The Vegas watch shows couldn’t be more different from the Swiss ones. BaselWorld and SIHH are held in the springtime when the weather is generally unreliable and cold, in contrast to the Las Vegas Shows - JCK, Luxury by JCK and Couture – where a heat wave is always on the agenda.
BaselWorld and SIHH are hectic, filled with back-to-back appointments, early starts, missed lunches and dinner after dinner in bustling restaurants. Not that this is a criticism – most of the industry does most of its work during these two fun and crazy weeks in spring.
The Vegas shows, however, are very different, more relaxed, with drop-bys and cocktails, motorcycle rides, theatrical shows, amazing international restaurants and, as always, some of the most beautiful watches in the world.
And, best of all, as the old saying goes, What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas or...at least until Europa Star reports on it.

So how did it all get started?
The first Las Vegas watch show was or-ganized in 1992 by the Jewelers Circular Keystone (JCK) magazine with an impressive 1,000 exhibitors. The show was set up following a need in the marketplace to help independents and majors to find and buy product. The city of Las Vegas was chosen thanks to its variety of hotel and entertainment options. “There is no other venue in the world with over 30,000 hotel rooms within walking distance of the show,” remarks Dave Bonaparte, Group Vice President of JCK Events.
16 years later and JCK is still going strong with 3,100 exhibitors from 38 countries and 600,000 square feet (55,700 square metres) of exhibition space, which is well segmented by product category to make it easier for retailers to shop. The Hall of Time houses over 150 watch brands, from fine Swiss timepieces to the fashion brands. Upstairs, in the Venetian hotel, is the prestigious Luxury by JCK show, which is where the prestigious Swiss watch brands exhibit – including Baume & Mercier, Bell & Ross, Bulgari, Chopard, Corum, Ebel, Franck Muller, Gucci, Hermès, IWC, Maurice Lacroix, Mont Blanc, Omega, Piaget, Rado, Swatch, Longines, TAG Heuer, Tissot, Ulysse Nardin and Zenith.
This year’s show was a success in spite of the economic slowdown. “The show exceeded most exhibitors expectations as there was healthy business being done,” noted Bonaparte. “I am optimistic looking ahead to the end of the year. Even though the economy has had its issues, people still get married, have birthdays and anniversaries and have many special occasions to give the gift of jewellery and watches. The business is not going away and is here to stay.”




The COUTURE Show


The Couture Show
The Couture Show started 13 years ago in California, before moving to Phoenix, and then to Las Vegas three years ago. The show now runs almost parallel to the JCK shows with around 250 exhibitors occupying 85,000 square feet (7,900 square metres) of exhibit space. The watch brands exhibiting here include Bédat & Co., Beaudry, Breitling, Buccellati, Charriol, De Grisogono, Carl F. Bucherer, David Yurman, H. Stern, Mouawad, Milus, Phillip Stein, Salvatore Ferragamo, Valentino, ViewPoint and Versace. Statistics from the show noted the attendance of 4,900 retailers this year, a growth of 25 per cent over two years ago. “This year’s numbers show that Couture is on the right evolutionary course,” said Lee Arevia, Vice President of Couture. “It is a definite sign of this event’s strength that we have not only been able to grow the number of exhibitors and attendees, but that we have been able to do so during these challenging times.”

Why the Vegas shows are important
The Vegas shows are not the glamour shows of the watch world. They are more down and dirty watch shows, where business is truly done. There are US retailers who go to all the shows, but the majority of retailers don’t go to the Swiss shows every year. They just can’t afford to – in terms of time and money. Some go every other year and some never go. So, the Vegas show is the place retailers can meet with the brands they carry, see brands they have heard about and find new brands that no one has heard about, so they can add something new to their stores.
On the exhibitor side, the JCK show is perfect for brands to start setting up independent distribution. The JCK is a fantastic place to walk the aisles and see what there is available. Most of the brands on the floor are very open to walk by traffic – where the Swiss shows are largely appointment-based shows; the floor of JCK is big for walk by traffic.
In the Couture show and Luxury by JCK, the meetings are by appointment only, which cuts down on meetings with retailers that are not suited for a particular brand.
New brands and brands looking to build their distribution are best suited for the floor at JCK, where retailers in need of a new brand walk around looking for something different.
Other advantages of the Las Vegas shows are that it is easier to catch up with people that there wasn’t time for in Basel and Geneva, or to have quality time with the brands that maybe were only available for a fleeting 20 minutes. The brands have time to sit and chat, present and discuss new products, take new or complementary orders, discuss advertising strategies and much more. Everything is less rushed and stressful.
As the BaselWorld and the SIHH shows in Switzerland are not going to be running back-to-back in 2009 as in previous years (SIHH is from 19th to 24th January and BaselWorld from 26th March to 2nd April), and rumours indicate that this is a permanent decision, the Las Vegas shows are only going to grow in importance. Many American retailers will not go to Switzerland twice a year so Las Vegas will become the place where they do the bulk of their business, making the fairs here particularly valuable to independent retailers.





Long, tough road ahead
The general consensus from brands and re-tailers alike is that the United States is not in great shape right now. Prices continue to rise on gas and food, so the disposable income people have is being reduced. Still, however, high-end watches continue to be strong. Retailers report that the higher-end of the watch market is going great, while so is the entry price point. The segment that seems to be suffering the most is the mid-range. The thinking is that if people can’t buy at the high-end, where they are used to buying, they won’t slide down and buy something simpler. In fact, they might be more prone to moving up and buying something even more special, aware that the watches will be worth more someday.
In addition, people who are buying in the entry price point and fashion range are less likely to move up and buy watches from the mid-range, preferring to stay in the segment they are currently or, heaven forbid, stop buying watches altogether.
The economic indicators are confusing and no one really knows what will happen in even the short term, much less the long term. The bottom line, however, is that the economic situation is not great and doesn’t look like it will improve anytime soon. The initial thought was things would get better after the November election, but now people are predicting that it might take significantly longer than that.
This may make many retailers pull back and re-evaluate spending, replacing their stock, advertising their store and more. The better retailers will look at this trying economic time as an opportunity to gain market share and put their stores into a position to really profit when the economy comes back. Retailers who have been in business for a long time know that business goes in cycles and never stays good or bad for too long.

Retailer comments
Doug Bradstreet, Watch/Jewellery Buyer, Wynn Las Vegas and Macau: “2008 year to date is stellar. We have posted mid double-digit increases in Vegas, triple-digit increases in Macau. The strongest segment for Vegas is high-end watches, US$35,000 and higher, while Macau is solid gold watches with diamonds, price points of US$50,000 and higher. The Vegas shows offer a wide variety of product ranging from vintage and estate pieces to high-end watches and jewellery of all types. My favourite shows are Couture, IWJG, and JCK. I accomplish everything from stock balancing to finding new product lines for new stores. This year was about supplying merchandise for two new stores. One slated for a guild store in Vegas (ENCORE tower) and the other for Macau (watch and jewellery combined store). Our future is extremely bright. In the face of economic breakdown in the U.S. I am buying aggressively due to great deals for purchases and to show strength in a slowing economy. So far each month out-produces the previous. My best selling watch right now? In Vegas, anything Patek Philippe. In Macau, Rolex Day/Date 18-carat yellow gold with any diamond treatments.”
Robin Levinson, Levinson Jewelers (Florida): “It’s summer time and quiet in general. Our strongest segment right now is estate buying and gold and diamonds. I go to the Vegas shows to network and scout for new sources. I think it is all cyclical and everything will turn around. We are moving to a new location before the first of the year which should offer us a great deal of more business.”
Rudi Albers, President, Wempe (New York): “Business has been stronger than ever. The first quarter brought a lot of Europeans with their strong Euro. Since we are right in the heart of midtown near the top hotels The Peninsula and St. Regis, we are busy from morning to night. High-end complications are most in demand led by Patek Philippe and Breguet. Rolex and Panerai sports watches are in short supply as usual and the Hublot Big Bang continues to be a big hit. Rose gold caught on and yellow gold is definitely back. The Vegas shows give us the opportunity to catch up with industry leaders, compare notes with other retailers, detect trends and thereby reduce the role of that good old crystal ball. Wempe has again experienced double-digit growth for the first 6 months of 2008. The overall momentum perplexes our vendors and clients alike as every day you read the opposite in the newspapers. However, our commitment to quality, level of service and expertise has earned us a rating of 29 out of 30 in the Zagat shopping guide and together with our advertising and marketing efforts have made us a top address for fine watches. Watch connoisseurs travel in the same circles, dine at the same fine restaurants and stay at the same luxury resorts. A watch easily becomes a conversation piece and a memorable shopping experience is the key to word of mouth. A Patek Nautilus could easily be a bestseller for us if it wasn't for the limited availability. The same holds true for the Rolex Milgauss or IWC Big Pilot's watch and any steel watch with the name Panerai on it.”
Ray Grenon, Owner, Grenon’s of Newport (Rhode Island): “Despite all the bad news people are still buying. Men's stainless steel sports watches are the hottest right now. The Cartier Ballon Bleu and just about anything from TAG Heuer are the hottest watches.”
Alan J. Katz, Vice President Operations, de Boulle (Dallas, Texas): “Business has been good in Dallas and from what we understand throughout Texas - in spite of the gloom and doom reported in the press, we are pleased with our business. We continue to do well with larger diamonds (three carat and up) as well as the finer watches, especially those with complications. The year has started out strong; being conservatively optimistic we see no reason for the trend to not continue - we are counting on our business to continue with positive growth for the remainder of the year. The new Rolex Stainless Steel GMT II has been selling very well.”
Andrew J. Block, Executive Vice President, Tourneau: “Our business is holding up fairly well in the majority of our stores. We are seeing some softening of our business in the suburban stores which traditionally don’t see many tourists, but big picture, we’re extremely pleased with where we’re trending at this moment.
“The high-end timepiece segment that retails for over US$5,000 is still strong. We do see many high-end brands diverting product to Asia and other new markets which could affect us negatively in the second half of this year. We’ve taken notice of the fact that Swiss imports into the United States are basically flat to last year. We’re hoping that this product drought improves.
“We do go to the Las Vegas show. It’s an opportunity for us to visit our brand partners in a less hectic and stressful atmosphere than Basel or Geneva. We really don’t see anything new in Las Vegas but I know that many small jewellers who don’t get to Europe enjoy the show immensely.
“We are still bullish about the American watch market. There is still tremendous interest in the watch category; the United States watch market is still in its infancy. Our growth will surely be determined by the manufacturers and their support of the American market.”


Poker faces: behind the scenes at the World Series of Poker with Corum
While in Las Vegas, we took the opportunity to get a behind the scenes look at the World Series of Poker (WSOP). Corum is a sponsor and the official timepiece of the Series, and the company makes the bracelets that are the ‘trophies’ for the winners, as well as the watches that are the top prizes.
You wouldn’t think that poker was a telegenic sport, but in the United States it has really taken off, fuelled by ESPN’s coverage. Edited to increase the tension, poker in many different variations seems to be on television ALL the time, which is good news for Corum because the exposure for the brand is incredible.
“The WSOP is the most famous and respected poker tournament in the world and the game of poker itself is one of strategy and timing, not mere chance,” explains Michael Wunderman, President, Corum USA. “These unique characteristics combine to create an exciting environment and energy to communicate our brand message that Corum is emotive and is a risk taker breaking boundaries in watchmaking and watch marketing.



“Our partnership with the WSOP has given us the opportunity to open an entirely new market for Corum and lead the way in the category,” he continues. “We have always been avant-garde in our approach to business and aligning ourselves with the WSOP has enabled us to ‘own’ the watch segment as ‘the’ poker watch. The event is now a global brand and has captured the hearts and minds of millions around the world. We can now communicate to this audience through the WSOP.”
In Vegas, poker is serious business. We toured one of the tournaments going on, with tables and tables of people playing cards. It was a sartorial display, some people were elegantly dressed and others were dressed very casually. Others obviously were wearing their ‘lucky clothes’, as there couldn’t be any other reason for leaving the house dressed as they were.
The WSOP is the richest sporting event in the entire world, with winnings over US$150 million.
“The WSOP is the ultimate expression of excellence in gaming and Corum shares in that association,” says Jeff Pollack, the commissioner of the WSOP. “We couldn’t ask for a better partner. Our contract is for six years, but I view it as a 100 year partnership.”


Dates for the 2009
Las Vegas shows are as follows:
Couture – May 28th – June 2nd
JCK Luxury & Première – May 26th – 29th
JCK – May 30th – June 2nd
Swiss Watch by JCK – May 29th – June 2nd


Source: Europa Star October-November 2008 Magazine Issue