Record-Breaking Geneva Watch Days

Under a relentless sun, the white pavilion on the lakeshore was housing industry-related talks as well as events with free-flowing champagne, while the neighboring “blue box” showcased 150 watches from the 71 participating brands. With these two pavilions attracting a total of 8,000 visitors—including to the surrounding hotels—the seventh Geneva Watch Days offered more than ever.

With a record-breaking 71 participating brands, around 400 new watches were presented all across Geneva, and attendees arrived in greater numbers than ever. The organizers estimate that more than 2,500 private clients, collectors and watch enthusiasts, more than 500 international media and content creators, and over 300 international retailers were present.

The community-building aspect of the event could also be seen in the CHF 115'000 raised at the Phillips charity auction in support of the Geneva Watchmaking School. 

But let’s get on to the most important aspect of Geneva Watch Days—what kind of watches did we see? Let’s start with a few of the big players. Bvlgari went all in on titanium with four new models in the light and resilient material, the showstopper being the Octo Finissimo collaboration with Vianney Halter. This brand keeps proving that the Octo Finissimo is not becoming an icon—it already is one. 

In its downtown pop-up space, Chopard focused on L.U.C, the haute horlogerie arm of the family brand. The latest releases are the Chopard L.U.C. 1963 Heritage Regulator and L.U.C 1963 Heritage Chronograph Limited Editions, both with a distinctive nostalgic feeling thanks to the round, somewhat pumped-up case edge—a growing trend that we see from both mainstream and independents. 

Over at the Mandarin Oriental hotel, Gérald Genta was showing its Geneva—a loud minute repeater with a sublime grey and beige obsidian dial with an interesting trompe-l'œil effect, which despite being absolutely flat, appears to have a wavy, stony surface. 

Jaquet Droz has a new direction: Unique, bespoke pieces only. But to seduce potential customers one must of course prove that all the haute horlogerie crafts are completely mastered, as shown with the beautiful Magic Lotus boasting a hand-painted white mother-of-pearl dial and a black onyx subdial.

At the Beau Rivage hotel, Corum showed that it is back with a vengeance! The new team currently has a strong focus on ceramics in the Admiral collection, as well as very unusual bi-material combinations, for instance with gold inserted in stripes in the bracelet.

The 11-year-old indie brand Czapek had an amazing week in its new boutique on Quai des Bergues in downtown Geneva, neighboring where Mr. Czapek set up shop in the 1830s! And what better way to celebrate such a milestone than with new watches? One of the models presented during Geneva Watch Days was the Place Vendôme Complicité in glacier blue with a double escapement; a friendship project with master watchmaker Bernhard Lederer.

We also saw a lot of excellent value-for-money watches that retail below CHF 3'000, like the BA111OD Chapter 7 Skeleton (CHF 895). Also the Frederique Constant Moneta Handwinding (CHF 1'995), Gallet Flying Officer Automatic (CHF 2'700), and the M.A.D 3 Vincent Calabrese (CHF 2'900).

This year’s event just goes to show that Geneva Watch Days has evolved from an informal industry get-together to a global event that welcomes anyone who has a true love of watches.