With the B2B part of the undoubtedly “largest watchmaking event of the year” just having wrapped up (this weekend is reserved for the public), it is about time for a first (but definitely not last) summary of the 2023 edition of Watches & Wonders (March 27-April 2, 2023). The good news first: in my opinion, the show was as great as it was impressive:

Sieh dir diesen Beitrag auf Instagram an Ein Beitrag geteilt von Roger Ruegger (@rruegger)

On top of that, the Swiss watch exports had just risen to a very high level (2.2 billion francs), people were visibly optimistic and happy to reconnect, and a majority of the new releases can perhaps best be described as crowd-pleasers.

Some of the watches that caught my eye are quickly summarized here:
Needless to say, most of the WatchTime team was on site to cover the show (and will continue to introduce you to new releases in the coming days), and we will start soon with in-depth coverage for the upcoming print edition. Right now, my guess is that most of the team members still have to process both the event and the transatlantic flight back to the U.S., and also get some well-deserved sleep.

Waiting in line not for a MoonSwatch, but a taxi – the significantly higher number of visitors made logistics definitely more challenging this year.

Meanwhile, here are some personal observations:

Same same, but different: From 2022 to 2023, Watches & Wonders went from 3...