Watches&Wonders, Act 2 in Hong Kong

There was no mistaking the determination with which the Chief Executives of the thirteen exhibiting Maisons at Watches&Wonders* cut through the ceremonial ribbon at the official opening of the second Haute Horlogerie Exhibition in Asia, which returns to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. As though this one snip should capture their intention to fully live up to the expectations of the region’s fine watch connoisseurs. If last year’s show was a test flight, this year’s edition is full throttle.

Favourable climate

First of all the context is distinctly more positive than a year ago. Figures published by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry show that Hong Kong and China struggled to keep pace in 2013, when Swiss watch exports to both these markets lost momentum, dropping 5.6% and 12.5% respectively. Not so in 2014. Both markets, which rank first and third for Swiss watch exports, returned to growth over the first eight months of the year. Not the explosion in sales witnessed these past several years, but nonetheless a 2% rise for Hong Kong and a 5.1% increase for China between January and August. Despite the question mark that still hovers over the global economy, these latest figures bode well.

Then there is the question of attendance. Having attracted over 16,000 visitors last year – more than any edition of the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie, which in 2015 will celebrate its 25th anniversary with more or less the same exhibitors – Watches&Wonders has already exceeded even the most optimistic forecasts. One could argue that these are two very different events: one an invitation-only fair in Europe, the other more widely open to collectors and members of the public in Asia. Irrespective of what might distinguish the two, Watches&Wonders has clearly emerged as a key date in the calendar, given that the Asian markets now weigh more heavily than Europe and the United States put together. As an acknowledgement of the region’s importance, the brands that have travelled to Hong Kong are presenting a broad variety of new models which have been specially developed for the occasion. In 2013 the timescale was less conducive to this type of launch.

A reference for the region

“These different factors show that the watchmakers exhibiting in Hong Kong clearly want to make Watches&Wonders, now an annual event, the reference for Fine Watchmaking in the region,” commented Fabienne Lupo, chairwoman and managing director of the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, which organises the event. “These superlative brands return to Hong Kong to introduce the public to new aspects of their profession, and share with them the singularity of the world to which they belong.” In this respect, this year as last Watches&Wonders will be about communicating with the public to convey the full measure of these Maisons, and show that they are much more than simply a name known across all four corners of the globe.

*Exhibitors at Watches&Wonders
A. Lange & Söhne, Audemars Piguet, Baume & Mercier, Cartier, IWC, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Montblanc, Panerai, Piaget, Richard Mille, Roger Dubuis, Vacheron Constantin, Van Cleef & Arpels