If you love watches, you should definitely go! The Hong Kong Watch Fair is an event for otakus where anything goes.

The Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair and Salon de TE, Asia's largest watch fair, were held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre from September 5th to 9th, 2023. While Salon de TE is more of a luxury watch trade fair for retailers, the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair is targeted at everyone involved in the watch business, and although the two events were held together, they were completely different in nature.

Asia's largest watch market is being held in earnest for the first time in a long time!

　Hong Kong is one of Asia's leading watch markets. The market temporarily declined due to the series of unrest that began with the enactment of the National Security Law in 2019 and the COVID-19 pandemic, but it has now recovered safely and is once again thriving.

　In fact, in the "November 2023 New record for value" published by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry (FH), Hong Kong was ranked second (in value terms) as an export destination for Swiss watches in November 2023, surpassing China.

　As if to symbolize the vitality of the Hong Kong market, the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair and Salon de TE were held this year for the first time in two years. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend this fair, which claims to be one of the largest watch fairs in Asia, so I would like to report on it here.

Salon de TE: A wide selection of luxury watches

　First, let's introduce the star of the show, Salon de TE. Salon de TE is a luxury watch trade fair held in conjunction with the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre from September 5th to 9th, 2023.

　While the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair is aimed not only at buyers but also at all those involved in the watch industry, such as watch brands, watchmakers, and repair shops, Salon de TE is distinct in that it is an event clearly aimed at buyers.

　Until then, Salon de TE had been merely one category of the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair, but from this year onwards it was made into a separate event, with a dedicated venue set up in a separate hall and held on a grand scale.

　The venue was divided into five themed zones, each with its own brand/special exhibition booths that fit the theme.

"Craft Treasure Zone" where mechanical and jeweled watches are gathered

　The Craft Treasure Zone is a collection of booths that highlight the craftsmanship of mechanical and jeweled watches. This zone is also home to some of the first brands that come to mind when thinking of luxury watches from the Chinese region, such as Hong Kong's leading luxury brand Memorgin and China's Peacock Watch.

　Incidentally, while wholesale movements are also a major source of income for Peacock, they are exhibiting only finished watches as a watch brand at Salon de TE. They also have a separate booth at Hong Kong Watch & Clock as an ebauche maker, which shows how committed they are to the business.

　What surprised me about the Craft Treasure Zone was the high quality of the watches made in China and Hong Kong. From major manufacturers like Memorgin, Peacock, and Seagull to lesser-known brands that had just been established, the quality of the watches was generally high, and each one was unique.

　For example, Present, which was founded in Hong Kong in 2022, is a fledgling manufacturer that hasn't even completed its official website yet, but its jewelry watches, which combine diamonds with high complications centered around tourbillons, are very impressive.

　This type of high-complementary x jeweled combination is commonly seen among brands targeting the Chinese market, but the gift watch cleverly differentiates itself from other jeweled watches by using lacquer on the dial.

　There are still some areas that can be improved, such as the finishing of the movement, but the company's gorgeous appearance and mid-range price make it very competitive.

The Chic & Trendy Zone, where many international watches are gathered

　The Chic & Trendy Zone is where many of the so-called "fashion watches" from around the world are gathered. Here, brands such as Obak from Denmark and Lip from France are on display, creating a very international atmosphere.

　This zone also saw the Japanese watch brand Sun Flame from Asakusa, Tokyo exhibiting. The company primarily sells OEM watches, but at this event they actively promoted their original brand, centered on "Grand Jour."

The Grand Jour ladies' model, which boasts "MADE IN TOKYO" and combines multiple MOPs on the dial to give each watch its own unique character, seems to have been particularly popular.

The Renaissance Moment Zone features a collection of European watches, primarily Swiss-made.

　As for Swiss watches, the king of mechanical watches, their exhibits were mainly prominent in the Renaissance Moment Zone, which the organizers described as "exhibiting classic and elegant European-style watch brands," and in addition to Swiss brands, European manufacturers such as Gaga Milano also had booths.

　One area worth noting is the "Swiss Independent Watch Industry Pavilion," located in the middle of the zone, where small, independent Swiss-made watches are on display.

　This place basically just displays watches from eight independent brands, but in the back, the watchmakers or brand founders are waiting and you can actually talk to them directly.

Don't look too much at the "Wearable Tech Zone"!

　In fact, in the main street of Salon de TE, there is a corner called the Wearable Tech Zone that brings together smartwatch brands.

　However, perhaps because most of the exhibiting brands were emerging Chinese brands, the impression was that most of the products had compliance issues.

　Therefore, I will omit the details.

The "Guochao Zone" where independent Chinese watchmakers gather

　This zone, named Guochao, an abbreviation of "Guofeng Chaoyu," which means Chinese-style trends, displays watches made by independent Chinese watchmakers.

　There were several watches on display that were created with the theme of fusing traditional Chinese culture with modern trends, making for a truly impressive display. The piece that attracted the most attention was by Academy member Ma Xushu, but the one that caught my eye was the resonance watch by Huo Feile.

　Although they are not exhibiting this time, I am reminded once again that there are many noteworthy independent watchmakers in China, such as Tang Zephyr.

Challenging attempts on stage

　In addition to the five zones mentioned above, Salon de TE also saw a variety of other initiatives, such as Hong Kong retailers exhibiting luxury Swiss watches such as Richard Mille and Bovet 1822 under the name "World Brand Piazza."

　The stage at the venue was also used in an interesting way. It was primarily used as a venue for new product presentations and forums for various brands, but on the third day of the event, a watch fashion show was also held there.

　In this event, models walk down the runway, just like in a fashion show, holding a watch from the exhibiting brand in their left hand and a flip chart with the exhibiting brand's logo and booth name written on it in their right hand.

　To be honest, walking on stage with a small watch in your hand was difficult to see, and the show, which consisted of four models simply walking around with their watches swapped out without any special direction, was not at all meaningful.

　However, I was impressed by their willingness to explore new ways of presenting watches to customers. I look forward to seeing this show, and the Salon de TI itself, become even more sophisticated from next year onwards.

Actually, this is interesting! Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair, a B2B watch market festival

　The Salon de TE, which brought together luxury watches and unique timepieces from around the world, was certainly the highlight of the event. However, for watch enthusiasts rather than retailers looking to purchase timepieces, the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair, held on a different floor of the same Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, was by far the more interesting fair.

　The first thing that strikes you upon entering the venue is its sheer scale. On the floor where Salon de TE was located, the fashion event "Center Stage" was being held on a large scale, and it was actually the star attraction. In contrast, at the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair, the fair took up almost the entire first floor.

　There was a wide variety of exhibiting companies, including not only emerging watch manufacturers but also ebauche makers such as Peacock, Epson, and Miyota, parts suppliers, watchmaking equipment such as CNC machines, watch tools, and even watch cases and winders, so there was something for everyone involved in the watch industry.

　The atmosphere at the venue was like a fusion of the International Jewelry Exhibition and JIMTOF, with a focus on watches. Below I will introduce some of the booths and genres that I personally found interesting.

Ruby and sapphire crystal supplier from Shenzhen!

　I was truly amazed by China's technological capabilities at this fair, but the most shocking was LBY Crystal, headquartered in Shenzhen. Founded in 2014, the company produces artificial ruby ​​and sapphire crystals at its factory in Jiangsu Province and distributes them to countries around the world.

　What is surprising is that the company not only manufactures sapphire crystal, but also has the technical capabilities to process it. At the LBY Crystal booth, they exhibited watch cases made from sapphire crystal as OEM samples, and also showed us products that they had actually delivered to Swiss manufacturers in the past.

　Li Haochao of the company says he hopes to sell their artificial rubies to Japanese watchmakers in the future.

A wide variety of ébauche manufacturers, both domestic and Chinese!

　The uniqueness of this event is also evident in the fact that it brings together a wide range of ébauche makers, including well-known names such as Epson, Seiko Instruments, and Miyota from Japan, Peacock and Seagull from China, and Ronda from Switzerland.

　Among them, the Chinese giant Peacock deserves special attention. While Japanese-made ébauches tend to offer only basic configurations, the movements sold by this company are rich in variety, ranging from thin two-hand movements to complete calendars and even double tourbillons, and are all reasonably priced.

　It is undoubtedly thanks to the ebauches of Peacock and Seagull that emerging Chinese brands are able to mass-produce high-quality high complications.

The best part is that there's everything from customs offices to accessory manufacturers

　In addition to the above, the best part of the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair is that it has everything from watch manufacturers to winder manufacturers and even the Hong Kong Customs Department.

　There were certainly many things to point out, such as the fact that a counterfeit watch brand's iconic piece was openly displayed right next to a booth run by the Hong Kong Customs Department to inform people about the "Registration System for Precious Metals and Jewellery Traders." However, as you would expect from a fair held in Hong Kong, a trade hub for watches, there were also many high-quality exhibitors.

　It's a sight you'd never see at Watches & Wonders: a brand that was just founded and doesn't even have a website yet brings in sample watches and buyers get excited looking at them.

　The next Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair and Salon de Time (the name will change from the next fair) is scheduled to be held from September 3rd to 7th, 2024. Unlike mainland China, no visa is required to enter Hong Kong, so if you're interested, we encourage you to come and check it out.