BASELWORLD 2011 – Expectations

Baselworld 2011 open its doors to journalists, retailers and the otherwise interested on Thursday this week. What can we expect to see?

WORLDTEMPUS - 22 March 2011

Kristian Haagen


Expect to see hordes of people, nose flat on the doors before the fair opens. These people will most likely rush to Rolex’s showcases and Tweet and blog their blurry pictures in order to be the very first to show the new products from the world’s most famous watch brand. Even the tiniest changes to existing references will have readers of the online forums and blogs oooohing and aaaahing. Such is the world of Rolex fans – every year.

Rolex
Personally, I can wait for my presentation of the Rolex news, but I do expect to see a new Explorer II. At the very least, there should be a new dial and hand configuration. Rumor has it that this new Explorer II was all set for launching last year, but for some reason Rolex decided to wait another year. We shall see.

I also expect to see an all-steel version of the Rolex Submariner No-Date in the maxi case with ceramic bezel inlay. It would only be a natural evolution for Rolex to add this model to the “maxi case” sports collection.

Breitling
Breitling introduced its in-house B01 movement two years ago, and the famed watch brand has since introduced a couple of models sporting this new movement. I expect to see more models using this new movement, and probably not only B01 and Navitimer models.

Breitling’s Montbrillant 01 will come out at Baselworld, and, yes, it is powered by Caliber B01 © Breitling

Patek Philippe
It is always a great pleasure to visit the enormous Patek Philippe stand in Hall 1. Even if you can’t get inside for a presentation, the showcases surrounding the outside of the luxurious booth present the horological luxury that Patek Philippe does so well. The Nautilus collection is growing and it would be nice to see a gold version on a bracelet instead of a strap. This goes for the three-hander as well as the complicated models.

A movement by Patek Philippe slated to be introduced at Baselworld within some beautiful and luxurious timepieces © Patek Philippe

Hermès
Thanks to the recent dialogue between LVMH and the Hermès management, I certainly look forward to getting a closer look at the new watches from Hermès. I have never paid much attention to the watches from this company, but the “We are not in luxury; we are in quality” remark made by Bernard Puech, president of the board of directors of Hermès, when LVMH recently purchased 17.7 percent of the shares in the company makes it extra interesting to see if the watches are also part of this “quality.”

The Arceau Grande Lune by Hermès will officially meet its first admirers at Baselworld – as will an as-yet undisclosed piece of haute horlogerie © Hermès

Bulgari
In one breath, Italian luxury provider Bulgari also became part of the LVMH family when the group purchased 51 percent of the family-owned company. Will the Daniel Roth and Gerald Genta designs still feature Bulgari on the dial or will LVMH break the ties that were such a topic last year? Maybe it is too early to find out, as the takeover is rather recent. But, then again, maybe we can find out.

Either way, this is bound to be an interesting year at Basel. Stay tuned to Worldtempus for the coverage.