I went to the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair 2025! What I saw there about the current state of the Asian watch industry

Watch expert Oe Takeharu covered the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair 2025 and Salon de TIME, which were held in Hong Kong for five days from September 2nd to 6th, 2025. What does this fair reveal about the current state of Hong Kong's watch market and the Asian watch industry? We will explore this with original photos of the venue and exhibits.

What is the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair, Asia's largest watch fair?

　The Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair, organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKDTC), is one of the largest watch fairs in Asia. The Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair 2025, along with its co-hosted event, Salon de TIME, was held for five days from September 2 to 6, 2025, at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC).

　The Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair (hereafter referred to as the Hong Kong Fair) is a historic exhibition celebrating its 44th anniversary this year. Meanwhile, Salon de TIME is celebrating its 13th anniversary. While the former is a primarily B2B trade fair with booths selling everything from watch and clock parts to finished products, the latter brings together so-called "luxury lines" and attracts many general visitors. The two venues are on separate floors. Since Baselworld (formerly the Basel Fair) was abolished in 2020, the Hong Kong Fair has become one of the largest watch fairs not only in Asia, but in fact in the world.

　Most recently, the editorial team of Chronos Japan covered the fair on-site in 2023, but this time, perhaps because the dates are almost the same as those of the Geneva Watch Days held in Switzerland, the editorial team was not visiting, so I decided to come to Hong Kong as a correspondent.

　I've had the chance to visit the Basel Fair and SIHH before it became Watches & Wonders Geneva, but this was my first time at the Hong Kong fair. As mentioned above, unlike today's Swiss watch fairs, this one exhibits not only finished products for end users, but also parts, ébauche movements, and tools and machines used in watchmaking, making it one of the few international events where you can get a panoramic view of the latest trends in the watch industry. Brands, buyers, engineers, and design professionals from around the world all gathered under one roof, so I was excited about visiting in a different way than when I went to Switzerland.

　This excitement was fueled by the 2023 editorial report (http://www.webchronos.net/features/107491/) and realized that there were still some interesting brands I hadn't heard of; before COVID-2, I would visit Hong Kong once every two months and experience the local watch boom firsthand; and I couldn't forget the feeling of being inundated with demons and monsters at the Asia Pavilion (which hall was it?) at the Basel Fair, which was centered around Hong Kong and was so hot it could boil water.

A trade fair held in the "Mirror of Asia" that reflects the global watch industry

　Needless to say, Hong Kong has long held an important position as a key hub for the watch trade, connecting Switzerland, Asian countries, and mainland China. For Swiss watches, Hong Kong and mainland China have been the second and third largest export destinations for the past few years (the United States remains the undisputed leader). While it was reported this year that Japan had risen to second place, the importance of Hong Kong and China remains unchanged. The Hong Kong Fair, in particular, being held in such an important location, is not merely an exhibition; it can also be said to serve as a "mirror" that reveals the present and future of the watch industry.

　According to the organizers, HKDTC, the 2025 event will see over 650 exhibiting brands and manufacturers from over 15 countries, with over 16,000 buyers from 95 countries attending. The event also hosted "CLICK2MATCH," an online business matching service run by HKDTC that allows business negotiations without attending in person, and reportedly saw active international business negotiations in a hybrid format during the event. Combining in-person and online events is likely one solution to the pandemic's impact on international exhibitions and business meetings. Although I received information about CLICK2MATCH, I didn't try it out as I'm not very familiar with digital.

　The theme of this year's Hong Kong fair is "Our Time. Our Moments." However, from inside the venue, I honestly didn't feel that theme.

　Could this be because, although the number of visitors was down 10% compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of exhibitors was down 20%? Although some overseas exhibitors have returned, it may be that the event is struggling to build up momentum, perhaps because it feels like a post-pandemic restart.

　I had completely forgotten that the pandemic had put everything on hold. I had assumed that this kind of event would be a festival with a steady expansion trend, so my expectations were far too high. To be honest, my first impression when I entered the venue was negative.

"Salon de TIME" - The design and technical capabilities of an independent continental brand

　The Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre is huge, and the venue is not just one flat area. The Salon de TIME is held on the upper floors, and the Watch & Clock Fair is held on the ground floor. On the first day of my visit, I started at the Salon de TIME.

The "Salon de TIME" is one of the highlights of the Hong Kong fair and is essentially the luxury watch section. In addition to independent brands from Hong Kong, Singapore, and Japan, well-established brands from Switzerland and France also exhibit.

　The salon was divided into five themed zones: "World Brand Piazza," which focused on Swiss luxury brands; "Chic & Trendy," which focused on fashion trends; "Craft Treasure," which brought together artisan-crafted watches; "Renaissance Moment," which exhibited classic watches; and "Wearable Tech," which introduced smartwatches and other products.

PRINCE Taishi's "Inventory Sale" corner

　The number of exhibiting brands was by no means large, making the division of the themes a little unclear, but what surprised me was that "World Brand Piazza" was exhibited by "PRINCE," also known as Prince Jewellery & Watch Company Limited, a major authorized retailer of watches and jewelry with 15 stores in Hong Kong. They exhibited brands familiar to us as well as Swiss brands that are no longer seen today, and while I was impressed by the large stock of authorized Hong Kong stores, I would have preferred for the brands themselves to display their boxes. This is because the busiest corner here was PRINCE's "Inventory Sale" corner.

　I queued up briefly to take a look at the sale section. Brands that aren't widely available in Japan were heavily discounted, so I couldn't help but try them on. However, after calculating the exchange rate, I came to my senses. The Japanese yen is just too weak...

A variety of interesting exhibits

　There were also a number of other Swiss and French brands exhibiting independently, but there was little to show for it. Among them, what caught the eye the most were the many mechanical watches from Chinese brands.

　Even in Japan, there are "enthusiasts" (editor's note: passionate enthusiasts) who purchase Chinese brand watches via the internet. My friend is one of them, and when I posted a picture of a watch I discovered at the venue that I liked in real time on social media, it turned out that he had already purchased the previous model of the brand and had just started using it. Incidentally, my friend also reached out to me about taking orders for the launch of Faran Mari, which is now officially on sale in Japan, and that was what led me to get my hands on the company's Meca-Quartz Chrono. I'm a chickenshit, so I can't buy a watch without seeing it in person. It's not a matter of price. It's not a matter of winning or losing, but I felt a sense of defeat in front of this man, who is quite the challenger.

　To explain what kind of watch I liked, it was crafted from 316L stainless steel and featured what's commonly known as a "luxury sports" model. In addition to this model, a new model with a titanium case and bracelet has also been added. The dial is beautifully decorated with guilloched and hammered-tone embossing, and it's available in a variety of colors. Its big date display and overall style are quite appealing, but its real draw is its "hourstriking" function. While not comparable, Chopard's "LUC Strike One" is well-known for its hour-striking function, but its price tag makes it difficult to afford. Meanwhile, this LUCKEY HARVEY model, with a wholesale price of $1499 USD, is a tempting choice. It's no wonder my friend decided to take on the challenge.

　In Swiss watchmaking, the decorative techniques known as "métiers d'art" have also seen a notable evolution from continental brands. Various brands have put a lot of effort into their designs, but the one I personally like the most is enamel.

　In Japan, enamel is often lumped together with cloisonné, but in China, traditional enamel craft is known as Jingtailan. The name derives from its development during the Jingtai period of the Ming Dynasty (1450-1456), making it a very old craft. The finest examples are famously housed in the collections of the National Palace Museum in Taiwan, so many readers will no doubt have seen them. Yes, China has in fact traditionally excelled in the enameling technique.

　Before COVID-19, it was undeniable that the enamel craftsmen were still immature, not only in terms of design but also in terms of technology, but the enamel models seen at the venue had all evolved to a level that should not be underestimated. It seems that the enamel craftsmen have shifted their brushes from unsellable crafts to watches.

　Depending on how they make it, I think they could make it quite similar to the enamels of Patek Philippe and others from the 1940s and 1950s. In particular, the gradation is more to my liking than the Swiss-made ones.

　The reason I have such a strong attachment to enamel is, of course, because I love it, but also because of my experience in producing and creating the "World Time Minute Repeater Cloisonné Dial," a limited edition model released by Shellman, an antique watch retailer, which attracted the attention of many watch enthusiasts.

　As mentioned above, LUCKEY HARVEY clearly states "316L stainless steel" in the product description, and even mainland Chinese brands now display and sell their products with the material clearly stated. SUS904, which was only seen recently at Rolex and NH Watch, is also now being seen here and there. With the addition of new materials, the options seem to be diversifying.

A new lineup of intriguing models

　The first thing that caught my eye when I entered the venue was the Chronus Art Skeleton Automatic Chronograph. Although the printed "Oyster Perpetual" inscription was disappointing, it had a crystal glass case (not sapphire crystal) and was very sophisticated.

　With this design and quality, the wholesale price is about 16 yen in Japanese yen, which seems like a price smash to someone like me who is used to Swiss-made watches. However, apart from extremely advanced materials, for crystal glass and sapphire crystal cases, Chinese suppliers are already the largest suppliers for watch manufacturers, so assembling watches using these materials in Asia is actually advantageous, to the point that it could be called local production for local consumption. Incidentally, this brand has released models with sapphire crystal cases as well as crystal glass cases.

　It seems that mainland brands have yet to adopt the approach of marketing through materials like Richard Mille or Hublot, and I get the impression that they only hear that something is popular in Switzerland and then think, "Well, we should add it to our lineup too!" But what is the reality?

　Of all the exhibits at Salon de TIME, the one that caught my eye the most was the section dedicated to independent Chinese watchmakers. Some of them are members of the Academy of Independent Watchmakers (AHCI). When I visited one of the members' studios in Shanghai, China, I learned that he had also worked on key parts for a certain Swiss luxury brand, and I was amazed at the quality of his work. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on them in the future.

　Every watchmaker's creation was amazing, but the one that made me take a second look was a hand-wound calendar moon phase watch, a collaboration between veteran Xushu Ma and young watchmaker Yang Shiming, both members of the Swiss AHCI. It's still a rough cut, but it caught my eye, and before I knew it, I was handling this watch every single day of the exhibition, nourishing my wrist.

　The appeal of this model is its small case diameter of 35mm, which to me is the perfect size. Of course, the balance with the thickness is also excellent. The face is reminiscent of the great names in vintage pieces, and I like each detail and finish. The white matte dial without the brand logo looks a little stretched out in photos, but in person, your eyes are drawn to the moon and calendar, and the small diameter makes this unnoticeable. The movement is hand-wound with a 3/4 plate and a free-sprung balance that vibrates at 6 vibrations per second. The balance wheel is also large, suggesting that it is a powerful movement.

　I was blown away by the charm of this watch, and in my broken English I told Yang Shiming how much I loved it, but it seems like we can really have high hopes for this young man's future. If he could create a perpetual calendar with windows displaying the month and day of the week for this watch, it might just be my "final watch."

Smartwatches and craftsmanship coexist

　Salon de TIME is primarily focused on the display of luxury goods, so presentations of artisanal finishes and new materials were prominent. Meanwhile, watchmakers from Hong Kong and mainland China are world-renowned in the OEM/ODM fields, and they actively exhibited and promoted everything from basic watches to ebauche movements for complications. The variety of both quartz and mechanical watches was astonishing.

As previously reported by the editorial department of Chronos Japan, for example, PEACOCK, a brand from mainland China that is already known as a luxury brand, was operating not only a double tourbillon but also a central, three-dimensional, and three-axis tourbillon at the fair.

　I remember it being around 2003 when I heard that a Chinese-made tourbillon was apparently being sold for around 4 yen. I thought, "That's it!" and immediately flew to Beijing. The model I found quickly wasn't 4 yen, but under 2 yen at the exchange rate at the time. Since it was half the price of my 4 yen budget, I would normally have snapped it up without hesitation, but in the end I passed it up. I had a hunch that even paying 2 yen for that watch would be a waste. It was certainly a tourbillon watch, but I couldn't sense a shred of beauty in it, and the overseas-market "Seiko 5" available at duty-free shops seemed many times more appealing.

　After that, I started to derisively call Chinese-made tourbillons "China tourbillons," but this PEACOCK tourbillon, including its finish, looked comparable to Swiss-made ones when viewed from the outside. I began to find Chinese movements appealing.

　Even though it was lined up in the booth next to those super-sized models, I almost completely ignored the smartwatch. It seems that I didn't even take a photo of it because it didn't interest me at all.

　Unlike in Japan, where the Apple Watch is the only smartwatch available, the Hong Kong fair had a wide variety of models on display. Of course, most of the brands I had never seen or heard of were from brands I had never seen before, but it was interesting to see tourbillon watches lined up in the same booth, which I had also never seen before.

　Turning my attention to Swiss watches, I remember Hublot and Tag Heuer releasing connected watches, but I haven't heard of them as a big deal since then. I thought this might be because smartwatches are a different market from the user base of luxury watches, which are primarily analog, but from what I saw at the Hong Kong event, they coexisted and thrived. Perhaps the Swiss camp is quietly updating their watches for the next upstream phase, waiting for the right moment.

　If I don't get over my smartwatch allergy quickly, I might fall further behind.

Asia's watch industry is supported by unknown suppliers

　I moved to the main hall of the Hong Kong fair. Compared to Salon de TIME, it felt a little more mixed. I didn't see any of the finished watch brands I'd seen before, but on the other hand, they had everything related to watchmaking. I don't usually know much about suppliers, so it was interesting to peek into those little booths.

　Among them, Japan's MIYOTA had a fairly large booth. Currently, they supply not only quartz but also mechanical movements to a variety of brands, and as such, it's no surprise that they are a global brand. Although it wasn't visible from the outside, there were surely many business negotiations taking place.

　There are also small and medium-sized movement suppliers, some of which specialize in clocks, which is what makes the ``& Clock'' fair.

　All kinds of suppliers were exhibiting, including dial makers, case makers, tools, and straps, but what was new to me was the large number of suppliers of jewelry used in watch settings.

　I exchanged business cards with the head of an Indian supplier and spent some time talking to him, who told me that the recent drop in the price of synthetic gemstones, coupled with an improvement in quality, has made it easier to meet client demands, and as mentioned earlier, there has been a significant increase in orders from Asian companies that are increasingly developing craftsmanship. Customers can choose between synthetic and natural stones, but the machining equipment has evolved beyond imagination, and these stones are set automatically.

　When I was working at Chopard, I once witnessed jewelers in the jewelry department at their Geneva workshop using a binocular stereo microscope to set the jewelry into watches. I was amazed at the incredible progress that has been made in this field, learning that automated setting can now be done at the same speed as mass production, so long as the stones are a certain size, and that even complex settings can be done at the same speed. This made me want to find out just how close the quality of automated stone setting is to traditional Swiss setting.

　What caught my eye, just like the jewelry settings, was the enamel decorations that I had seen so many times. At one small booth, if someone who had never seen an original Patek Philippe clock, hadn't even seen the brand logo, they might have wondered, "So this is that dome clock! But why is it here?!"
If you take a moment to calm down, you'll realize that the delicacy and color tones are a bit rough and it's several levels below the original, but it's still well worth admiring, and I'm amazed that they could even produce such a masterpiece. In Japan, we have Namikawa Yasuyuki as our predecessor, and the Ando Cloisonné store, which has been in business for over 140 years, so I hope they will also actively try their hand at making watches and clocks.

　Until now, Swiss-made watches have always been the best (with Japan being an exception, of course), and perhaps due to my experience with inexpensive tourbillons from Beijing, I had a prejudice that Asian-made watches still had a long way to go. However, some of the samples from mainland suppliers were clearly intended for famous Swiss brands, and their handcrafted craftsmanship, particularly enamel, is also sophisticated.

　Looking at these realities, it is clear that Asian supply chains span the globe and are no longer a source of cheap parts.

Asia is a new energy source for the global watch industry

　The watch market in Hong Kong, where the Hong Kong Watch & Clock Fair we covered this time was held, was surprisingly sluggish.

　Complications, jewelry watches, and high jewelry that are hard to find in Japan were lined up in the window displays of watch and jewelry shops all over Hong Kong. "Hong Kong is amazing, as expected," I thought before the pandemic. Now, there are no watches, not even flashy jewelry on display, and all the display space has been taken over by pure gold jewelry.

　The number of exhibitors at the Hong Kong Fair has not recovered, and the Hong Kong watch market has lost its former vitality and become lonely. When I asked two leading figures in the local watch retail business about the current state of the Hong Kong watch market, they both immediately replied with the same word: "Finished!", which confirms the seriousness of the situation.

　On the other hand, looking at the Chinese brands exhibiting at Salon de TIME with great confidence, it seems likely that they will demonstrate the comprehensive strength of their suppliers and become a threat to Japanese and Swiss watchmaking in the not-too-distant future. However, when it comes to design and control, which can be described as plagiarism or respect, it seems like they are lax, or at least not focused on that. If a talented leader like Naoya Tobita of NAOYA HIDA & CO., Max Büsser of MB&F, or Hajime Asaoka, the independent watchmaker behind Chrono Tokyo and Takano, were to take the reins, they would likely see a huge leap forward.

　It was a shock to see people of all ages and genders wearing the watches they like on a daily basis, regardless of their status or brand hierarchy, in Hong Kong, a mecca for watch lovers. While the Japanese market is not as negative, it is dangerous for shops to rely on inbound tourists for sales, and the current situation in Hong Kong is a lesson for others.

　However, the new trend centered on the continent could become a new source of energy for the watch market, and this trend will also attract new watch enthusiasts.

　Japanese microbrands are currently attracting attention and high praise from around the world. Seeing the success of their predecessors, many are likely thinking that perhaps they too have a chance to make watches. Those with such ambitions should definitely come to this fair. Find a supplier, search for a partner to collaborate with, and above all, take a look at the Asian watch market.

　It wasn't a festive event, but I hope that people were able to feel a sense of Asian energy that was somehow comforting.