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Breitling (at least temporarily) withdraws from Baselworld

77deluxe
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Interesting. That is surprising. More room for Tudor I suppose.
 
Riviera Paradise
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Well, this was certainly a surprise after Bretiling's huge presence this year. I think Seiko have not confirmed their presence for 2020. I think Grand Seiko / Credor might be better suited to SIHH but I am not sure the Richemont brands would welcome their presence.

Perhaps Breitling and Swatch are waiting to see if the proposed changes to Basel are significant and game changing before coming back? I imagine Rolex and Patek are getting very good $$ deals for staying on as the main anchor brands.

On the positive side with the new late April / 1st week of May dates for SIHH/Basel the weather will be nicer (especially for SIHH). If Basel does become more consumer friendly orientated (as planned), the Swiss Spring could attract more visitors😀
 
Wetworks
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That Breitling has stated that they intend to concentrate on their "global Summit format with subsequent local roadshows in 2020“ leads me to believe that Baselworld has approached Interbike-level status.

For those unfamiliar, Interbike was the largest bicycle oriented trade show in the world. It is now defunct, citing, among other things, costs. What some insiders believe to also be a contributing factor was the organizer's unwillingness to make the show open to the public. On the surface, this makes sense as who better to drum up excitement about your new products than those who are potential customers.

I believe there is an element of that dynamic at play here as well. Breitling, like bicycle brands like Specialized, have chosen to concentrate on their own pop-up shows. Other cycling brands have taken to making announcements at other public events like the Sea Otter classic. Might the watch industry follow suit? We shall see...
 
ejj
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Baselworld doesn't make financial sense for larger brands.

Smaller brands need a stage. This is where the shows need to focus.

Larger brands will make their own stages. (Embargoed brand events for dealer/influencer only (i.e. the recent Omega event). Instagram/Hodinkee etc. for the public.)
 
F
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I am certain that it has been said before.... unless Baselworld makes concessions to the brands or make the event more interesting it will become smaller and smaller.... image if Rolex decides in a couple of years to leave...
 
Inpw
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ejj ejj
Baselworld doesn't make financial sense for larger brands.

Smaller brands need a stage. This is where the shows need to focus.

Larger brands will make their own stages. (Embargoed brand events for dealer/influencer only (i.e. the recent Omega event). Instagram/Hodinkee etc. for the public.)
I agree with this assessment. Personally I'd love a consumer-oriented Baselworld, but I think trade shows in general are a thing of the past. There's been a significant number of long-running shows closing their doors in the past 2-3 years in Switzerland as people (and brands) have turned to digital distribution channels. I don't think Baselworld could have prevented their decline, but their poor management certainly helped accelerate it.
 
wristpirate
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Why the big booths in BaselWorld are closed off to the public that buy day tickets is beyond me. Yes sure they can see watches through glass, but where's the fun in that?
 
Archer
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wristpirate wristpirate
Why the big booths in BaselWorld are closed off to the public that buy day tickets is beyond me. Yes sure they can see watches through glass, but where's the fun in that?

Because the brands are there to do business, not show watches off to collectors...
 
wristpirate
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Archer Archer
Because the brands are there to do business, not show watches off to collectors...
A missed opportunity in my eyes
 
Archer
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wristpirate wristpirate
A missed opportunity in my eyes

Maybe for you, but not for the brands...

Keep in mind this is where the brands rack up their sales for the year with distributors and large dealers. They aren’t going to sell you a watch on the spot, so there’s really nothing they are missing by focusing on those who are placing millions in orders instead of a guy who can’t buy anything there...
 
wristpirate
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Archer Archer
Maybe for you, but not for the brands...

It's the consumer where the product goes to in the end. Sure the top brands will have queues and waiting lists regardless.
 
Archer
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wristpirate wristpirate
It's the consumer where the product goes to in the end.

Yes clearly, but the show is to fill the pipeline to the consumer, not to cater to collectors need for attention (that's what the AD or Boutique is for).
 
eugeneandresson
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wristpirate wristpirate
Why the big booths in BaselWorld are closed off to the public that buy day tickets is beyond me. Yes sure they can see watches through glass, but where's the fun in that?

Logistics/Time-management. If every person walks in randomly expecting to look at watches and take however much time they would like to handle them, nobody will get a chance, because there are a LOT of single people wanting to go and touch and look, and typically the brands have a box of single watches (often times prototypes, not e.g. 10 of each) in some conference room, and the way they present them takes time, for questions, presentation etc. Hence necessitating a time-table, and hence the need to make appointments...which is what the journalists etc etc do, in order to see the watches. Its not like a shop where you can just waltz in and expect them to be doing nothing but waiting to show you watches ... its a short time period with a high volume of show-and-tell, and unfortunately it has to be done this way.

Edit : ...but as a visitor of BW the last 6 years, I have felt the same way as you, until I got a different insight into how it actually works : respect to the folk who do the ground work...its really chaotic.
Edited:
 
wristpirate
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eugeneandresson eugeneandresson
Edit : ...but as a visitor of BW the last 6 years, I have felt the same way as you, until I got a different insight into how it actually works : respect to the folk who do the ground work...its really chaotic.

I fully understand why it is the way it is. It's just a shame for all the general visitors that make the trip and wouldn't get to see anything in person.

Perhaps this is one of the reasons for the decline in exhibitors? They can meet retail distributors at another time/location at a much lower cost to the manufacturers.
 
Archer
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wristpirate wristpirate
I fully understand why it is the way it is. It's just a shame for all the general visitors that make the trip and wouldn't get to see anything in person.

Perhaps this is one of the reasons for the decline in exhibitors? They can meet retail distributors at another time/location at a much lower cost to the manufacturers.

I don't think the lack of access to the general public to booths has anything to do with the decline of exhibitors. The way the industry is doing business is changing, and old paradigms like these big shows are just not worth the cost these days for many companies.

This show is about far more than just the big brands - there are equipment suppliers there, plus component suppliers as well. I won't be going there to look at finished watches, but someone like me would be there for the component suppliers, and If I was going there to do business, I wouldn't want to have to wait for a bunch of collectors to get done viewing the product before I got a chance to actually do the business I came there for. For the consumer this is a vacation trip - for the rest of us it's work.

I think many people go there assuming it's a consumer show, and not a trade show. To be honest they should probably eliminate the public element, and keep it a closed show for those in the trade, like most trade shows are. Clearly BW (and the surrounding businesses) love the additional revenue they get from letting the general public in, but for those who are there to conduct business it means larger crowds to wade through, increased competition for hotel, restaurants, etc.

SIHH is an example of what this show really should be - by the trade, for the trade.
 
wristpirate
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Would make sense to have a seperate show for collectors and one for trade.

How much business would you do at a show like this? Compared to going direct to the manufacturer of tools yourself?
 
ejj
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Yep--trade shows are changing dramatically. In fact its not just trade shows--a lot of business models are changing. For example, Network TV is dying as well.
 
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