant la semaine. Watches and Wonders reste néanmoins le cœur de cette dynamique, avec une audience incomparable. Ces événements parallèles contribuent à l’énergie globale du secteur, tout en bénéficiant de l’attraction principale du salon.
