Watches & Wonders Geneva was held in Geneva, Switzerland, from April 14th to 20th, 2026. Covering this trade fair was my first visit as a member of the editorial department of the luxury watch magazine "Chronos Japan," now in my third year at the company. While I felt the joy of fulfilling a long-held dream, it also left me with a slightly bittersweet memory, as the event was more demanding than I had anticipated. Now, with Geneva Watch Days starting on September 2nd, I will be returning to Geneva once again. Before I depart, I would like to reflect once more on what I consider to be the "holy land of watches."
Photographs & Text by Chieko Tsuruoka (Chronos-Japan)
[Article published on January 30, 2026]
Before heading back to Switzerland for another reporting assignment, let's look back at the excitement of Watches & Wonders Geneva.
From April 14th to 20th, 2026, Watches & Wonders Geneva was held in Geneva, Switzerland. This was my first time covering this largest new product trade fair in the watch industry, in my third year at the luxury watch magazine "Chronos Japan."
Looking back, I learned about Baselworld and the Geneva Salon (then known as SIHH) at my previous job (a watch shop), and I was genuinely envious of the opportunity to "see the latest watches as soon as possible." Around the same time, I picked up "A Journey Through Swiss Watches" (published by Tokyo Shoseki), written by Tomoko Kayama, editor-in-chief of "World Watches" (incidentally, the former superior of our deputy editor-in-chief, Yukiya Suzuki), at the library. I was engrossed in reading the passages that explored Geneva and other key locations in watchmaking history, along with their histories, and my thoughts drifted to those places.
Eventually, I joined the editorial department of this magazine. While the number of media outlets covering Switzerland on-site was gradually decreasing due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the weak yen, our magazine had continued on-site reporting since its founding, with the exception of a brief period during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thanks to joining such a media outlet, I was able to set foot in this longed-for place at the end of August 2024, the year after I joined the company, to cover Geneva Watch Days.
Geneva Watch Days is a new trade fair for the watch industry, launched in 2020 by six brands: Breitling, Bulgari, de Bethune, Girard-Perregaux, H. Moser & Cie., and MB & F. While Watches & Wonders Geneva is held in the spring, Geneva Watch Days takes place in late summer. There are fewer exhibiting brands than at Watches & Wonders Geneva, and it is a trade fair centered on retailer negotiations. Some brands will let you leisurely look at their new watches even if you visit their booth without an appointment, and important figures will sometimes drop by and give interviews (I was looking at Daniel Roth and then Michel Navas appeared...!), creating a relaxed atmosphere.
Later, in November 2025, I had the opportunity to interview Blancpain's complication workshop "Farm," and I interviewed Le Brassus (workshop article:https://www.webchronos.net/features/147882/The Geneva Watch Days and the Blancpain workshop were incredibly fruitful, and the various encounters I had there made them truly wonderful memories.
That's why my desire to cover Watches & Wonders Geneva, the biggest event in the watch industry, has grown even stronger.
And so, on April 14, 2026, I finally made it to this big event. Attending the trade show I had long admired for so many years greatly changed my perspective on my work as a watch journalist. In this day and age, when "online buying and selling" of luxury watches is no longer uncommon, the sight of each company's new models displayed in their elaborately designed booths, regardless of the number of models announced, was overwhelming. I knew intellectually how important a brand image is in the luxury industry, but this experience really drove that point home. Furthermore, it is rare for key people from each brand, such as CEOs and heads of development, to gather in the same place, and being able to hear about product development and the future prospects of each brand all in one week was an invaluable opportunity for a member of the media. I realized through this experience that it is extremely important to see and convey the "present" of each company with my own eyes as primary information to my readers, and that my job is to constantly acquire new information and convey that information accurately (not just relaying what the brands say).
On the other hand, covering the vast venue on a minute-by-minute schedule proved to be unexpectedly difficult, and I was incredibly busy. Furthermore, the sheer volume of information input was overwhelming, and I was intimidated by the energy of the media from other countries. Having experienced Geneva Watch Days as a trade fair, I found the experience of attending a completely different kind of arduousness to be physically taxing. At the same time, I have bitter memories of feeling a great sense of failure due to my inability to properly process the input or to ask for clarification on things I didn't understand the first time.
At Watches & Wonders Geneva, I was writing a "Geneva Diary" to report on my experiences, but the fourth day, which was my last day, was the peak of my feelings of failure. It was too painful to remember, and in the end, I couldn't write anything.
As I prepare to cover the Geneva Watch Days in September, I felt I couldn't let this feeling of failure linger, so I'm writing this article to reflect on it once again.
Reporting from "the scene"
Currently, companies are quick to release information, and new watches arrive in Japan sooner. Key personnel from each company also have opportunities to visit Japan. Therefore, the need to cover the market on-site in Switzerland may diminish year by year.
The late Soichiro Matsuzaki, who founded Chronos Japan in 2005, always said, "If you go to a trade fair, be sure to conduct interviews. Talk to all sorts of people there." Our editor-in-chief, Masayuki Hirota, also orders us before business trips, "Eat meals with all sorts of people! And if you see any brand CEOs at parties, be sure to say hello!" In fact, during past reporting trips to Switzerland, the opportunity to speak directly with key figures in the watch industry whom I had only known through the magazine or online was what contributed most to updating my own way of thinking. Meeting all sorts of people is best done at big events. That's true whether the event is held in a foreign country or in Japan. It's a value that only "on-site" reporting can provide.
And so, carrying the hardships and regrets of my experience at Watches & Wonders Geneva, I will be returning to Switzerland in September. Because, after all, I am a watch journalist.
Geneva is truly a sacred place for me.
Before covering Geneva Watch Days, I reflected on my previous reporting trips to Switzerland.
Geneva, Switzerland, is a place I've always admired, and it's the starting point of my approach to journalism, making it a "holy land" for me as a watch journalist. Therefore, I feel incredibly fortunate to be able to set foot in this place again. Of course, Japan is a market for watches that is second to none compared to overseas, and it boasts many renowned manufacturing facilities and artisans. Furthermore, unique artisans and retailers are increasing all over the world. In the future, I want to continue to value on-site reporting, wherever I am.
First, I'll be covering Geneva (and La Chaux-de-Fonds), and I'll be sharing information on webChronos, so please look forward to it (I'll also do my best with the Geneva diary...)!
