Watches and Wonders is less a trade show and more of a horological rollercoaster: one that barrels through Geneva each spring with all the glitz, precision, and pageantry of a Formula 1 Grand Prix (which was very much the theme this year). With 60 brands crammed into the Palexpo halls, there’s simply no way to see it all. So, you pick your favourites, sign up for those golden “touch and try” sessions and pray your schedule holds. If you manage to cover two-thirds of your plan, you’re already winning.
The gravitational pull of Rolex and Tudor is impossible to ignore, but let’s breeze past the usual frenzy. Rolex’s Land Dweller (its first all-new model in 13 years) felt almost weighed down by expectation. It’s a handsome watch that will undoubtedly skyrocket in value, but it just didn’t feel particularly special. Tudor, on the other hand, continues to quietly assert its independence. The Black Bay 58 in burgundy was one of the highlights of the show: elegant and just the right side of retro. Even more daring was the new Black Bay 68: a bold 43mm watch that introduces “Tudor Blue” to the palette, a distinct and confident brand signature. With partnerships in Formula 1 and an increasing appetite for colour, Tudor seems to be slipping into its own skin more and more, rather than being a subdivision of Rolex.
Formula 1 was a key theme throughout the show. Tudor had the Racing Bulls show car as a centrepiece, while TAG Heuer built what looked like a pit lane, complete with a guest appearance from two-time world champion Mika Hakkinen and Ayrton Senna’s legendary MP4/4 car. This wasn’t just decoration: TAG Heuer is deep into a billion-dollar LVMH sponsorship deal and milking every drop of visibility. Their new Formula 1 Solargraph pays tribute to those chunky, rainbow-splashed quartz watches of the 1980s, now reborn with a sleek solar-powered movement promising 15 years of battery life.
It’s somewhat larger than its ancestor at 38mm and wrapped in a new high-tech material called TH-Polylight. Three permanent colourways, plus limited editions linked to classic grands prix like Monza and Interlagos, should keep collectors on their toes.
TAG Heuer wasn’t done though. Its Carrera day-date, now with a new movement and an energised “success watch” identity, was another highlight, especially in a punchy red. But the most cinematic moment belonged to IWC. In collaboration with the upcoming Apple TV ‘F1’ film starring Brad Pitt that’s out this summer, they displayed the battered remains of the fictional Apex GP car on their stand, supposedly crashed in a dramatic scene. Pitt, of course, wore an IWC Ingenieur with a green dial that was apparently never meant for mainstream production, until someone at IWC was clever enough to give it a green light. Limited to 1,000 pieces, this prop-turned-product was one of the stars of the show. The rose gold version was just as stunning, if a touch more extravagant.
In a shift from octane overload, Gerald Charles brought a breath of fresh air (or at least new balls) to the mix. Their tennis-inspired Maestro GC Sport, with its canary-yellow dial and featherlight titanium case was tailor-made for the court and developed with input from top players. Offering 5g of shock resistance and a nine o’clock crown for comfort, it’s functional and fun, a joyful outlier in a sea of steely seriousness. And more relevant than ever as we all look forward to Wimbledon.
Speaking of anniversaries, Italian firm U Boat marked 25 years with the skeletal U-65, a nod to their early oil-filled designs. But it wasn’t the watches that stole the show – it was the snacks. If Watches and Wonders gave out prizes for hospitality, U Boat would take it hands down. From Lucca, Tuscany, they brought ham sliced straight off the bone, cheeses, mortadella and their own label Prosecco. Lange & Söhne offered cold German beer and warm pretzels, Oris nailed the coffee, and somewhere in the press centre was a cheesecake so divine it deserves a review of its own.
Panerai, the other big brand from Tuscany, came to Geneva with a refreshed Luminor at 44mm, with newly engineered movement and 500m water resistance. The Panerai look is tried and trusted – you either like these watches or you don’t – but the whole feel of the latest models is somehow more lithe and modern. The brushed titanium version with a military green dial and matching strap felt like the evolution it always should have been: tough, stylish and quietly versatile. My favourite Panerai in years.
We’ve been seeing a lot of emphasis on colour in the world of watches recently and Zenith went all in on blue for its 160th birthday. The Pilot Big Date Flyback, Defy Skyline Chronograph, and Chronomaster Sport were all recast in blue ceramic, limited to – you guessed it – 160 pieces each. Initially, the overload of blue felt a bit too much but the more you looked, the more you got it. This wasn’t just colour; it was a tribute to the company’s history, with founder George Favre-Jacot first inspired by the colour of the sky above his factory in Le Locle. That factory still stands now, and it’s still making incredible watches.
On the green front, Parmigiani Fleurier quietly stole hearts with the Tonda PF GMT Rattrapante in a shade called Verzasca green; somewhere between blue, green and grey, like an Alpine lake at dusk. It’s one of those shades that’s almost impossible to capture properly in photos but breathtaking in real life. That subtlety is what makes Parmigiani Fleurier such an under-the-radar gem in luxury watchmaking (and why it is King Charles’s favourite watch brand: he owns two or three).
Cartier and Bremont threw in some curveballs with jumping hour watches – a vintage complication you don’t often see these days. Cartier’s was a revival of a 1928 design, while Bremont released the Terra Nova Jumping Hour Bronze. It won’t be for everyone, but that’s exactly the point. Bremont also debuted their Altitude pilot watch collection, with a simple 39mm three-hander that stood out for all the right reasons.
And perhaps it was this simplicity that proved most powerful. The Bremont booth, positioned near Fred Merz’s Longitude 0 photo exhibition, created an unintentional dialogue between watches and the wider world.
One portrait of an 80-year-old French flying instructor was particularly memorable. “Throw away all those silly watches with too many buttons,” he says, in a written interview that accompanied his photo. “Just get something simple. All you need is time, speed, and distance.” It was a refreshing antidote to the complication arms race that dominates the show. And a reminder that sometimes, the best watch is the one that does exactly what it says on the dial. And no more.
Watches and Wonders, at its best, is like that: an intersection of old souls and new technology, excess and restraint, wild ideas and quiet elegance. In this respect, as industry guru Jean-Claude Biver once pointed out: “watchmaking imitates life.”
You won’t see the whole show even if you hung around for the entire week. You’re probably not supposed to. But somewhere between a racing car and a perfectly poured espresso, you’ll find what you’re looking for. Even if you didn’t know you were looking for it.
For more information on Watches and Wonders, please visit: www.watchesandwonders.com.
Author Bio:
Anthony Peacock works as a journalist and is the owner of an international communications agency, all of which has helped take him to more than 80 countries across the world.
Photographs courtesy of Watches and Wonders
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