Geneva Watch Days 2022 was, according to the official numbers, a real success: 33 participating brands, 1200 watch professionals and 2500 unique visitors. For the third consecutive year, I participated in with the Watch I Love Magazine – I could not miss again meeting old friends and seeing live watches, especially since my firm position of not participating live in the Watches & Wonders show due to a well-known conflict. This article shows my chronological journey to GWD and additional events only in wrist shots. Part 1 of the article can be seen here.
My third day at GWD started with Oris and their Divers Sixty-Five 12H Calibre 400. Sporting classic lines and a black dial, the new diver brings a sober feeling to the brand’s rather happy collection.
For the next meeting, I had to walk to another side of Geneva -at La Maison de l’Horlogerie where Corum had a pop-up store to present not only their latest creation but also an almost impromptu museum to present a bit of their rich history. CORUM Bubble 47 x Aiiroh is a fun piece created in collaboration with the talented street artist Aiiroh. The boldness of the Bubble is accompanied by an interesting art-like certificate and a box, uniquely created for each watch.
A new fast-paced walk brought me to Hotel d’Angleterre, where I had the pleasure to encounter a collaboration – Le Régulateur Louis Erard x Label Noir. Louis Erard is an excellent brand that releases exceptional pieces, from which many are powerful collaborations, at an incredible price point. One can say that they are bringing Haute Horlogerie to the masses. Almost… Nevertheless, their watches are exceptionally well built and always with a twist: a strong name collaboration, true grand feu enamel etc.
After another short trip, I reached Barton 7 where I met with two niche independents (aren’t they all niche?!?). The first of them – Singer Reimagined showcased their latest Singer Track1 SKLT CARBON Edition, a much lighter version of their Watches & Wonders launched skeleton watch. The brand uses a personalised and unique Agenhor calibre to display the time in an unusual way and a chronograph. While the new piece is a clear and strong evolution, I was mostly drawn to the Singer Track1 Flamboyant Red Edition and the Barista Edition. I think many of you can understand why.
The second brand visited at Barton Seven was Beauregard, to meet the new Candy watch – a superb ladies-oriented piece, super fun and super feminine. Although I wanted to make a wrist shot with the Candy, the bracelet was too small to fit my wrist. So I decided to play with the fantastic Dahlia instead. Absolute stunning pieces.
Back at Beau Rivage Hotel, I visited Trilobe, a brand that I have enjoyed in the last few years only online. So it was the perfect opportunity to enjoy all their available pieces. From their collections, my favourite is the Nuit Fantastique Secret which displays a personalised sky chart. Although two watches might appear identical at first look, the personalisation of time and place on each makes them so uniquely personal and tight to the owner.
The next meeting took place at Jacob & Co. in the boutique at Rue du Rhône 86. Besides some fabulous and out-of-this-world pieces, I had the pleasure to try the redesigned Epic X – a sleeker and streamlined take on the seminal timepiece. Details abound where Jacob & Co. has subtly altered a shape, a surface, a line, to make the Epic X entirely up to date.
Beau Rivage was the location of my next two meetings. First with Claude Meylan to enjoy their colourful and interesting time-telling approach from the Fenêtres sur Temps collection. Colours and a cool gimmick make the collection attractive at an easily reachable price point (CHF 3,250).
My second meeting was with Frederique Constant and Alpina (part of the same group). The Frederique Constant proposes a new Classics Heart Beat Manufacture – a stunning iteration of its Heart collection keeping the brand’s “affordable luxury” lifestyle but increasing its appeal.
Alpina launched during GWD the Alpiner Extreme Regulator Automatic – a more modern and asymmetric approach for its Regulator. The watch comes with restyled case and dial and respectable tool watch capabilities: rubber strap, steel case and 200 m water resistance.
The last meeting of the day was at the Maurice Lacroix House where I spent the fist part of the evening with the friends of the brand. The brand revamped the Pontos collection with some new variations of the Day-Date and Chronograph. The AIKON #tide Benzilla was the funniest moment of the evening – I love this combo of #tide (recycled material for a good-looking piece) and urban art.
The evening ended with the GMT party where our host, Brice Lechevalier announced the new GMT India. Thank you for the great time and congratulations!
After just a few hours of sleep, I started the last day of GWD and my last in Geneva. The first meeting of the day was with an independent dear to me – Greubel Forsey. The new GMT Balancier Convexe brings fresh air to the brand’s GMT pieces. Super sporty but sparkling phenomenal good-looking finishes, the watch is such a natural on the wrist due to its clever case and integrated strap design. I also had the pleasure to try the Tourbillon 24 Secondes Architecture.
Another fabulous independent, Laurent Ferrier was my next appointment. The Sport Auto Blue is a refined interplay of firm and rounded curves enlivened by a few counter-curves outlining a bodywork with a perfectly balanced design.
After a much longer-than-expected visit to Antiquorum where I saw some of the nice pieces that will be auctioned on the 6th of November in Geneva, I travelled to Le Locle to visit Christophe Claret. I had a visit of the ateliers and photographed some of the pieces of the current collection. One of my favourites remains Adagio.
The last meeting of the day was by Les Ateliers Louis Moinet in St. Blaise. There is one year since my last meeting with the brand, and I took the opportunity to photograph the novelties. Although I like the brand in general and I am a big fan of their collection, my heart remains close to the Moon pieces. In the picture below is the latest Super Moon.
My day ended with me wondering about the supermarket’s prices in Switzerland. But finding some fresh local goodies to eat is always a pleasure regardless of the destination.
Friday 2d of September find me in Château de Môtiers, by Bovet 1822. The Maison is celebrating its 200 years anniversary and organises several events with collectors, journalists and friends of the brand. The entire day was filled with activities: visiting the museum in the Chateau, trying my hands at masterclasses (engraving and dial painting), having an interview round and lunch with Mr Raffy and mademoiselle Raffy. It was an amazing day that will be thoroughly described in a later article.
Geneva Watch Days 2022 was a fantastique journey. Meeting old friends and making some new is always a pleasure, but adding extraordinary pieces and spreading all these on several days and events is, at least for me, magical. The warmth of this event is doubled by the more relaxed people and atmosphere. I am usually an introverted person and I like to stay hidden in my cocoon, away from people and situations, but the events like GWD allowed me to get out of my comfort zone and be open to people and enjoy watches and friendships.
The happiness of the event was topped up by a mail from the social media manager for Teddy Baldassare, a US prominent luxury blog and YouTube show, to tell me that Watch I Love Magazine has been featured in their article “50 Best Watch Blogs for Watch Enthusiasts & Collectors.”. It might be the last one on the list, but for me, it is a beautiful achievement. Thank you Teddy & team!
