Just three months after the start of the event, Bulgari announces its withdrawal from the Baselworld fair. Contrary to the statements made by CEO Jean-Christophe Babin at the Lvmh Watch Week in January in Dubai - statements that can also be read in the next issue of L'Orologio soon on newsstands - the Roman house will not honour the contract that bound it to the event until 2020. A bad blow for Baselworld, needless to say, and for the entire sector. The question now is whether, or when, the other three Lvmh brands will also leave the Basel fair. Bulgari justifies the decision with concern over the Coronavirus epidemic and the contingent difficulties encountered in air travel between the various regions of the world. In recent days, the House had already shown particular attention to developments in the pandemic situation, with a major donation to the Spallanzani Hospital in Rome, where the virus was isolated. Jean-Christophe Babin said: "This decision was not an easy one, but bearing in mind the impact that Sars had on watch fairs years ago, and being aware of how the pandemic is still spreading, as suggested by the red alert in Singapore, we believe that the best choice for Bulgari is to address the markets directly from March. This does not mean that Bulgari is leaving Baselworld for good, and the decision regarding the 2021 and following editions will be made at the end of June. But as previously stated, the criteria for choosing to continue to participate in watch fairs are based on timing and costs, which today are not consistent with either commercial needs or investment returns'. That is: watch fairs must be held in January, full stop. The floor now passes to Hublot, TAG Heuer and Zenith. The entire watchmaking division of the Lvmh group alone occupies about a quarter of the area of Hall 1.0 at Baselworld. Presences difficult to replace, if only because of the size of the stands. With whom, then?
