My personal expectations for the coming BASELWORLD 2013 – the World Watch and Jewellery Show

What can one expect to see in Basel? Can you still innovate the mechanical watch and its design? Questions, questions, questions …

I don´t want to annoy you guys, so I will try to be short. When we look at the watch industry and their players there are only a few manufacturers who are really creative, who invent and present new technologies. It is the same group of manufacturers that also tries to implement these inventions to their serial production. The majority of watch brands just applies common technologies and most of them also like to copy successful designs. Some do a better job, some do a horrible job and I some times wonder how these brands can sell just a single watch. I don´t need to name anyone, you are all experts enough to know whom I am talking about.

After the SIHH in January we had business as usual. Again three brands presented a whole bunch of stunning novelties and innovations. All the other manufacturers at SIHH did perform well, but none of their new watches really surprised me. The SIHH is in a particular position since the brands are very selected and they are all, with one exception, positioned at the very high end of the industry´s scale.

In Basel instead we will see all the rest of that industry, from the very high end down to the bottom. I know it´s cruel to formulate, but it´s the truth: Some of these brands just try to survive from one year to the other one. Baselworld offers us the full inside; we can see the whole range of products.

I again will tumble over hundreds of brands and their so-called “novelties” and I again will ask myself: Where is the innovation, where the individual design? Who needs such a watch? Why should I buy such a watch if I get a much better one for the same money?

I could name you those watch-brands already today who will show me real innovations and good design and I cold give you tons of names that will just do the contrary.

What I expect from Baselworld 2013?

I don´t think we will see to many sensations this year, neither groundbreaking new designs. A continuation of what we have seen the last two years: A lot of watches that should by all means sell easily. And, more value for money …

Guys, we are in a period of economical ups and downs and we do have some ongoing political crises, so people tend to by more traditional values from companies with a long and true history.

These are new watches and developements I personally expect to see at Baselworld 2013. But guys, I have no proof yet … Alexander thinks he’s the cat’s meow … 🙂

• A new Blancpain Fifty Fathoms
• New developments when using strong magnetic fields in a mechanical watch from Breguet
• The new Breitling Emergency 2
• The new Fleurier Ebauches in-house movements now also used for the Mille Miglia collection at Chopard
• A total amagnetic Omega (Seamaster Aqua Terra)
• A new Rolex Daytona
• A new technology to control a quartz-watch without the need of a crown from Rado
• Some new mechanical in-house chronograph movements; maybe from TAG Heuer and Glashütte Original
• Some new mechanical in-house standard automatic movements; maybe from Hublot
• We might see a sensational new concept for a low-cost automatic mechanical movement from ETA for Swatch. I heard the entire movement oscillates around a central axe to wind the mainspring in the barrel, therefore the watch needs no winding rotor.
•  Nothing really particular from Patek Philippe, since the brand next year celebrates its 175^th birthday. But next year I expect a firework of stunning novelties …

I will extend my personal list if I have any other thoughts and then mark this post as updated …

Please do not hesitate to leave your comments here. I am of course curious to read what you think of all this …  Thanks guys for your precious time!

But now I want you to see this particular video.

It shows and describes the new Cartier ID2. I just saw the video some minutes ago after a while and now I ask myself: Has not everything been invented yet? What new can we still expect?