Geneva Watch Days was never supposed to be anything more than a stop gap show, squeezed into the summer of 2020 when the pandemic in Europe appeared to have abated.
With Watches and Wonders postponed and Baselworld cancelled for 2021, Geneva Watch Days returned last week with a broader roster of brands visited by 350 retailers and more than 300 journalists.
This success has prompted the founding maisons of the event to make it a permanent fixture in the Swiss watch industry calendar.
It will return in 2022 in the first week of September. Precise dates have not yet been announced.
It will be open to any brands wishing to be associated with the event.
Geneva Watch Days took place over five days. There was a central marquee with a presentation of all 25 participating brands. It was also the venue for receptions every evening.
Breitling, Bulgari and others held their own parties, making this year’s show the sort of social occasion on which great trade fairs are built.
Brands held their own meetings in hotel suites, Geneva offices and retail stores, which required a bit of dashing about on warm late summer days, but was manageable because most presentations were clustered in and around the Beau Rivage hotel overlooking the marquee and Lake Geneva.
Geneva Watch Days was launched by Bulgari, Breitling, De Bethune, Gerald Genta, Girard-Perregaux, H. Moser & Cie, MB&F, Ulysse Nardin and Urwerk, which have formed a non-profit association to organise the event.
They were joined this year by participating brands Arnold & Son, Bianchet, Charles Girardier, Czapek, Doxa, Ferdinand Berthoud, Frederique Constant Group, Greubel Forsey, Konstantin Chaykin, Louis Erard, Maurice Lacroix, Oris, Parmigiani Fleurier, Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo, Raketa and Reuge.
