With Swiss watch exports reaching record levels in 2011—$20.99 billion, up 19 percent from the previous year—the stage was set for a successful BaselWorld 2012, although optimism was tempered by the continued world economic deterioration.

Despite its much earlier-than-usual dates, BaselWorld—the global arena for watches and jewellery—attracted 104,300 visitors from 100 countries who came to see the wares of some 1,815 exhibitors from 45 countries. While the Swiss fair is known primarily as a platform for the Swiss watch industry, the event also showcased a wide variety of other watchmakers as well as jewellery brands from around the world.

In both the jewellery and watch sectors, the primary appeal of BaselWorld is its universality and diversity in terms of products as well as buyers. Here, you can find products ranging from the very high end with its sumptuous multi-million dollar watches and jewellery, to the mid-range, with more accessible luxury, to the lower end, with inexpensive but still fashionable pieces in silver or other materials. At BaselWorld, there was something for everyone.

Design Directions

The major trends seen at the fair mirrored the top ten trends that were outlined in our Winter edition of CIJ Trends & Colours, as were the colours described in the Pantone colour picks for 2012. At BaselWorld, colour was again the biggest design direction, with orange, blue, pink, and green the favourites (for more, see our Trends & Colours section in this issue). The nature inspired theme was again widespread, and the most prevalent motifs were flowers, birds—especially owls—and marine life. On a more mythical note, dragons were a very popular item in celebration of the Chinese Year of the Dragon. (For the bird and dragon themes,see our Trends & Colours section, where a large variety of pieces are featured.)

Many brands have incorporated pearls as accent elements in their creations, especially the freshwater variety, while others such as Jewelmer, Yvel, and Autore offer exquisite creations using South Sea pearls, including one-of-akind pieces in round or baroque forms. Large loop bracelets and long lariats were also staples at the show, as exemplified by Louis Fiessler and Nanis. Tassels continue to be interesting details in many designs, as gemstone beads or as small metal chains.

The organic, eco-look was abundant at BaselWorld, with brands such as Marco Bicego featuring a collection of handtextured gold beads set with natural sapphires. Texture was also noted in bridal pieces, as shown by Furrer-Jacot’s matching bands.

Versatility is also becoming popular with brands. In one interesting example, Antonini created a mounting where the shank is composed of three parts, which can be rotated around a finger to give a different look with each different direction.

Other examples involved interchanging gemstones of different colours. Cuffs of all sorts and sizes were seen, some with openwork, while others were solid, embellished with decorations. Architectural designs were shown by a few brands, notably the “French Kiss” ring by Tournaire, which showcased an inverted Eiffel Tower on its shank.

The brand went even further with a remarkable tourbillon watch, developed in collaboration with Technotime, which offers a 3D landscape of Paris’ various monuments.

Silver continues its notable ascent into the category of noble metals. Venerable brands, such as Damiani and Vendorafa, known mainly for their splendid gold pieces, have now introduced designer lines in silver. Most major jewellery brands now offer selections in the white metal.

New Additions

A number of first-time brands exhibited at this year’s BaselWorld. Among them was newly created Italian brand, Italian Design, founded by designer Alessio Boschi, which showcased a range of pieces including exquisite opal designs. Another Italian company, Sicis Jewels, also made its debut at BaselWorld. Famous for its mosaics, Sicis celebrated its 25th anniversary by creating a jewellery brand. True to its DNA, its jewellery is handcrafted in micro-mosaic with other precious materials. Sicis founder and president, Maurizio Leo Placuzzi, explained, “Mosaic has always been the ink that writes our story, and following the same thread, Sicis is now reinterpreting micro-mosaic, one of the most ancient and elaborate techniques, in jewellery manufacturing.”

Still from Italy, Ponte Vecchio introduced a new fashion brand, Ugo Cala, to meet the demands of the fashion segment.

Also in the fashion segment, Swarovski Gems™ launched its zirconia fancy diamond cuts, an innovation and addition to the Pure Brilliance concept for zirconia. Coming in four colours, Fancy Yellow, Fancy Pink, Fancy Blue and Fancy Brown, this created stone equates to the colours of nature’s most celebrated fancy diamonds, the Tiffany, the Agra, the Hope, and the Golden Jubilee.

Another first-time addition to the show, Shawish Geneva, made a big impression as it unveiled the world’s first ring made entirely of a single diamond. Weighing 150 carats, it comes with the hefty price tag of around $65 million for those who are interested.

Still in the first-time category was the Centurion pavilion, which featured a number of USA-based exhibitors from the Centurion show. According to Howard Hauben, Centurion president, the response was positive. Other returning pavilions, also located in Hall 2.0, were those of Joaillerie de France, showcasing French companies, and India, featuring a variety of Indian jewellery and gem companies.

Modernizing BaselWorld

This was the last year for the current infrastructure of the show, as explained by Sylvie Ritter, managing director, “We are proud of BaselWorld’s history, of which numerous chapters have already been written. The 2012 edition is going to go down in the annals as a decisive turning point. A new age is beginning in 2013—one that is going to be characterized by modernity, an advanced level of development, and extraordinary aesthetics.”

A $467 million renovation project is underway with the construction of a large hall measuring 420 meters in length, providing an exhibition space of more than 140,000 square meters (about 1.5 million square feet). The current Hall 3 will be demolished, as well as the main entrance hall to make way for a three-story complex. The new structure will be completed in time for the opening of BaselWorld 2013 on April 25.

www.baselworld.com