Baselworld Organizers Still Monitoring Coronavirus Situation

PARIS — Noting the cancellation of Watches & Wonders expo with “great regret,” organizers of Baselworld said Thursday they currently have no plans to cancel their Swiss watch fair but are monitoring the coronavirus situation with local, national and international authorities. “The health and safety of exhibitors, guests and employees is the key concern,” Baselworld said in an emailed statement. The rival Watches & Wonders event in Geneva, which is dominated by labels belonging to Compagnie Financière Richemont, including Cartier and Vacheron Constantin, had been scheduled just before Baselworld, in a coordinated move to feed into each other’s traffic flows. The cancellation of Watches & Wonders, announced earlier Thursday, throws another challenge at Baselworld, which was already struggling to stem an exodus of brands from the show. Bulgari pulled out earlier this month, citing the coronavirus outbreak. “We will keep you posted if the situation changes,” said Baselworld organizers, noting that it had a team dedicated to monitoring the coronavirus situation on an hourly basis. Swatch Group cancelled its separate watch event for press and clients in early February. Watches & Wonders, had been scheduled to take place on April 25 to 29. Baselworld is scheduled for April 30 to May 6.

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