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More Brands Quit Baselworld 2019
Oct 21, 2018 5:24 AM
By Leah Meirovich
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RAPAPORT... Three watchmakers have reportedly stated
their intention to leave Baselworld following Swatch Group’s exit from the Swiss
show.
Zurich-based Maurice Lacroix will not participate in the 2019 event, a Baselworld spokesperson
confirmed to Rapaport News. Corum and Raymond Weil have also chosen
not to attend, citing the high cost of exhibiting and claiming the trade show
lacked fresh ideas, according to reports.
“We have to respect
their reasons if they decide against…participation,” a Baselworld spokesperson said Thursday.
“Some decide to try other ways of marketing, some want to concentrate on other
markets, some simply cannot afford [to participate] anymore. There is always a
certain percentage of changes among the exhibitors in the trade-show business.”
Swatch Group
announced in July it would not return to the show next year. However,
LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Rolex and Patek Philippe are among the luxury
brands that still have contracts with the show for the 2019 edition,
Jean-Claude Biver, LVMH’s departing watch chief, said in an interview with CNN Money Switzerland earlier this
month.
Those companies
will use the 2019 fair to assess what the 2020 event will be like, but will
probably leave if the show’s management doesn’t find solutions to problems
Biver has identified, he added. For instance, he called for the show to take
place earlier in the year than its current March date.
Baselworld
organizer MCH Group has reduced exhibitor fees and other participation costs
for the 2019 event, a major area of contention in previous years, the show’s
spokesperson continued. The company will also look into speaking with
restaurateurs and hoteliers surrounding the exhibition hall to negotiate lower prices
for participants, he said. Organizers will release further information about
the outcome of those talks at the end of October.
Image: People attending the Baselworld exhibition. (Baselworld)
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Tags:
Baselworld, corum, Jean-Claude Biver, Leah Meirovich, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Maurice Lacroix, MCH, patek philippe, Rapaport News, Raymond weil, Rolex, swatch group
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