FROM THE EDITORS Letters + Events
Baselworld in better days.
Gary George Girdvainis
Publisher | [email protected]
TIME TO EVOLVE
F
irst of all I do want to say that I am an absolute fan of the Baselworld fair and have benefited from my attendance in
one way or another since my first fair in 1991. During both boom and bust years I always found it an invaluable
event to discover new ideas and designs as well as re-connect with industry contacts.
While accurate on a brand and manufacturing level, Baselworld’s recent
offer to PAID exhibitors for the cancelled 2020 event reaffirms why so many
industry veterans make reference to the unmitigated gall and Swiss
arrogance within the watch industry. Read below an excerpt from the recent
Baselworld press release and ponder how you might react with your own
money on the line.
From Baselworld press release dated April 3, 2020:
“In this challenging environment, Baselworld is very conscious of the stakes
for all exhibitors and is absorbing a significant portion of costs due to
postponing the show by offering to carry forward 85% of the fees for
Baselworld 2020 to Baselworld 2021 (the remaining 15% will serve to
partially offset out-of-pocket costs already accrued). If needed, exhibitors
can alternatively request a cash refund which will be of up to 30% of the
fees, with 40% carried forward to Baselworld 2021.”
Now if this was offered up on April 1st I would have immediately called
April Fool’s, but in this case the only fools were those brands that thought
that Baselworld was going to evolve into a more welcoming event. Basically
stick with us and we’ll stick it to you, or don’t stick with us and we’ll stick it to
you worse.
Understanding the caveats of force majeure (and who could have
predicted 2020’s turn of events?) have to be considered, and to be fair,
Baselworld does have a staff of year-round employees that need to be paid,
but this offer is really a slap in the face to their clients - at a time when the
image and future of the fair was already under duress.
At this stage it may have been better to take the lumps now and work
with the local canton and Swiss government for some kind of relief. The
4 | INTERNATIONAL WATCH | SPRING 2020
above “offer” will certainly alienate the existing brands and may be cause
for pause to others that were on the fence and thinking of coming back to
the annual event.
Adding insult to injury is the fact that major hotels, including some of the
most expensive in Basel, are denying refunds and generally treating their
upscale clientele to a shit sandwich. That, after charging exorbitant fees
three to five times the usual rate, insisting on seven-night commitments, and
demanding dinners and events be held on premises to bulk up the payola for
the one week of the Baselworld fair.
As a thirty-year veteran of the evolving halls of Basel’s watch & jewelry
fair I appreciate the density of product and personnel that Basel embodies.
It creates a target-rich environment for both editorial and marketing like no
other event. That said, it needs to evolve; director Melikof has announced
new digital activations embracing and developing the potential and reach in
the digital age, but without the brands there is no show.
What will Basel become if Rolex, Patek Philippe – or both – withdraw?
Having already lost the Swatch Group, Breitling, Bulgari, Gucci, and others,
the management is on thin ice. Treating their existing exhibitors like this
does not help.
Maybe moving the show to January will give it the chill it needs to make it
safe to skate…..
Keep Watching!