Baselworld 2022 canceled after all! Managing Director Michel Loris-Melikoff also steps down

Watch Journalist Yasuhito Shibuya's Useful Watch Industry Chat

In the article "London preferred to Basel?! A thought-provoking British journalist's surprising proposal" published in this column on October 31, 2021, we introduced a surprising proposal by Rob Corder, editor-in-chief of WATCHPRO, a British online media outlet specializing in the watch industry, titled "London preferred to Basel for a global spring watch fair."

In the article, Corder wrote something significant, saying that rumors were circulating in the watch industry that "Baselworld will make an important announcement soon." That announcement was made on November 12th, just as rumored.

Rumored major announcement

The news came as expected.

　The big announcement came on June 23, 2021, when the organizers of Baselworld 2022 announced its zombie-like return. The MCH Group announced the cancellation of the event. The press release stated that the decision was the result of repeated meetings with watch brands and retailers, based on the experience of the pop-up event held at Geneva Watch Days 2021 in late August to promote the fair's return to the watch industry. At the same time, the resignation of Managing Director Michel Loris-Melikoff, who had been working hard to turn Baselworld around since the end of May 2018, was also announced.

　Unable to travel to Switzerland and staying in Japan, I was naturally unable to cover the pop-up event in Geneva that began at the end of August. However, after watching a video on YouTube posted by the official Baselworld channel on September 1st, during the Geneva Watch Days, which announced the return of Baselworld, I was convinced that Baselworld might not be able to go ahead, and I wrote about it in this column.

Low video views reveal Baselworld's crisis

　The content in question was a conversation between Jean-Christophe Babin, CEO of the Bulgari Group, and Michel Loris-Melikoff, Managing Director of Baselworld, part of a series of interviews titled "Espresso Talk." Throughout the conversation, Melikoff was clearly flirting with Babin.

　The flirtations were, "Please somehow get Bulgari to participate in Baselworld. Your brand is special. We have high hopes for you." However, Baban brilliantly dodged the flirtations with a smile.

　Incidentally, the number of subscribers to the official Baselworld YouTube channel is 1550 as of the time of writing this article. This video has only been viewed 120 times. I have viewed it four times, so you can see how unpopular it is. Even the 20-second announcement video titled "BASELWORLD is Back," which was first uploaded on June 23rd and declared the fair's return, has not yet reached 1200 views.

Bulgari's "Special Relationship" with Baselworld

　By the way, it's already been two years since then, so I'm not sure how many people have noticed, but the Bulgari Group, led by Mr. Baban, has maintained a unique position within the LVMH Group regarding Baselworld.

　The person who oversees the LVMH Group's watch business, specifically TAG Heuer, Zenith, and Hublot, and who has succeeded Jean-Claude Biver, is Stefano Bianchi, who is said to be the mentor of Frédéric Arnault, the third son of Bernard Arnault, the Group's Chairman and CEO, and who became CEO of TAG Heuer at the young age of 25. In the very near future, Frédéric Arnault will likely take over Bianchi's position, that is, oversee the entire LVMH Group's watch business.

　On April 17, 2020, these three brands announced their withdrawal from Baselworld in a statement by Mr. Bianchi, following the withdrawal of five other brands (Patek Philippe, Chanel, Chopard, Rolex, and Tudor) from Baselworld on April 14, 2020. Subsequently, they decided to exhibit at "Watches & Wonders Geneva 2022," which will be held from March 30 to April 5, 2022.

　However, Bulgari took a different stance from the other three brands regarding this withdrawal. They issued their own statement, saying, "We will not be exhibiting in 2020," but hinted at future participation. They also held Geneva Watch Days in the summer of 2020 as a one-year special event. However, they will hold this event again in 2021, and are not currently included among the exhibiting brands for Watches & Wonders Geneva 2022.

　In other words, Bulgari has taken a different stance toward Baselworld than other brands in the group, or to put it bluntly, a "gentle attitude." Why is this? I don't have enough information to speculate. However, Bulgari's business is diverse, encompassing not only watches but also jewelry, bags, perfumes, and even hotels. In other words, it is a business entity within the LVMH group that is beyond the scope of Stefano Bianchi's supervision.

　However, given these circumstances, it is not surprising that Baselworld Managing Director Melikov had even a faint hope that "Bulgari might exhibit at Baselworld."

　Before becoming part of the LVMH Group, Bulgari held its own exhibition in Geneva for a time. Baselworld, on the other hand, provided a special venue for Bulgari and welcomed it to Basel. It can be said that the Baselworld Secretariat and Bulgari certainly had a special relationship at the time.