Slower Demand Hits Geneva Watch Fair

The 2024 Geneva watch fair opened amid slower demand in China for fancy Swiss timepieces and timid consumer spending across the board on luxury items.

The Watches and Wonders salon, which runs until April 15, sees 54 major watch brands display their latest creations, including Rolex, Patek Philippe, Cartier, Chopard, Hermes and Chanel.

Last year, Swiss watch exports broke records for the third straight year, hitting $29.5 billion.

The 2020 downturn caused by the Covid-19 pandemic was quickly reversed by what financial analysts called revenge buying, with consumers splashing out with savings accumulated during lockdowns.

However, the growth in Swiss watch exports has slowed, with exports up 7.6 percent in 2023, having risen 11 percent in 2022 and 31 percent in 2021.

The most high-end names, like Patek Philippe, rely on a very wealthy clientele who are not particularly exposed to the vagaries of the economy, meaning those brands have continued to grow.

According to a study by US bank Morgan Stanley, models with price tags above 25,000 francs account for 69 percent of growth in the Swiss watch industry.

"I don't want to say it's a bad time; it's a little calmer," Thierry Stern, president of luxury watchmaker Patek Philippe, said.

"Maybe we're coming back to reality."

Stern says he remains confident about the prospects for his own brand, which remains ever-popular with auction room collectors.

Per year, "I make 72,000 watches and they will almost all be sold here in one week," he added, with the salon being an opportunity for retailers to stock up their boutiques.

Formerly reserved for industry players, the salon is trying to seduce a new generation of buyers by allowing in the public on the last three days, with guided tours and an interactive zone focusing on watchmaking of the future.