by Brent Robillard
Echoes
I spend too much time on social media. In my defence, I rarely doom scroll. I tell myself I am doing research, keeping up with the pulse of the hobby, and paying attention to how enthusiasts are reacting to what brands are making. Some of that is true. I do enjoy the conversation. But platforms like Instagram and YouTube have a way of shaping the conversation even when they are only supposed to reflect it.
One of the stranger ideas floating around during Watches and Wonders week was that the 2026 edition was boring. Once that line appeared a few times, it began to echo. Then it became a verdict. What struck me most was how many of the people repeating it had not actually set foot in Palexpo. And among those who had, some seemed more interested in producing sharp one-liners and fast takes than in spending time with the watches themselves.
So let me be clear: Watches and Wonders was not boring.
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Enthusiasm vs Brand Loyalty
Watches in Switzerland are big business, and you feel that the moment you arrive. The billboards start talking to you before you have even left the airport. They are in the corridors, above the baggage carousels, and on the glowing screens that seem to follow you all the way into the city. By the time you get to Palexpo, the scale of the thing is already obvious. Thousands of journalists pass through during the trade days, access is tightly controlled, and by the public days the crowds swell even further. Whatever else Watches and Wonders may be, dull is not the word for it.
I think part of the problem is that many people confuse watch enthusiasm with brand loyalty. Those are not the same thing. A lot of collectors are deeply invested in a small handful of brands, and that investment is constantly reinforced by advertising, prestige, and, yes, by the watch media. Rolex, Tudor, Patek Philippe, and Vacheron Constantin all occupy an enormous amount of mental space in this hobby. I respect those brands. That is not the issue. The issue is that if your idea of a successful fair depends entirely on whether one of those names drops a sensation, then anything less than a thunderclap (which we got from Isotope) can feel like disappointment.
Tudor at Watches & Wonders 2026
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The Tudor Effect
Tudor is a good example. Many people expected a major moment this year, especially given the anniversary chatter surrounding the brand. Instead, Tudor delivered refinement rather than reinvention. The new Monarch is handsome, and the updates to the Black Bay 58 and Black Bay 58 GMT are the sort of changes enthusiasts have been asking for: slimmer cases, METAS movements, better bracelets, and cleaner execution. Those are meaningful improvements. As my podcast partner and fellow writer for The Calibrated Wrist, Marc Levesque, has said more than once, very few brands really know how to refine. Tudor does. The problem, if you want to call it that, is that refinement rarely breaks the internet. People say they want better proportions and upgraded movements. What they often mean is that they want those things and a headline-making surprise.
That surprise did not really come from Tudor, Rolex, or Patek. But if you were willing to look a little farther, it was not hard to find watches that were exciting, thoughtful, and genuinely fresh.
At the more established end of the spectrum, there were still standouts. Parmigiani Fleurier’s Tonda PF remains one of the most convincing expressions of modern restrained luxury in watchmaking: slim, beautifully proportioned, and finished with a level of care that reveals itself slowly rather than shouting for attention. The Vacheron Constantin Overseas Self-Winding Ultra-Thin showed the kind of restraint and technical confidence that Vacheron does very well. Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Master Control Chronomètre Date Power Reserve also reminded me that a watch does not need to be radical to be compelling. It just needs to be coherent.
Still, some of my real highlights at Palexpo came from brands that lack three things: scale, heritage inertia, and marketing power. In other words, they were not missing horology. They were missing a megaphone.
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The Independents
Trilobe was one of the clearest examples. Few brands are doing something that feels this distinct right now. The orbital display is not a gimmick. It is part of a full design language that is already recognizable at a glance. The brand feels serious, self-assured, and independent in the best sense. The Trente-deux, in both rose gold and stainless steel, was one of the watches that stopped me in my tracks.
Ressence remains one of the most conceptually interesting brands in contemporary watchmaking. The Bauhaus leanings, the oil-filled displays, the crownless architecture, and the magnetic transmission system all still feel slightly improbable in the flesh, as though someone managed to industrialize an idea that should have remained a sketch. The Type 11, in particular, looked like a polished pebble that had somehow learned to tell time.
Then there was Laurent Ferrier. If you want to understand what people mean when they talk about finishing, start there. This is not hype watchmaking. It is watchmaking with patience, discipline, and taste. In terms of movement finishing, Laurent Ferrier can rival, and in some cases surpass, names that enjoy far more mainstream recognition in the luxury sports-watch conversation. Production remains tiny, and that intimacy shows in the work. On the wrist, the Sport Traveller felt natural in a way many so-called luxury sports watches do not. It did not feel like an object performing importance. It felt complete.
Czapek, too, continued to impress me as a brand that understands how a modern sports watch should feel on the wrist. I spent time with the Antarctique Titanium Révélation Cosmic Blue and the Antarctique Titanium Dark Sector Cosmic Blue, and both were excellent. The appeal was not limited to the dials, strong as they were. It was the ergonomics that really landed. In titanium, they felt light, balanced, and unusually easy to wear, with the sort of comfort that makes an immediate impression. That physical ease, paired with Czapek’s crisp design language, made them two of the most satisfying sports watches I tried at the fair.
Armin Strom also deserves far more attention than it gets. If the Mirrored Force Resonance had arrived with the logo of a larger, louder brand on the dial, the industry would still be talking about it in breathless terms. Instead, Armin Strom remains a kind of secret handshake among people who are paying attention. The technical achievement is real. So is the creativity.
Pequignet is another name that merits more discussion, especially for the Calibre Royal. It is one of those reminders that serious movement engineering does not always come wrapped in the loudest story. There is substance there, and value too, though “value” in watchmaking is always a dangerous word.
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Pricing
What is the price of all of this you ask? Well, don’t ask. These are not watches for the common person. Does that make them boring? Absolutely not. I don’t visit Versailles because I am thinking of purchasing the property. I don’t visit the Prado because I intend to walk away with the Raft of Medusa. I visit to see the wonders.
That same logic applies to the fair itself. There is joy in seeing what is possible, even when it exists well outside one’s budget. Watch enthusiasm does not have to be limited to shopping. Sometimes it is closer to appreciation.
Honourable Mentions
A few larger brands also deserve honourable mention. TAG Heuer’s overhaul of the Monaco felt measured and classy, and the new Monaco Evergraph was one of the more interesting mainstream releases I handled. Grand Seiko also stood out, especially with the new Masterpiece Collection pieces. The SBGZ011, with its manual-winding Spring Drive movement, showed the brand at its most composed and technically assured, while the Spring Drive S.F.A. Ushio pushed that same technology further in a way that felt serious and technical. Of the household names, though, I thought IWC had a particularly strong showing. The Pilot’s Venturer Vertical Drive brought real technical interest, the Ingenieur Tourbillon 41 was a knockout, and the Ingenieur 42 in Dark Olive Green had genuine presence.
That said, it is also true that Watches and Wonders can feel corporate. In booths where I did not have an official appointment, I was asked more than once whether I was a retailer. That tells you something about the environment. Some watches looked as though they had been designed for clients rather than collectors. Some releases seemed to emerge from strategy more than passion. But billions ride on those strategies, and it would be naive to pretend otherwise.
This is also why some of the most interesting work during Geneva watch week happens outside Palexpo.
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Chronopolis
Chronopolis, for instance, had the kind of creative energy that can be hard to find inside the main fair. In the mid-tier space, brands such as Atelier Wen, AWAKE, Beaubleu, Formex, Serica, and Furlan Marri are making watches with real identity and, in many cases, real accessibility. Most of what they produce sits below the 5,000-dollar mark, and in Furlan Marri’s case well below that. These are not watches leaning on inherited prestige. They have to win people over through design, execution, and personality.
Beau Rivage and the Old Town
My time at Beau-Rivage was shorter this year because my travel schedule was tighter, but I still made a point of visiting Isotope, Sherpa, Doxa, and Vanguart. The first three are making watches for the everyday enthusiast in ways that feel grounded and intentional. Vanguart is operating in a different atmosphere altogether. With a team carrying experience from Renaud & Papi and Audemars Piguet, the brand is making work that belongs in the upper reaches of independent haute horology. Certain versions of The Orb sit around 200,000 CHF or more. That is stratospheric money. The watches are still works of art.
Across the river in Geneva’s Old Town, I spent time with Didier Cavasino, whose background includes Bulgari and a decade at Rolex before launching his own brand. That visit stayed with me. There is technical strength there, but also warmth and conviction. It felt like seeing someone at the ground floor of something that could become very significant.
Time to Watches
At Time to Watches, I was especially struck by Felipe Pikullik. His work had the kind of bench-made intensity that silences a room. Hand engraving, black polishing, anglage, frosted finishing, and skeletonized bridges were all there, but what impressed me most was that the watches did not feel like a checklist of techniques. They felt integrated. The Moonphase II was a standout: movement-led, visually rich, and distinguished by that brilliant rendering of the moon hidden in plain sight. The fact that it depicts the Southern Hemisphere moon, reflecting Pikullik’s Brazilian roots, made it even more memorable. Expensive, yes, but still often far less expensive than some Swiss independents occupying similar territory. If I had to name a best in show across the week, this would be very near the top.
I also found the creative energy of Pragma and the seriousness of GoS magnetic. And even in these surrounding shows, there were reminders that independent watchmaking does not always have to be financially absurd. BA111OD continues to disrupt expectations, whether with a tourbillon around the 6,000 CHF mark or more accessible pieces such as a moonphase around 1,000 CHF. Torsti Laine, meanwhile, is producing hand-turned guilloché work at prices that still feel surprisingly grounded given the labour involved.
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Final Thoughts
All of which is to say that if your gaze never moves beyond the biggest booths, then yes, Geneva watch week can seem repetitive. You will find careful updates, risk-managed launches, and a great many people speaking in the polished dialect of luxury. But if you move through the city with some curiosity, the picture changes quickly. You begin to see experimentation, personality, and genuine watchmaking conviction at every level, from thoughtful sub-5,000-dollar pieces to independent works that belong in museums as much as in safes.
In the end, to say that Watches and Wonders was boring this year is to have missed the boat. Some of the loudest brands played it safe. That part is true. But watch enthusiasm is larger than a handful of headline makers, and Geneva was full of evidence. You just had to look beyond the obvious.
About the author
Brent Robillard is a writer, educator, craftsman, and watch enthusiast. He is the author of four novels. You can follow him on Instagram.
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