【Geneva, Swit】Why Was Baselworld Criticized? Rolex, Richemont, and Patek Philippe Join Forces

On October 27, Swiss watchmakers Rolex, Richemont Group, and Patek Philippe decided to jointly establish the non-profit organization “Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation (WWGF)”. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the foundation officially commenced operations on the same day.
The new foundation will be managed by a board of directors. Jean-Frédéric Dufour, CEO of the Rolex Group, serves as the Chairman of the board, while Emmanuel Perrin, President of Richemont’s Specialist Watchmakers division, serves as Vice-Chairman. They will collaborate with other founding members to formulate the foundation’s major strategic directions.
It is noteworthy that Matthieu Humair, the current CEO of the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH), will assume the role of CEO for the new Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation (WWGF). The foundation stated that the establishment of WWGF aims to disseminate high-end watchmaking culture globally and is committed to organizing both online and offline watch and jewelry exhibitions in Geneva and around the world.
The establishment of the new Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation also signifies that the previously Richemont-dominated Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie is now welcoming more powerful industry players.
The Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, a non-profit foundation, was established in 2005 by Richemont (which owns Cartier), the Swiss independent watch brand Audemars Piguet, and Girard-Perregaux.
For a long time, the exhibitors at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH, the predecessor of “Watches and Wonders Geneva”) organized by the FHH were dominated by Richemont-owned brands like Cartier. Compared to the larger and more influential former Baselworld watch and jewelry fair (which has now ceased operations), SIHH was previously more focused on the high-end watch industry, with most participating brands being luxury labels.

The turning point occurred in 2020. Under the impact of the sudden COVID-19 pandemic, Rolex and Tudor, which had already been considering withdrawal, along with Patek Philippe, Chanel Watches, and Chopard, announced their withdrawal from Baselworld in April 2020 and turned to collaborate with the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie to co-host watch fairs.
After holding two years of online exhibitions, in April 2022, Rolex and Patek Philippe participated for the first time in the inaugural physical edition of the Watches and Wonders Geneva high-end watch exhibition. According to data provided by the organizing committee, the first Watches and Wonders Geneva exhibition held this year attracted over 22,000 visitors and garnered online attention from more than 350 million people globally through digital channels.

Patek Philippe President Thierry Stern believes participating in this exhibition was the right decision. He earlier told The New York Times, “(The Geneva exhibition) is the only time of the year I can see everyone within a week, and its digital platform allows you to promote the brand to the whole world.”
Demonstrating the strength of Swiss high-end watchmaking to the world is a major goal for many exhibitors. The joint participation of Rolex and Patek Philippe this time, teaming up with Richemont to establish the Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation (WWGF), further represents the exhibitors’ effort to strengthen their voice within the exhibition framework.

Regarding the previous move to exit Baselworld, most high-end watch brands complained about the excessively high fees of traditional fairs and the slow pace of digital transformation, which significantly reduced their effectiveness in reaching target audiences.
According to the introduction of the newly established Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation (WWGF), its Exhibition Committee will be composed of representatives from participating brands. They will jointly discuss and decide on exhibition-related matters to ensure the smooth operation of the Watches and Wonders high-end watch exhibition.

Consequently, the number of participating brands at the 2023 “Watches and Wonders” Geneva high-end watch exhibition will increase to 49, up from 38 in 2022. According to the schedule, the 2023 watch exhibition will be held from March 27 to April 2 at the Palexpo exhibition center in Geneva. For the first time, tickets will be sold to the public on the weekend (ticket price: 70 Swiss Francs), while the first five days will be open only to media, retailers, and invited guests of the 49 participating brands.
Opening the exhibition to the public is also a long-awaited change. During the inaugural “Watches and Wonders” Geneva exhibition held earlier this year, exhibitors expressed a desire to open to the public. The focus of discussion was on partially opening to the public while maintaining the tradition of meeting business negotiation and media communication needs, thereby satisfying the desire of watch collectors to gather and exchange ideas on high-end watchmaking culture.
In fact, some other renowned high-end watch brands, such as Audemars Piguet, Omega, and Bulgari, do not plan to join the “Watches and Wonders” Geneva exhibition. A significant reason is their perception that the exhibition has historically been open only to industry insiders.

“People clearly have a definite preference for physical exhibitions, but I just don’t understand why it’s not open to the public,” Bulgari Watches Managing Director Antoine Pin earlier told The New York Times. “Considering that, we are glad we didn’t participate.”
But another important reason is that some high-end watch brands are building new watch exhibition platforms in their own way. French luxury giant LVMH Group launched the LVMH Watch Week starting in 2020, scheduling it for January. This watch week primarily serves LVMH’s four major watch brands: Bulgari, Hublot, TAG Heuer, and Zenith.
Affected by the pandemic, the 2021 and 2022 editions of the LVMH Watch Week were held online, but the release timing was maintained in January each year. This is because brands have their own product launch cycles, and the traditional practice of holding a single annual exhibition can no longer keep up with brands’ new marketing needs.
Meanwhile, some watch brands insist on promoting new products in their own way, no longer relying on exhibitions. The Swiss independent watch brand Breitling also exited Baselworld in 2020. In October 2020, Breitling held its first online new product launch. According to Deloitte’s 2021 Swiss Watch Industry Report, that launch attracted 4 million online viewers.
In March 2022, Breitling held an online launch for its Navitimer aviation watch series the day before the Watches and Wonders Geneva exhibition. This launch reportedly attracted 5.6 million viewers online.
Over the past three years, the order of the global high-end watchmaking industry is being rebuilt. The pandemic has made digitalization and online services particularly important. Traditional exhibitions are being forced to transform and embrace digital channels. Exhibition organizers are also becoming more flexible, with exhibition locations no longer confined to one place. For example, in August 2022, the Dubai Watch Week Horology Forum toured to New York City, USA.