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Baselworld is the largest trade show in the watch industry. Every spring, thousands of exhibitors flock to Switzerland to display luxury watches, jewelry, diamonds, pearls, precious stones and manufacturing machines and tools.

Articles written about the fair usually emphasize the gentle, slow paced and almost old-fashioned vibe among the stands. The spirit of the trade show is quite old school indeed. Cadrans Flückiger in Saint-Imier, about an hour from Basel, is one of the most ancient dial makers in Switzerland founded in 1860. In 2014, the New York Times paid a visit to write a story about one of the most ancient and noticeable traditions in the world – watchmaking in Switzerland.
Nevertheless, the “Swiss watch” didn’t start off as a paradigm of matchless craftsmanship or extreme attention to detail. Until the 1800s, the record for dial production and innovation was held by the Germans, then the Dutch and eventually the English. Only the prominence of important figures such as Abraham-Louise Breguet and Frédérick Japy – to whom we owe the application of a new type of caliber in the new industrial production – Switzerland managed to “beat its competitors in watchmaking.”

Several factors led to the perfect unison between Switzerland and watches, most of all, the industriousness of the Helvetian people, which is an integrant and inextricable part of their DNA.

Surprisingly, also the geography and climate of the area played a part. During the 1800s, peasants began to spend their time during the rigid alpine winters manufacturing pieces of watches and clocks, in order to supply the rising brands in Geneva, a final destination for Huguenots escaping persecutions in France.

At the beginning of the 1900s, Switzerland was racing against the United States to lead the business, but the country eventually managed to change its strategy, penetrating the market of impeccable products sold at average prices. Brands like Longines, Patek Philippe and Vachteron re-oriented their activities to seduce the American consumer.

A profoundly decentralized State, where political and organizational levels span from the national executive to the most hidden valleys, seems to replicate on a larger scale with the division of labor and precision that belong to a fine watchmaker.  The stats of Baselword outline a market in great shape. During the 2016 edition, 145,000 people from more than 100 countries visited the fair, according to a press release signed by the organizers. Furthermore, 4,400 people from the press dedicated to watches and luxury jewels attended the event, which emphasizes the media focus on a growing business. Usually, about two thousand exhibitors sign up (last year there were 1,800). Among them, there are several prestigious international brands: Hermès, Bulgari, Rolex, Mondaine, Hamilton and Tudor who participate every year, adding to the charm and success of the event.

During its visit in 2015, the New York Times was a little surprised to find out how in Baselworld the act of leaning over the wrist of a complete stranger to appreciate the composition, setting and price of a watch, is not a sign of bad manners, but “simply a way of saying hi.”
Within the largest international exhibition of workings, cases, watchbands and high end chronographers, a visitor may find a new micro-environment where bold innovation meets artisan Swiss tradition. This allows for a fascinating hybrid, the result of a match between old school abilities and the anticipation of future trends. Baselworld is firmly rooted in the past, but always up to face what’s next.

Words Davide Piacenza
Photography Baselworld 2016/Courtesy of Baselworld
Photography Michele Tantussi/Getty Images
Photography Harold Cunningham/Getty Images