DUBAI — For decades, the global watch industry has operated on a well-established axis: Geneva for Watches and Wonders in the spring and the various Swiss exhibitions that punctuate the calendar. But last week, as the chief executive officer of Rolex took the stage alongside executives from Bulgari, Chopard and Breitling — all gathered not in Switzerland but in the shadow of the Burj Khalifa here — it became clear that the geography of haute horlogerie has a new location.
Dubai Watch Week, founded in 2015 by the Seddiqi family — whose 75-year-old retail empire has long served as the region’s gateway to Swiss watchmaking — has grown from a niche collectors’ gathering into the world’s largest watch event by brand count. The seventh edition hosted more than 90 brands across 200,000 square feet, a 48 percent increase from 2023, with pavilions rivaling those seen in Geneva.
The Bulgari pavilion at Dubai Watch Week.
“The heart of Dubai Watch Week remains the same from the beginning: We will always be about community, learning and a shared love of the art and science of watchmaking,” said Hind Seddiqi, CEO of Dubai Watch Week “But the scale and the ambition and the possibilities have grown beyond anything we imagined.”
That growth hasn’t gone unnoticed by industry heavyweights. Jean-Christophe Babin, CEO of Bulgari and of LVMH’s watch division, which includes Hublot, Zenith and Tag Heuer, arrived in Dubai for his first in-person visit to the event and came away convinced he was witnessing the emergence of watchmaking’s next major platform.
“To me, this must become an international event,” Babin told WWD. “As you see it today, you have all ingredients. The structure itself, these booths, we could hardly do better or differently. This is the beginning, really, of a new era for watchmaking.”
A Geographic Sweet Spot
Babin knows the territory. He pioneered luxury watch events in Dubai when Bulgari organized its own watch week in 2017, which evolved into LVMH Watch Week the following year before the group expanded to other cities. What makes Dubai different from previous attempts to establish watch capitals outside Switzerland?
“Dubai is really a crossroad of cultures, of the West and the East,” Babin explained. “It’s reachable from any part of the world, maximum 15 hours to a few hours. From Italy, it’s five hours.”
He drew a pointed contrast with Las Vegas, which once attempted to position itself as a major watch destination but never attracted major brands in a suitably luxury environment. “Dubai Mall is the first mall in the world, and it’s a luxury mall. The climate makes it extremely attractive between October and April, exactly when Northern Hemisphere countries are not.”
Industry Leaders, Unfiltered
Nothing signaled Dubai Watch Week’s elevated ambitions more clearly than its programming. The event’s inaugural CEO Roundtable brought together Georges Kern of Breitling; Ilaria Resta; Karl-Friedrich Scheufele of Chopard, and Julien Tornare of Parmigiani Fleurier, a format that provided rare insights into the strategies driving the sector forward.
Jean-Frédéric Dufour, CEO of Rolex, and Abdul Hamied Seddiqi speak to a packed crowd.
But the opening keynote set an even higher bar. Jean-Frédéric Dufour, CEO of Rolex and perhaps the most media-shy figure in luxury watchmaking, appeared alongside Abdul Hamied Seddiqi, chairman of Seddiqi Holding, for a session titled “The Time to Act is Now.” The two men, whose relationship dates back to the early 1990s, spoke about industry collaboration with unusual candor.
“It’s very important we all gather together to talk loudly to the world that the watch industry exists, that we are a creative industry, that we offer wonderful products which will last forever,” Dufour said. “We lead the competition on the market and the competition about creativity. But it’s very important that we are mature enough to collaborate.”
Product Premieres
The event’s significance as a launchpad was evident across the exhibition. Van Cleef & Arpels chose Dubai for the global premiere of its Brassée de Lavande automaton, a stunning addition to the brand’s Extraordinary Objects collection featuring 36 lacquered rose gold lavender stems that open to reveal a butterfly with orange plique-à-jour enamel wings. The unique piece, assembled over several years at Van Cleef’s Mécanique d’Art Workshop in Sainte-Croix, was sold before its premiere, making Dubai Watch Week possibly the only time it will ever be publicly displayed.
Equally compelling was the UR-FREAK, a collaboration between Ulysse Nardin and URWERK that merges Ulysse Nardin’s rotating movement concept with URWERK’s wandering hours satellite display, requiring more than 150 entirely new components. The watch is housed in URWERK’s signature anthracite gray sandblasted titanium, accented with the brand’s emblematic electric yellow.
Other notable releases included Bulgari’s Octo Finissimo featuring calligraphic design in collaboration with Dubai-based artist Mattar bin Lahej; Chopard’s L.U.C Grand Strike minute repeater; H. Moser & Cie’s Streamliner with a unique dial treatment, and Doxa’s limited-edition cherry red SUB 300 beta ceramic released exclusively through Ahmed Seddiqi and Sons. The Collector’s Lounge also showcased Ahmed Seddiqi’s 75th anniversary limited editions, a meaningful convergence as the family business’ diamond jubilee aligned with Dubai Watch Week’s own decade milestone.
Dubai Watch Week hosted a number of premieres for brands.
“This event is uniquely accessible. The chance to meet watchmakers face-to-face, handle pieces before they hit boutiques, and feel like an insider rather than just a customer,” said Lisa Rokny, strategist and founder of luxury consultancy Avenue Fifty Two. “What works here is the democratization of it. Dubai Watch Week is open to the public, and it treats the curious newcomer with the same respect as the seasoned collector. That’s rare in this industry.”
Looking Forward
Hind Seddiqi revealed that Dubai Watch Week would transition from a biennial event to a year-round global platform, launching an advisory committee, a design competition and a collector-focused white paper. “The world wants more: more access, more transparency, more meaning behind the craft,” she said.
Babin said the only missing pieces were a handful of major brands that haven’t yet committed to taking part in the event. “When they discover what they missed this edition, in two years they might participate,” he predicted. “Switzerland will ever remain the core pillar of the industry. But this could really be the new one.”
With more than 90 brands gathered beneath the world’s tallest building, and a family business celebrating 75 years of watch retail alongside a decade of Dubai Watch Week, the Seddiqis appear determined to prove him right.
