Watches & Wonders 2024: Highlights and New Trends
The art of watchmaking continues to amaze
The 2024 edition of the Watches & Wonders Salon ended on Monday, April 15, after a week of strong visitor attendance and social media engagement that exceeded the expectations of the organizers and the attendance levels achieved in 2023.
The Salon was attended by forty-nine thousand unique visitors (14% more than 2023), 5,700 retailers and 1,500 journalists. In social media, the hashtag #watchesandwonders reached over 600 million people, equalling the result of the 2023 edition. Commercial activity also grew, with over 10,000 appointments with retailers (25% more than in 2023), 1,800 Touch & Feel sessions with the press, and a significant increase in orders from end customers.
Another important fact is that the average age of the buyers of the 19,000 tickets sold this year (58% more than last year) was 35, just like in 2023. While 25% of the tickets sold went to young people in the under-25 age group, confirming the younger generation's growing interest in the world of watchmaking.
Watches & Wonders is a place and time for industry professionals, journalists, collectors and enthusiasts to interact with the exhibiting brands, experience new timepieces at first hand, and learn about current trends and topics in the industry. Given its growing success in attendance over the past three years, the Salon is the most important trade fair for the high-end watch industry in the world.
2024 Trends
Watches and Wonders is a trend-setting event. For the exhibiting brands, it represents an annual springboard for launching new models and new collections. This year too, the Salon confirmed new trends and revealed some interesting novelties.
Titanium and Ceramics
Technical materials continue to be favored by many brands, confirming a trend that began at the turn of the century.
Inspired by high-performance industries, such as aeronautics and Formula 1, watchmaking brands constantly experiment with new materials and composites in the development of both movements, cases, and bracelets. It is an ongoing search for solutions that can ensure lightness (e.g. using carbon and titanium), corrosion resistance (e.g. tantalum and ceramic), strength and hardness (e.g. titanium and ceramic) and a reduced need for lubrication (e.g. silicon and synthetic diamonds).
At this year's Salon, in addition to the timepieces offered in steel, gold and titanium by various brands, Bell & Ross presented its new BR 05 in black ceramic, a timepiece that combines performance, elegance, and a modern design.
Watches & Colors
Following a trend started by Rolex a few years ago with the Oyster Perpetual line and its coloured lacquered dials, several brands presented at the Salon collections with dials in pastel or exotic colors, but also iterations of iconic models re-proposed with a green or dark blue dial, as was the case for Jaeger LeCoultre (Duometre Chronograph Moon), A. Lange & Sohne (Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon Honeygold 'Lumen'), and Frederique Constant (Classic Moonphase Date Manufacture Dark Green).
Nomos Glashutte and Norqain in particular have used color to make the dial the star of the representation of time, adding a dynamic and energetic tone to their new timepieces and, in the case of Norqain, color was added to the intricate design of a skeleton watch, thus creating a greater visual impact.
Midnight blue and charming moon phases
Midnight blue dials with and without moon phase complications are a new trend this year. Baume & Mercier has combined a sapphire blue dial with a sandblasted titanium bezel and a blue rubber strap, to give a strong character to its new Riviera 10769.
A beautiful sapphire blue is also present on the dial of Czapek & Cie's Goutte D'eau. The dial accentuates the optical illusion of the wave effect created by a raindrop as it falls on the motionless surface of a pond.
Laurent Ferrier, with the Classic Moon Blue, and Raymond Weil, with the Millesime Moon Phase Midnight Blue, have created a poetic synergy between the dark blue dial and the display of a charming moon phase complication.
Poetic compositions
Chanel, Beauregard, Van Cleef & Arpels, and Louis Moinet are four examples of Maison that have created complex watches, which can be described as poetic compositions, demonstrating their expertise in watchmaking craftsmanship.
Chanel's J12 Automaton Calibre 6 features a dial that includes a miniature automaton depicting Mademoiselle Chanel in her fashion atelier, a composition that skilfully combines design with the Maison's watchmaking expertise.
Beauregard presented its first men's watch, Ulysse. The timepiece combines haute horlogerie with fine jewelry: a movement by the famous watchmaker Vianney Halter drives a watch with a coloured glass dial made of AquaMarine precious stones set in a gold frame.
Van Cleef & Arpels' poetic watch complications need no introduction. With the new Lady Arpels Jour Nuit timepiece, the Maison presented its unique vision of time. On a slowly rotating dial, the moon and diamond-studded stars chase a sun embellished with snow-set yellow sapphires. In the background, Murano aventurine creates the effect of a starry night.
From Louis Moinet, we could admire the new Around the World in 8 Days collection. Eight works of horological art with each dial capturing the distinctive features of a different metropolis (e.g. Paris, Tokyo, San Francisco). The Maison has skilfully used special materials ranging from rock crystal to aventurine to high-tech materials to adorn the dials. Each timepiece includes a Tourbillon.
Long-live the chronograph
The chronograph continues to be the most popular complication in 2024. It represents a complication that offers a pleasing design and architecture. It is easy to interpret, it is easy to use, and therefore always popular with the public.
Several Maison introduced new chronographs at this year’s Salon. Tag Heuer presented its reinterpretation of the iconic Monaco: the new Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph. This timepiece is the product of Tag Heuer's avant-garde haute horlogerie and represents a harmonious blend of tradition and innovation.
Angelus presented the Instrument de Vitesse, a single-pusher chronograph that uses the central seconds hand as a single timing hand, capable of timing events up to one minute.
And Gronefeld presented its first chronograph, the 1941 Gronograaf. Its movement is equipped with a technique typical of minute repeaters called 'soft-reset', which slows down the reset function and minimizes the depletion of the stop, start and reset components, ensuring the longevity of the watch.
Horological complications and the Tourbillon
A few brands brought to the salon masterpieces with multiple complications and tourbillons, a showcase of their exceptional craftsmanship. And a confirmation that such mechanical and horological wonders continue to be sought-after by watch collectors and enthusiasts.
These included Piaget, which pushed the boundaries of watchmaking ingenuity with its Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon, an ultra-thin watch measuring just 2.0mm with a built-in flying tourbillon. And Patek Philippe, which affirmed its expertise in the creation of World Time complications with its new reference 5330G-001, which includes a patented differential system in the movement that can handle the local date.
But not only. A. Lange & Sohne and IWC presented new timepieces with perpetual calendars and tourbillons, respectively the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon Honeygold 'Lumen' and the Portugieser Eternal Calendar; H. Moser & Cie presented a variant of the skeletonised Streamliner with a tourbillon; Roger Dubius introduced the Orbis Machina with a central monotourbillon in a limited edition of 88 pieces; Cyrus presented the Etheral Twin Orbital Tourbillon with a mobile 3D dial; and Pequignet presented its first flying in-house tourbillon, the Royale Tourbillon.
Bell & Ross
BR 05 Black Ceramic
New in the BR 05 urban range is the Black Ceramic, a timepiece that features the brand's iconic black color realised this time in ceramic. A technical material known for its robustness and scratch resistance, ceramic is harder and at the same time lighter than steel, and guarantees hypoallergenic comfort. With this timepiece, Bell & Ross confirms its tradition in time instruments and its expertise in working with modern materials.
Nomos Glashutte
Tangent 38 Dates Sportbunt
With this special edition, Nomos Glashutte offers the possibility of personalizing the dial of the Tangente 38 Date with a palette of 31 different colors and shades. Each of the 31 timepieces is limited to 175 pieces. The Tangente is the best-known German wristwatch and is famous for its clarity and elegance. The watch has a height of only 6.8 mm and is powered by an in-house movement.
Norqain
Wild One Skeleton
The Wild One Skeleton collection is completed by three versions in exotic colors such as Coral, Green Gecko and Burgundy, which join the model launched last summer, the Wild One Skeleton Turquoise. The Wild One Skeleton is a high-performance sports watch characterized by the revolutionary Norqain case construction, which encloses a rubber shock absorber between an upper and lower cage in black NORTEQ®, an exclusive ultra-light and ultra-resistant carbon fiber composite that can be coloured.
Baume & Mercier
Riviera 10769.
The Riviera Baumatic 10769 features a sapphire blue dial combined with a sandblasted titanium bezel and an interchangeable blue rubber strap, which can be changed without the use of tools. The dodecagonal case is made of steel. This 42mm timepiece houses a Baumatic Manufacture movement that guarantees precision, durability and a five-day power reserve.
Czapek & Cie
Goutte D'eau
The main feature of this new timepiece is its asymmetry: the design radiates from the small seconds dial at 4:30, producing a sense of dynamic tension and fluid movement. The Goutte d'eau (drops of water) model exploits the beauty of grand feu enamel to achieve a hypnotic effect: when the watch moves, an optical illusion is created - like when a raindrop falls on the motionless surface of a pond.
Laurent Ferrier
Classic Moon Blue
This timepiece presents a harmonious blend of refinement and innovation: an elegant annual calendar complemented by the horological marvel of the moon phase complication, presented on a gray-blue opaline dial. The case is in steel with a diameter of 40mm and a thickness of 12.90mm. The movement is a manual mechanical Manufacture movement.
Raymond Weil
Millesime Automatic Moon Phase Midnight Blue
Based on the 2023 GPHG "Challenge Prize" winning timepiece, the Millesime Automatic Moon Phase combines a sectorial and highly graphic dial with an innovatively designed moon phase, combining vintage charm and sophistication. The W-shaped oscillating weight visible through the caseback and the sapphire crystal glass embrace traditional watchmaking codes and add a neo-vintage aesthetic. Two versions are available with 39.5mm and 35mm cases.
Chanel
J12 Automaton Caliber 6
An exceptional watch composed of 355 components and equipped with the new Caliber 6, conceived and assembled by the Chanel watch manufactory in Switzerland. The hand-wound mechanical movement with an automatic complication enables the dial to be brought to life on demand for 10 seconds. The timepiece presents a perfect balance of design and watchmaking expertise, expressed by excellent materials and sophisticated details.
Beauregard
Ulysse
This timepiece is a natural marriage of Haute Horlogerie and Haute Jewellery. In collaboration with master watchmaker Vianney Halter, Beauregard presents the brand's first men's watch: Ulysse. In an exclusive series of ten, the Ulysse is distinguished by its dial design, a glass of precious stones, 68 components of impeccable hand-polished AquaMarine, supported by a gold frame.
Van Cleef & Arpels
Lady Arpels Jour Nuit
Admiring the spectacle of the stars, Van Cleef & Arpels reinvents the Lady Arpels Jour Nuit watch. The moon and stars, studded with diamonds, perpetually chase the sun, embellished with snow-set yellow sapphires or, alternatively, guilloché yellow gold. The dial, equipped with a 24-hour rotating disc, rotates almost imperceptibly. Thanks to the depth effect of the aventurine Murano glass, this piece portrays the immensity of the cosmos and the magic of a starry night.
Tag Heuer
Tag Heuer Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph
TAG Heuer confirms its leadership in avant-garde haute horology with the new TAG Heuer Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph, an extraordinary blend of tradition and innovation. A vibrant tribute to the original 1969 model, this new timepiece features the sophisticated split-seconds chronograph complication, now encased in a modern reinterpretation of TAG Heuer Monaco's iconic square design.
Angelus
Instrument de Vitesse
The Instrument de Vitesse revives the golden age of timed car racing. It is equipped with a single timing hand - the seconds hand in the center - and can time a maximum of one minute. Housed in a 39mm steel case, the 4.20mm hand-wound Manufacture caliber guarantees a thickness of less than 10mm. The Instrument de Vitesse is available with an ivory white or ebony black dial in two limited series of 25 each.
Gronefeld
1941 Grönograaf Stainless Steel
The Grönograaf 1941, is a classic chronograph that incorporates several ingenious details. These include a 'soft reset' mechanism that slows down the reset function by reducing the exhaustion of the stop, start and reset components and ensuring the longevity of the watch. The Manufacture movement is made up of 408 parts, features a classic configuration with a column wheel and lateral split-seconds, and is housed in a 40mm case with a thickness of 11.3mm.
Piaget
Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon
150 years after the Maison was founded, Piaget is once again pushing the boundaries of watchmaking ingenuity. The Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon is a very elegant timepiece boasting a thickness of only 2mm, the same as its predecessor, but with a diameter of 41.5mm. It seems to possess all the features of an everyday watch, but conceals the beating heart of a flying tourbillon.
Patek Philippe
Ref. 5330G-001 - World Time with date
Patek Philippe launches the new World Time with Date Ref. 5330G-001, featuring a patented world first: a self-winding caliber with an innovative differential system to manage the local date. The entire mechanism is composed of 70 components. The gray-blue opaline dial features a carbon-decorated center. A red dot between Auckland and Midway marks the date change line on the city disc.
A. Lange & Sohne
Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon Honeygold 'Lumen'
25 years after the launch of the Datograph, A. Lange & Söhne presents a new interpretation: the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon Honeygold 'Lumen'. On the occasion of Watches and Wonders 2024, the sophisticated timepiece combining a flyback chronograph with jumping minute counter, a perpetual calendar and a tourbillon with stop-seconds mechanism is presented for the first time in Lange's exclusive honeygold and in a "Lumen" version limited to 50 pieces.
IWC Schaffhausen
Portugieser Eternal Calendar
Building on its wealth of calendar expertise, IWC Schaffhausen has designed a perpetual secular calendar for the first time. The Portugieser Eternal Calendar automatically takes into account the leap year exceptions of the Gregorian calendar, skipping three leap years over a period of 400 years. Moreover, the moon phase function is so precise that it deviates by only one day in 45 million years.
H. Moser & Cie
Streamliner Tourbillon Skeleton
The Streamliner Tourbillon Skeleton features minimalist aesthetics and perfect symmetry. One of the most striking features of this model is its transparency. The heart of the watch, entirely skeletonised, is a one-minute flying tourbillon with a double spiral that seems to float weightlessly. This is a creation endowed with elegance and spectacular aesthetics, in a Streamliner case with a diameter of 40mm.
ArtyA Watches
Purity Stairway To Heaven Steel
It is all about levels, reliefs, plays of light with shadows and reflections. Every detail counts in this new Manufacture caliber. A double barrel in parallel ensures constant power, optimal precision, and a comfortable autonomy. The minimalist dial is positioned at 3 o'clock for a better view of the enchanting 'Stairway To Heaven' which houses the balance spring.
Pequignet
Royale Tourbillon
French watchmaker Pequignet presents its first flying tourbillon, with a titanium cage mounted without an upper bridge in a gold case. This horological feat will be produced in a limited series of 24 watches. All components are produced within an 80-kilometer radius and assembled in the manufacturer's Morteau workshops.
Cyrus
ETHERAL Twin Orbital Tourbillon
With its 3D moving dial, the ETHERAL Twin Orbital Tourbillon is a masterpiece of kinematics. As the hours pass, the jumping hours, the minute display and the two flying tourbillons change position, keeping the perfectly legible time always horizontal. The timepiece is equipped with the innovative in-house hand-wound CYR518-E caliber, comprising 510 components and with three patents pending.
