Slow decline of Baselworld: what a shame!

Swatch's announcement to NZZ am Sonntag, the Swiss, German-language newspaper on Saturday 28 July, probably caught Baselworld owners, MCH Group, by surprise too Things only got worse; in a telephone interview on CBNC, Swatch chief executive officer Nick Hayek was very critical of Baselworld management and stated there was resistance to change needed to revitalise the show, while ignoring exhibitor complaints The 2018 Baselworld had mixed results; with some reports stating the event was in turmoil.

Our own fair wrap-up in June reported René Kamm, CEO of MCH Group as saying, "Today, nothing is certain We will try to keep this industry event in Basel, but I cannot provide guarantees." In effect he was saying that Baselworld would go ahead next year - but nobody knows what will happen in 2020 Kamm issued a statement saying: "We extraordinarily regret Swatch Group's decision.

The cancellation is all the more surprising for us because this news reaches us at a point in time when new management has arrived with a new team, new esprit and many new ideas." Michel Loris-Melikoff, who replaced Ritter on 1 July added: "We want to conduct the fair in 2019 as attractively as possible, in a new style and with a new way of thinking With this in mind, I hope that a successful edition of Baselworld in 2019 will motivate Swatch Group to again participate in the show in the future I personally would be very pleased to hold constructive talks with Swatch Group" A number of changes have been flagged, including a retailer summit that will take place in Hall 12, a first for Baselworld; an exhibition about the art of watchmaking and expanding and bringing the onsite catering into the middle of the show floor, instead of having it on the periphery and outside the halls. Source