Basel World 2010: Ian Ellery Takes A Stand

For the last week of Baselworld I wanted to do something a little different, the constant round of parties and entertainment were beginning to take their toll. As a journalist we are often in a very privileged position, we are able to swan around the show and sometimes people are happy to see us and sometimes not. However, I have never myself had the opportunity to take the stand on a watch fair and so I thought that it was about time I put my money where my month was and got on the other side of the table for a change.

I should point out first that I have done this at other trade shows for computers so I’m not a novice, but not for many years and those intervening  years have not been altogether kind both  physically and mentally. Secondly after the weekend the crowds are considerably lighter so I certainly wasn’t going in at the front-end of the war!!

I had mentioned this idea to Peter Speake-Marin and he very kindly agreed to let me loose on his clients and friends, which if you’ve ever met me is a pretty brave thing to do. The choice of PSM was not at random, by choosing an English watchmaker I was reducing the client’s expectations that I speak good French, but also I wanted to learn much more about the people and personalities that inhabit the world of independent watchmakers up close and PSM knows a lot of people.

So bright and early, 10:00am is early to me, I presented myself at “The Dream Factory”, washed, brushed and ready to go. As we’ve discussed previously “The Dream Factory” is the Baselworld home to Urwerk, MB&F, Christophe Claret and Speake-Marin situated in “The Palace” which was a superior tent arrangement opposite the Ramada hotel. The room was pleasant at 10:00, but the weather forecast was for warm temperatures for the next few days, the tent had heating but no air-conditioning, it was going to get warm!

It soon became clear that the main task for the two days was to keep everything moving smoothly. Watches are needed from the safe, from the front display cabinets and coffee keeps the wheels turning. The main halls at Basel are extremely busy, and if you want to see a watch there are plenty of people to help you, but at the big brands you will never meet a watchmaker face-to-face and never learn the real details; marketing yes, talking movements and cases? Rarely.

The independents are very different and rightly so. To spend thousands on a watch you want to know where your money is going and so if you want to shake the hand of the man who made it, it’s literally no problem. Here you will find the specialist press, for instance The Watch Lounge, all languages and cultures, investigating what they hope is the cutting edge of the industry. The big brands do make an appearance from time to time, not sure if it is just general interest or scouting out what is going on, and the opportunity to lock horns with a big brand’s marketing manager is a fun thing to do.

A custom made Speake-Marin Serpent Calendar hand-engraved by master engraver Kees Englebarts.

There are several things that I would take away from my time on the stand, first it’s hard work; standing for that length of time is tough on the back. How some of them manage to do the whole show I don’t know.

Then there is the fact of being nice to so many people for such a long time, no matter what they say or ask; you know it’s not that hard. I would say most of the people, on the other stands, clients and friends are some of the nicest and most genuine people you could wish to meet. People who search out these watchmakers have a lot of traits in common and this makes them interesting. In my two days I don’t think I met anyone I wouldn’t want to meet again, and I met a lot I would very much want to meet again.

Next are people from the other brands; what a great bunch of guys they are and certainly a lot of fun, a mine of interesting information and people who are lucky enough to do a job they quite clearly love. I won’t detail some of the conversations, I see no reason to smear the guilty, but doing this job you will learn a lot.

The Final Word
Should you ever find yourself lucky enough to get a chance to do this I would thoroughly recommend it, the days are long, wear comfy shoes, drink plenty of fluids, don’t drink too much alcohol in the evenings and keep smiling. You will get to borrow a brand watch to where on the stand, hooray, and then give it back, boo, and feel like a million dollars in-between.

I would like to thank Peter Speake-Marin for the fantastic opportunity to help out, and I hope I didn’t put off any buyer. To all our readers out there if someone in the future gives you the same chance I had take it, your feet will hurt but you will have a great time

Tags: 2010, Basel World, Claret, dream factory, luxury, MB&F, New, Speake-Marin, Urwerk

Category: BaselWorld 2010, New This Week, Recommended Reading