Baselworld 2015 bids us farewell
As another year comes to a close, we bid a farewell to the most anticipated event in the horology industry’s calendar. With thousands of visitors relishing the buzzing atmosphere of the enormous three main halls, it’s hard to believe the 8 day event extended outwards to surrounding hotels and free-standing tents that invited press, retailers, celebrities and connoisseurs to experience the latest novelties
A total of 288 Swiss exhibitors arrived in the town of Basel for the largest collection of Haute Horology and Haute Joaillerie, to put on a stunning display of luxury goods presented in jaw-dropping architectural booths that stood tall and proud at the much anticipated event of the year in horology circles. Booths ranged from the simple open stands located in halls 2 and 3 to the most extravagant booths located in prime position in Hall 1.
Dominating the first floor of Hall 1 was a breath-taking ‘bank vault’ inspired booth that belonged to Emporio Armani. With a constant stream of crowds photographing the exterior, Day and Night Magazine was intrigued to take a quick peek inside, where a corridor of realistic looking safe-deposit boxes greeted visitors. Impressed with the décor, we moved further down the hall safe in the knowledge that we had just witnessed the best stand at Baselworld. So, it came as a surprise when we stumbled across Swarovski, where the walls were adorned with 253,231 mirrored reflectors that symbolized the iconic jewels of the brand. Artificial lighting highlighted the exterior walls and from a distance, made it look as though a giant crystal sat shimmering under the sun. Whilst on the ground floor, renowned luxury brands dominated the most demanded sought after floor space, near the entrance of the exhibition. Hublot, Bvlgari, TAG Heuer and Zenith were some of the lucky few who were exposed to the maximum number of visitors passing through Hall 1.
Overall, it was obvious that the organisers of the 43rd Baselworld watch and jewellery show pulled out all the stops from the 19th of March to the 26th of March, by making sure it was bigger, better and more extravagant than the years before. Along the visitors present were leading names from the diamond, pearl and precious stone sectors, together with machine suppliers and contractors. Deemed as a perfect meeting place for global media and the trade, the 2015 event attracted more media and television networks from around the world than ever before. This was probably due to the new Smartwatch trend that is taking the horology sector by storm. Brands such as Frederique Constant, in collaboration with Alpina, have launched the Horological Smartwatch that monitors lifestyle trends. Another brand on the Smartphone wagon is Breitling, which has launched the B55 that features the company’s B50 caliber super quartz movement instead of being purely mechanical.
After 8 full days of non-stop activity, Swiss exhibitors left Basel tired but positive about the overall experience of the exhibition. Despite a small drop of 3% in the number of buyers, the overall figures are in and we can report that this year’s Baselworld drew in a record number of 4,300 media representatives, which was a rise of 7.5%. The total number of people in attendance was in line with last year at a figure of 150,000, where professionals from around the globe jetted in to admire the latest Swiss-made innovations.
In other news, we learnt that there was a slight upturn in the months of January and February, where to celebrate the New Year, Swiss watch exports increased by 3.7%, and then fell rapidly by 2.0% in February, as did all exports. The situation for the first two months of the year is nonetheless positive, despite withdrawal of the floor rate, as Swiss watch exports gained 1.0%. Recently, some markets have experienced a difficult climate and this was reflected in the reduced number of attendees from Asia and Russia. Meanwhile, there was an increase in the number of visitors coming to Basel for the first time from parts of Europe and the Americas.
In terms of business, the 2015 exhibition at Baselworld ended in high spirits with an upbeat atmosphere across all sectors. It seemed that crosswinds resulting from the crisis in Ukraine, the slowdown in China’s economic growth, and most recently the scrapping of the floor rate, didn’t affect the results of the event as much as some thought they would. Exports rates demonstrate that Swiss watchmaking is riding the storm well, having increased 1% for the months of January-February compared with last year’s figures of 2014.With the impact of the strong Swiss franc partially cushioned, 2015 is turning out to be a pleasant year for the horology industry reporting stable growth. With the excitement of the 2015 event over, we can only look forward to the next instalment of innovation and creativity that will be held on the 17th – 24th of March, 2016.
On a much more subdued note, we regret to inform you that at the opening press conference on the 18th March, journalists were informed that Jacques Duchêne had passed away the previous evening in Basel. Mr Duchêne devoted his entire working life to Rolex, and served for 20 years as President of the Baselworld Exhibitors’ Committee where he will be sorely missed. The Swiss exhibitors are indebted to him for his dedication, and offer their condolences to his wife and family.
