Editor’s Note
Against a backdrop of global uncertainty, the watch industry’s premier event in Geneva struck a note of cautious optimism. This report highlights the key themes and standout releases, like Rolex’s new collection, that defined the gathering.
The new “Land-Dweller” collection from Rolex was the talk of the town at the Geneva show. The watch industry set some key themes for the product year with the Watches & Wonders trade fair. Despite global political turbulence, the mood was composed to cautiously optimistic.
The Trump administration announced a hefty 31 percent import tariff virtually overnight on Swiss goods, which includes the famous luxury watches. This came as a shock to many exhibitors and visitors at the world’s largest industry showcase. Although a temporary moratorium was reached about two weeks later, base tariffs were significantly increased across the board, affecting both mechanical and quartz timepieces. It comes as little surprise that the Swatch Group (including Omega, Longines, Tissot, and Breguet) plans to increase its US selling prices.
It can be assumed that other competitors will follow suit. Yet, the hands of the clock must keep turning, despite a brewing perfect storm of record-high gold prices, a strong Swiss franc, plummeting sales in China and Hong Kong, and drastic discounting on the gray and pre-owned markets.
At least in terms of interest and records, the fair at the Palexpo grounds, near Geneva Airport, did not lack. The closing report showed this, as commented on by Cyrille Vigneron, President of the Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation:
With a total of 55,000 visitors, the show was 12 percent above last year’s figures. Attendance on the two public days was a pleasing 21 percent higher than in 2024, with 23,000 tickets sold. Approximately 12,000 sales conversations were held (up 21 percent) and 43,000 hotel nights were booked (up 17 percent). The social media reach of the fair across all tracked networks and hashtags was a proud 700 million contacts with fans and potential buyers, where Watches and Wonders gained another 17 percent. Aligned with the focus theme “The Youth,” nearly 10,000 young people had the opportunity to see watchmaking up close, both at the fair and at numerous events in the city of Geneva.
Trend topics included colors: from light blue tones through various shades of green, ochre to lemon yellow, and truly vibrant hues. Additionally, artistic limited series and unique pieces, as well as jewelry watches for women – now mostly equipped with automatic movements rather than quartz. Motorsport also took up significant space – from TAG Heuer through IWC to Tudor. Yellow gold is now indispensable in collections, new rose gold variants – less salmon-colored – continue to gain momentum, and platinum is also trending.
Technically, there seems to be renewed fondness for the tourbillon, a technical finesse that watchmaker Ludwig Oechslin described in an interview with Capital as:
Currently, the workshops of the major manufactures seem to see it differently – whether out of genuine technical necessity or as an optical treat that makes higher selling prices more digestible remains an open question.
If the 2024 fair was described as “everyone playing it safe,” this only partially applied to the 2025 edition. For example, industry leader Rolex ventured far out of its comfort zone and presented the completely new, rather futuristically styled, and technically refined “Land-Dweller” line. Furthermore, there was hardly a maison that wasn’t celebrating some anniversary: be it a founding jubilee or the anniversary of important bestseller models. A loving cultivation of one’s own heritage, many complicated (unique) pieces, a focus on one’s own strengths – but also few surprises. Understandable in the current climate, especially since horological wonders in this industry always take time, requiring years of planning and development. Whether the dynamism of the zeitgeist allows for the necessary breathing space will become apparent this year and in the following years, even in this industry.