Swatch Group Calls Time on Baselworld

RAPAPORT... Swatch Group has quit Baselworld, arguing the watch andjewelry show is no longer relevant and its organizers are not interested inchanging it for the better. The Swiss group, whose 18 brands include Omega, Tissot andHarry Winston, is a mainstay of the annual fair. However, it will not attendfrom next year as the event has failed to keep up with the changing industry,it said in a statement to Rapaport News Monday. "Today everything has become more transparent, fast-moving,and instantaneous," Swatch said. "Accordingly, a different rhythm and adifferent approach [are] needed. In this new context, annual watch fairs, asthey exist today, no longer make much sense." Trade shows should not disappear, but must "reinventthemselves" by adapting to the new environment and being more dynamic andcreative, the company added. "At the moment, the trade fairs are failing to do so. TheMCH Group, which organizes Baselworld, is clearly more concerned withoptimizing and amortizing its new building - which, incidentally, is largelyfinanced by the watch industry during the fairs - than it is in having thecourage to make real progress and to bring about true and profound changes." The Swiss show has already undergone certain modificationsin the past year. The March 2018 edition was much smaller than previous ones,with about 650 exhibitors attending compared to 1,300 a year earlier. MCH alsoshortened the event from eight days to six. In May, Sylvie Ritter resigned asthe show's managing director after 15 years in charge, with MichelLoris-Melikoff taking over. Baselworld has also seen competition from new shows, including the GemGen??ve fair in May, which drew 147exhibitors. The Geneva event largely attracted gem and jewelry companies thatfelt sidelined by the more expensive Baselworld. MCH did not immediately respond to a request for commentMonday.Image: Baselworld