Swiss Watch Two years before that, on July 30, 2018, the organization’s former CEO René Kamm was already caught off guard by Swatch Group’s determination to leave the show:”The cancellation is even more surprising for us because this information reaches us at a point in time when new direction has came with a brand new team, new esprit and several new ideas.” In both cases, the organization’s unfiltered public display of surprise was followed by the desire to either directly”contradict the representation” (July 30, 2018) of its former clients, or, even more recently, by questioning the intentions of the above five brands. MCH Group’s latest answer (April 14, 2020):”The MCH Group must therefore conclude that the applicable plans [to leave Baselworld] have already been in preparation for quite a while and that the talks concerning the financial arrangements for the cancellation of Baselworld 2020 are presently being put forward as an argument”
The Organization’s reactions were notable for two reasons:
Primarily, in a consensus-driven society like Switzerland, you seldom find a supplier publicly react as confrontational as of this: the Swiss, already utilized to having among the world’s oldest democracies, just don’t want to burn bridges, especially if there’s absolutely no proof.
Secondly, a provider usually aims to understand the needs of its key customers if it needs to stay relevant. In cases like this, the element of”surprise” ought to have been reserved for occasions like the government’s choice to declare an”official ban on big public gatherings” (February 28, 2020), which resulted in the MCH’s decision to postpone the show for the very first time in its history (which dates back to 1917).
Almost as surprising as Baselworld’s PR plan: the show’s development (or lack thereof) had motivated even a business like Rolex to make a public announcement, something that barely ever happens:”We’ve taken part in Baselworld since 1939,” explained Jean-Frédéric Dufour, CEO of Rolex sea dweller watches and board member of Montres Tudor SA, at the statement by April 14.
“Unfortunately, given how in which the event has developed and the recent decisions made by MCH Group, and despite the great attachment we had to the watch show, we’ve opted to withdraw.” Thierry Stern, president of Patek Philippe, added:”Now, Patek Philippe watch is not in line with Baselworld’s vision , there were too many discussions and unsolved issues, trust is no longer present.”
