GENEVA — The latest edition of the Watches and Wonders fair was ready to symbolize the watchmaking industry’s rebound.
Rallying after a choppy 2024, the sector looked poised aimed to tap into the power of positive thinking against despite the volatile social and economic backdrop. A free-trade agreement signed with Thailand in January also read as an encouraging sign, given that market’s appetite for luxury.
Between April 1 and 7, the fair gathered 60 brands at the Palexpo exhibition center that broke new records, showcased world premieres and offered an ever-growing array of technical and artistic legerdemain in their latest high-end timepieces.
Visitors this year topped 55,000, a 12 percent increase, while the public days saw a 21 percent leap in ticket sales versus 2024, to reach 23,000.
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There was also star-power aplenty, from “Bridgerton” and “F1” actress Simone Ashley and China’s NiNi, to sporting legends Roger Federer and Carl Lewis. The fair’s estimated reach on social media exceeded 700 million people, according to organizers.
Cyrille Vigneron, president of the Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation, said the fair had established itself not only as a “must-attend” event for professionals, but was also “a platform for expressions” for watchmakers.
For visitors, it was “an immersive experience in the watchmaking industry,” said Matthieu Humair, the foundation’s chief executive officer. Given the strong lineup of new releases by brands, he felt “the year will be dynamic for the industry.”
But this sunny outlook was marred by the proverbial bolt out of the blue — U.S. President Donald Trump’s April 2 announcement of sweeping tariffs that would see a 31 percent levy slapped on Swiss goods entering the U.S.
Too Soon to Talk
That quickly became the elephant in the room at the fair.
With first-quarter results looming and European luxury shares plunging in the immediate aftermath of the tariffs news, many executives skirted questions around potential impacts or mitigating strategies, instead reiterating the importance of the U.S. market for the industry.
In 2024, the U.S. was the largest market for Swiss watch exports, growing 5 percent year-on-year to 4.37 billion Swiss francs, or $5.3 billion.
However, some executives were vocal on the subject.
“We are disappointed by the imposition of such high customs duties on Swiss products and Swiss watches,” said Yves Bugmann, president of the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry.
He added that tariffs on Swiss timepieces “cannot be considered a matter of fair reciprocity,” given the lack of import duties on American timepieces entering Switzerland, which also abolished all industrial tariffs on Jan. 1, 2024.
In the aftermath, the Swiss Federal Council decided against countermeasures, preferring a diplomatic route, with representatives heading to Washington, D.C., in hopes of negotiating with U.S. authorities.
For Jon Cox, head of European consumer equities at Kepler Cheuvreux, a 31 percent tariff would amount to “around a mid-teen [percentage] price increase at the retail level” as it is applied based on price at export. He estimated such an increase would be harder to pass on to consumers for lower-priced items, forcing watchmakers, importers and retailers to absorb some of the tariff-led increases.
“For higher-end watches, consumers are wealthier and can absorb more of the price rise, particularly for supply-constrained watches such as Rolex, Patek and [Audemars Piguet],” Cox continued. “However, high-end retailers such as Watches of Switzerland are probably going to see pressure on margin, particularly for nonsupply-constrained watches. Producers will probably take some of the pain, [with] an impact on their profitability.”
He projected “low-single-digit growth for the market overall, led by the high-end [watches priced above 3,000 Swiss francs at export], while all other price points being down” for 2025.
That’s a scenario that did not take into account potential run-on consequences, like “potential secondary effects such as an economic slowdown, if not recession in the U.S., which would have a much more negative impact on the industry,” the analyst added.
A 10 percent tariff level would make the situation “a lot more manageable both at lower price points and for high-end watches,” Cox concluded.
Execution of tariffs for all countries except China has since been suspended by Trump for 90 days, leaving Switzerland with the 10 percent rate applied globally that kicked in on April 5.
Opportunities in the Entry-price Playing Field
The only certainty was that “the situation is still very new and moving, and there will be a lot of negotiation,” said Davide Cerrato, CEO of watchmaker Bremont.
As a British company, it would be impacted to a lesser degree since goods from the U.K. are subject to the lower 10 percent tariff, helping it capture market shares in the U.S., where business is booming for Bremont.
Additionally, there is an even bigger opportunity that the 23-year-old independent brand plans to tap: the low-to-mid four-figure segment, considered the entry level of fine watchmaking. That focus has paid off in the wake of the launch of TerraNova, a military-inspired field watch introduced last year then expanded with a jumping hour caliber introduced at this year’s fair.
“Plugged at the entry of our 2,500 to 3,500 [British] pounds offer, it paid off big time,” Cerrato said. “As a relatively young brand that’s growing, recruiting new customers, especially young ones, is a big topic, and it’s exactly what TerraNova is allowing us to do.”
The affordable luxury territory, particularly the $2,000 to $4,000 range, is the one Frédérique Constant is also tapping.
“That’s a market that is not growing, but it’s growing for us substantially because everybody went over $4,000 to $5,000, and it opened up a very big white space for us,” said Jeffrey Cohen, president of Citizen Watch America, which owns the watchmaker.
It’s good business with its core customer, in the late 30s to 40s age bracket, and is an overture toward a younger demographic, such as the 30 to 40 percent of visitors aged 25 or below that came to the Frédérique Constant booth during last year’s public days at the show.
Such a consumer is savvy and “wants to be pleased, [not] surprised,” the executive said. What they want is a timepiece with authentic watchmaking credentials. Hence options like the Classic Perpetual Calendar that embarks the FC-776, the brand’s 34th in-house caliber cadenced at 4 Hz offering a 72-hour power reserve, priced at $9,995.
“This generation is liking what we’re doing,” Cohen said. “Not everybody can afford a $10,000 watch.”
Independent label Oris is another brand positioned in that sparsely occupied price segment.
“The whole Oris mantra product is about price value,” said V.J. Geronimo, the company’s CEO for the Americas. “It’s about offering a really good watch for the money, with all the features. So a $2,000 Oris is somebody else’s $3,500 [watch].”
He expected its raft of colorful Big Crown Pointer Dates models and a refreshed visual identity — a pink and green livery — to continue elevating brand perception. In the U.S., the brand is the official luxury watch of the New York Yankees baseball team.
Because They’re Worth It
Enhancing the perceived value of designs and offering value for money — whatever the price point — came up in every conversation.
A key idea for Panerai is upgrading its core Luminor Marina family with enhanced water resistance, plus slimmer profile and movement, all without touching its price, said chief marketing officer Alessandro Ficarelli, adding: “We want to grow by value, by adding value for the final client, not increasing the price of our watches.”
With 95 percent of new clients among buyers of this model, priced 8,900 euros for a 44-mm steel version and up to 9,990 euros for a titanium take, the style remains an entryway into the brand — and popular among existing clients.
Patrick Pruniaux, CEO of Ulysse Nardin and its parent group Sowind, said he is “a strong believer in the promise to the consumer, to the watch enthusiast.”
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For Ulysse Nardin, that is “great technological content, great innovation, transparency,” as epitomized by the Diver Air model introduced in Geneva. “We don’t play games or try to increase our revenue by just adding 10 or 15 percent on the same product,” he said.
While many have described the lackluster Swiss timepiece sales as a normalization, Pruniaux called the situation “a decline,” albeit one after many years of strong growth.
“In this environment, it’s very interesting for watch enthusiasts to look at a timepiece or brand and feel they understand what the brand is saying, particularly for independents,” he said. “But you don’t need a PhD in Ulysse Nardin to buy a Ulysse Nardin.”
Having a clear message, even one that feels polarizing, has served the brand well, as has a prudent application of furlough, to the tune of one week every two months, of 15 percent of its workforce in a bid to keep talents in the company while saving costs.
Steady Hands, Solid Roots
For Guillaume de Seynes, Hermès International’s executive vice president, manufacturing division and equity investments, navigating an environment ever-more unpredictable is about having a steady hand and firm grasp on what house fundamentals are.
It means on the one hand keeping to the brand’s overall approach to creation based on amazement and surprise — cue the Arceau Rocabar de Rire, featuring a horse showing its tongue — and ensuring products, be they more accessible quartz watches or high-end timepieces, remain in line with an overall “always very prudent approach to pricing” and a focus on cultivating local clients first, he said.
“What we can say is that we are happy with the course we have taken in watchmaking for 20, 25 years and that our ambitions don’t stop there,” de Seynes said, adding that “2025 will likely not be easy. When we see export figures, there won’t be a significant upturn compared to 2024. But we have confidence in the midterm, that’s why we are doing this big investment in Noirmont,” Switzerland.
That project, due to start in July, will see the square footage of the facility, which is dedicated to cases and dials, triple in around two years’ time, while production will continue on-site.
Hublot CEO Julien Tornare also didn’t see the current context as a reason to curtail planned investments, including new facilities in Nyon, Switzerland, that are scheduled to be completed in just over a year. They will include a 4,000-square-foot showroom and hospitality projects are on the cards.
The brand is buoyed by an even distribution among major markets such as China, the U.S., Europe and the Middle East, coupled with a strong start in new markets like Indonesia, Vietnam and India.
In his opinion, the current outlook isn’t in crisis mode, but a correction that signals “a return to a normality we had lost in 2021 and 2022.” However, the speculative bubble, which saw a surfeit of product land on the market, needs to be addressed.
Given today’s geopolitical context, it is important to “go back to fundamentals, recreate rarity on one’s brand and make sure [to be] very dynamic,” he said.
In particular, watch quantities will be closely monitored. “I believe you have to keep a tension in the market — that’s what good brands do today,” Tornare said.
Emotion as Added Value
One recurring and essential cog that keeps the watch business ticking remains immaterial: emotion.
“Without emotion, you don’t do anything well,” said Laurent Lecamp, global managing director of Montblanc.
In a time of transformation for luxury industries, the emotional component is essential to connect a product’s story to a brand and also to consumers’ own lives. “If you do it the right way, you’ll be successful,” he said. “If you try to be trendy, you’ll disappear.”
Adding value comes in many ways. Montblanc is offering upgrades to the Zero Oxygen case technology to existing owners, to match the pair of new 38-mm Iced Sea Automatic Date with Zero Oxygen cases released this year.
“We want to show to people that when you invest in a Montblanc timepiece, it’s a real investment,” said Lecamp, adding the upgrade strategy is also sustainable.
At Piaget, it’s the long view, rather than monthly watch export tallies, that matters.
“[Those are] a market analysis but one shouldn’t fixate on it,” said Piaget’s CEO Benjamin Comar. He said it is key to highlight a brand’s living patrimony — or DNA — through innovation and modernity, to ensure its longevity.
In Piaget’s case at the fair, that took the shape of the Sixtie, its first new watch collection in over a decade. Comar also highlighted that “the ability to transmit also created an investment value” for consumers — and brands.
Be True, but Most of All, Be You
Throughout the fair, watchmakers brought up consistency and authenticity.
“What resonates more and more is the authenticity and proximity [to the] family that’s behind the creations and the craftsmanship that we cherish,” said Chopard copresident Karl-Friedrich Scheufele.
Case in point: the Alpine Eagle, which saw three generations of the Scheufele family work on the elegant integrated sports watch. “[That’s] really something that our clients cherish,” he said. “There’s a message that goes beyond the product and [we could sense] that was felt.”
That’s what helped cement the pandemic-driven boost Chopard received, enabling the model to become a sought-after alternative to watches from other brands that had immediately inaccessible.
“We benefited from that, and then we were able to build a following which is not so much speculators but [people] who are still interested in watches today,” Scheufele said. “Whereas [speculating buyers] have moved on to other speculative fields.”
Likewise for the Ferdinand Berthoud brand, also under the Chopard umbrella.
“We stay true to the course of perfection and precision, and we don’t trade the possibility of making more watches in an ethical, authentic way,” Scheufele said.
“We did go from initially 10 to 20 to now maybe 60-something watches produced in a year [yet] using other means we could have done 100 or 150,” Scheufele continued. “But it wouldn’t be the same. This is something that slowly but surely sinks in. People understand that and appreciate it.”
Watchmaking “has evolved a lot, but beauty and innovation are probably the key today to watchmaking lovers,” said Catherine Rénier, CEO of Van Cleef & Arpels. “Our universe is so identifiable that as long as we remain true to ourselves, we have a voice in this very populated world of watchmaking. What is nice is that everybody is inspired by their own universe, enriching watchmaking in a better way.”
Repeating a message isn’t risking consumer fatigue — it’s essential to entrench one’s identity and ultimately stand out.
“For the [past] years, Cartier has been keeping the same strategy, the same direction when it comes to watches,” said the French jeweler’s chief marketing officer Arnaud Carrez. “Today, Cartier is very successful in watches, and this primarily relies on the fact that we have a clear distinctive positioning in the world of watchmaking as the watchmaker of shapes.”
Cartier this year pushed forward the direction of sculptural cases and intricate gem-setting, paired with commercially attractive options that included the Tank à Guichets, the Panthère de Cartier, the high jewelry Panthère bangle and the Tressage shape.
Making one’s mark is about intensity in creation, said Jérôme Lambert, who returned in January for a second tenure as CEO of Jaeger-LeCoultre.
“The clientele has never been as diverse,” he continued. “[Given] the way communication functions today by affinity, by [country], by split, we have to have an extreme intensity, if we want to capture their attention during that slot of time.”
The right kind of attention can even open doors.
“Watches have that potential — we see it [at the fair] — to bring a new type of client that knows of Chanel but discovers something a bit different, a bit surprising,” said Chanel watch and jewelry president Frédéric Grangié. “The fact that we are very young in this highly competitive market, if you have serious watchmaking to back it up, can be an advantage because the freedom of creation is total.”
If carving that path results in firsts, such as applying enamel on ceramic for the J12 Dripping Art set, which mimics nail polish splashed across a quintet of watches, it’s happenstance.
“We’re not looking for gold medals in innovation,” Grangié said. “We want innovation to be at the service of what Arnaud [Chastaingt, director of the Chanel watchmaking creation studio] has in mind.”
And it’s paying off: a male collector was the first to snap up the Boy.friend “Coco Art” with a dial enameled by Les Cadraniers de Genève.
A Year of Milestones
For many Watches and Wonders exhibitors, the focus on identity and expertise was made all the easier by milestones in 2025.
In 2000, Bulgari debuted in watchmaking, while Chanel and Chopard launched their J12 and L.U.C. Chopard Quattro models, respectively.
Hublot marked 20 years of its Big Bang watch with a “Materials and High Complication” set priced at 1 million Swiss francs and a party with ambassadors, such as retired sprinter Usain Bolt, soccer champion Kylian Mbappé and no less than 43 Michelin stars among from five chefs including Yannick Alléno and Anne-Sophie Pic.
Elsewhere, Roger Dubuis turned 30, while Vacheron Constantin hit the 270 mark, releasing six limited anniversary editions of its Patrimony and Traditionnelle timepieces, all bearing a special finish and anniversary emblem on their movements.
Zenith traded splashy displays for four special editions limited to 160 pieces each.
“We decided to do what we do best — watch movements,” said CEO Benoît de Clerck.
In the lineup were bright blue ceramic takes on its Chronomaster Sport, Defy Skyline Chronograph and Pilot Chronograph lines, as well as the Zenith G.F.J Calibre 135, which embarks its historic caliber that won some 230 awards for chronometry over the decades.
Using an anniversary as “an opportunity for us to explain what the brand is all about” is crucial at a time where consumers are seeking authenticity and relatability over bling effect, the Zenith CEO said.
Standing Together, but Standing Out
Executives agreed that Watches and Wonders served as a statement of the industry’s vitality and vibrancy, with a need to express themselves to the right audience of collectors and enthusiasts.
“It’s that one moment in time where the industry is punching above its weight and whoever has any interest in watches will have a look at [what] is happening specifically this week,” said Wilhelm Schmidt, CEO of A.Lange & Söhne. “Then, of course, some people will dive deeper into it and some won’t.”
But even the XXL version of this year’s star grand complication Minute Repeater Perpetual that took pride of place on the booth isn’t a bid for global awareness. Schmidt said he is “more keen on being known to the people who are passionate about watches,” particularly in light of the brand’s restrained watch production.
As such, having only three releases was A-OK. “If you only remember that we brought three beautiful watches, my mission is accomplished,” he said.
“To stand out and be top of mind, you need to create relevant and impactful novelties — that’s the duty of all brands, not just Bulgari,” said Jean-Christophe Babin, CEO of the brand. “It’s the duty of all brands, because if we want that category to continue to grow, we have to innovate, surprise and create desire, and this is one way to create desire.”
Joining the fair for the first time, Bulgari certainly stood out thanks to the Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon, its 10th record of thinness.
Babin, who recently became CEO of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton’s watchmaking division, lauded Watches and Wonders as doing much good for the sector, “not only showcasing the news, [as] Basel used to do, but providing a lot of clues, a lot of backstage on the art of watchmaking, and therefore further enhancing and justifying the value for the price of those watches.”
“People have to understand the ‘why,’ and if you explain [it], it’s not that they will buy 10 [watches], but they will understand that they’re buying something extremely valuable, rare, crafted,” said Babin. “A piece of art — it goes beyond the watch.”
