MCH Group has confirmed that HourUniverse, a jewellery and watch show created in the wake of Baselworld’s closure, will not take place in April as planned.
MCH hopes a new date for a physical event can be found, but has not committed to one.
Potential exhibitors that have been in discussions to participate have been told that June is a possibility.
“In our discussions with the industry’s stakeholders, we noticed the need for the entire watch, jewellery and gemstone industries to meet again in person in 2021. To meet this need for a major global gathering, HourUniverse reaffirms its commitment to working closely with all industry stakeholders. Our goal is to host a live event in Basel, Switzerland, this year,” a statement to exhibitors circulated this week says.
“In view of the ongoing uncertain development of the pandemic, we have decided to postpone the show by a few months. We are currently assuming mid-June as the earliest possible date, but we will continue to monitor the situation closely and examine all possibilities. If the conditions for holding the event should change again, we will also consider later dates in the year,” the message continues.
“With this quick and early decision, we would particularly like to support our exhibitors in their business planning for the current year. We are convinced that our decision is the right one and that it meets the interests of all stakeholders in the industry. Of course we will keep you up to date on all new data and current developments in the next few weeks,” the note concludes.
Inhorgenta in Munich, Germany, remains the only major watch and jewellery exhibition still holding out hope of taking place as a physical event, although its slot of April 15 to 19 makes it highly vulnerable unless covid cases drop dramatically in Europe.
Watches and Wonders Geneva has already been converted into a digital event. LVMH is holding its Watch Week online right now.
