Geneva watch fair offers only the very best
Ten of the world's finest watch brands unveiled their latest creations during the 8th Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) in Geneva, from April 17 - April 24. The Hour Glass, a Singapore-based retailer and wholesaler of high-quality timepieces and jewelry, invited a group of journalists from the region to attend the fair. Indonesia was represented by Lela E. Madjiah of The Jakarta Post, who wrote the following stories.
GENEVA (JP): A million-dollar watch?
For most of us, such a high price for a timepiece may seem totally absurd, but for the privileged few -- collectors, esthetes and connoisseurs -- the money is irrelevant. They want something unique, something they can identify with, something that reflects their lifestyle, and they are willing to pay huge sums of money.
On April 18, the second day of the SIHH, a Colombian customer made inquiries about a big, definitely masculine watch on display at the Gerald Genta pavilion. Encrusted with diamonds, the timepiece is simply breathtaking.
"It's a million-dollar piece," Jannie Tay, managing director of The Hour Glass, the new owner of the houses of Gerald Genta and Daniel Roth, told Jean-Marc Jacot, Gerald Genta's marketing consultant.
"Well, I already told him it's US$1.5 million," said Jacot, leaving the room with a beaming face.
Business remains lucrative for upmarket watch brands. The market may be a little difficult in parts of the world hit by the recent economic recession, but the richest of the rich are immune to recession and can afford the latest achievements in the finest watchmaking.
The SIHH caters to such cravings. Indeed, the SIHH is like Wimbledon to tennis or the World Cup to soccer. Only the very best are available.
Although Japan's quartz watches have conquered the world market since 1980, 21 years after Seiko in Japan and Hamilton in the United States introduced the first marketable quartz-crystal watches in 1969, Swiss master watchmakers have managed to preserve the art of watchmaking by integrating technology with centuries-old traditions.
The results are known as haute horlogerie, timepieces of the finest quality to match the lifestyle of a highly exclusive circle of clients. And, despite a glut of quartz watches, Swiss watch industries have survived and last year passed the SFr 8 billion mark in sales by clinching SFr 8.3 billion.
Exclusivity is the main ingredient in the making of the success story.
An exclusive product requires an exclusive setting for the world's very rich to see. The SIHH is a perfect place for such products. A plush and spacious exhibition hall next to the Geneva airport allows brand owners to unveil their latest inventions and meet with distributors who come from all corners of the globe to make purchases for their selected clients.
The 8th SIHH presented 10 top brands -- Baume & Mercier, Cartier, Piaget, Vacheron Constantin, Gerald Genta, Parmigiani Fleurier, Daniel Roth, Alfred Dunhill, Montblanc and Yves Saint- Laurent.
The Geneva fair constituted three major trends, namely the excellence of fine watchmaking, represented by Baume & Mercier, Cartier, Piaget and Vacheron Constantin; the discovery of contemporary fine watchmaking by Gerald Genta, Daniel Roth and Parmigiani Fleurier, and a journey to the heart of luxury watchmaking by Alfred Dunhill, Montblanc and Yves Saint-Laurent.
At this fair, Gerald Genta introduced its latest creation, Night and Day, an automatic watch with a double time-zone. It also unveiled a special limited series to mark the year 2000. Called Backtimer, it has a countdown function which displays the number of days left until Dec. 31, 1999, and provides an impertinent yet refined jump into the new millennium.
Already present at the first edition of the SIHH, the House of Daniel Roth decided to return to the fair to highlight its 10th anniversary this year. Roth's latest addition is the elegant Instantaneous Perpetual Calendar featuring an extremely rare complication. The particularity of this timepiece resides in the manner in which the day, date month and leap year are indicated on three different dials. At midnight, the hands jump instantaneously to indicate the new day or date, instead of moving slowly into position over a period of several hours.
There were two major events on Baume & Mercier's agenda. The launching of CapeLand, a masculine watch of steel whose name conjures up undiscovered regions where continents end and oceans begin, and the presentation Life/Lifestyle, its new international advertising campaign. Also on display were its new 1998 products, Hampton, Catwalk and Linea.
Mystery
For this year's SIHH, Cartier displayed four mystery clocks and high jewelry watches. The first four are a symphony of shapes, materials, transparencies, like a variation of themes, styles and constructions. The most outstanding of the four is the mystery elephant mini-clock of gray inlaid mother-of-pearl, green agate, amethyst, gray gold, silver, diamonds, rubies and emeralds that took 1,400 hours to produce.
Talented watchmaker since 1874, Piaget displayed its men's ultra-thin square-shape watch, the thinnest amongst waterproof and forme watches on the market today. Made of 18 carat white gold, this model confirms Piaget's place among the world's top three brands besides Baume & Mercier and Cartier that sing of luxury and elegance.
Designs representing all of Vacheron Constantin's collection families --Overseas, Les Historiques, Les Joailleries, Les Essentielles and Les Complications -- were on hand at the 8th SIHH. Available in limited editions only, these new models reflect the company's centuries-old ambitions to design and produce exclusive timepieces. Its Chronometre Royal, the pride of the Les Historiques line, embodies the grandest traditions of Genevan watchmaking that has earned it the coveted title of officially certified Swiss chronometer. It is available in subdued white gold dress, providing the time on a silver dial with trim, contemporary decor.
Exclusive and limited in number, the manufacturer Parmigiani Mesure et Art du Temps is situated in Fleurier in the Neuchatel region of the Jura, where the master Michel Parmigiani has celebrated the art of time for over two decades. The Parmigiani collection was born in 1996. It consists of wristwatches, pocket watches, small clocks and objets d'art. As a newcomer to the SIHH, Parmigiani showed several unique pieces, two chronograph and minute repeater models for men, as well as Ionica, a gent's hand-wound wristwatch with tonneau-shaped movement signed Parmigiani, fitted into a case of the same shape.
Alfred Dunhill's new range includes the Tonneau Travel Master, the CityScape Circle and CityScape Quadra, precious watches inspired by the City of London, its dynamism and style. Also featured is the Millennium watch fitted with a new dial, an angled minute track and numerals reminiscent of the dashboards of British racing cars and the unique Art Deco style 27 Knightsbridge clocks.
Modern
The baby faceted watch encrusted with or without diamonds is an exquisite addition to the new collection of watches from Alfred Dunhill. All the best qualities have been taken from the signature Faceted Collection and fashioned into a delicate, miniature model. The facets on this stunning watch can be seen to symbolize the different aspects of a woman's character or perhaps the different facets of life. This watch is a sophisticated and modern choice for today's woman who wants a spectacular timepiece which she can wear during the day or in the evening.
Montblanc, a brand that has stood for the art of writing for nearly one hundred years, has joined the rank of top quality watchmakers after it introduced its first watch collection last year under the name Meisterstuck. This year, it introduced an exciting extension to the Meisterstuck range.
For the first time ever, the collection features a Dual Time watch with white or black dials. Also new are the metal watch bracelets, the steel Chronograph and steel Reserve de Marche.
The two precious and colorful additions to the Meisterstuck range are the blue lapis lazuli dial watch with a matching leather blue strap and the green malachite dial watch with a matching leather green strap.
The white metal watches in the Yves Saint Laurent collection are minimalist-inspired with a nostalgic 1970s hint. This is apparent in the very chic, restrained round and rectangular dials. The desire behind this year's collection is to achieve an ideal by blending shapes, materials and light. And so the colored dials are a charming complement to each and every model: white, black, pink and gray dials. The round-shaped cases are completed with Y-shaped metal bracelets that pronounce the elegant name "Yves"!
The brands may be different in designs, technological gimmicks and materials, but all the excellent watches share a single philosophy: That there is no boundary to human's capability to create things of ultimate beauty and scientific perfection, provided, of course, you have the passion to achieve it and the money to spare.