Baselworld Cancels 2022 Show – WWD

PRESSING PAUSE: Baselworld organizers are canceling subsequent yr’s present amidst continued COVID-19 uncertainty and administration reshuffling.

The watch present was meant to return in 2022 with a brand new idea, however the relaunch is now being postponed for a yet-to-be-confirmed date.

“It’s significantly tough to launch a brand new idea for a brand new goal phase as a result of renewed aggravation of the COVID-19 state of affairs and the related uncertainty amongst clients,” stated Baselworld organizers in a press release, including that they want extra time to proceed discussions with producers and retailers, in addition to refine their idea, following a pop-up experiment at Geneva Watch Days.

Following the cancellation of subsequent yr’s occasion, managing director Michel Loris-Melikoff has introduced that he will probably be stepping down from his place.

Beat Zwahlen, chief government officer of MCH Group, which organizes Baselworld, stated the corporate will take the additional time to additional analyze the wants of the market and outline the occasion’s new area of interest. This will probably be extra centered on unbiased retailers and specialised producers — particularly after the likes of Movado, Swatch Group, Rolex, Patek Philippe, Chanel, Chopard and LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton labels pulled out of the occasion amid tensions that arose over this yr’s cancellation.

“Over the previous few months, now we have studied intimately our watches, jewellery and gems ecosystem and gained essential insights from discussions with main trade representatives,” says Zwahlen. “The conclusion is that the market exists for platforms that deliver collectively medium-sized and specialised producers with unbiased retailers. However their wants should be analyzed in additional element. This implies we have to have considerably extra time to get there.”