Before I start, I would like to say two things: firstly this report wont be as detailed as the one we did before for the previous watch fair, simply because this one was very similar. The event was held at the same location, it was set up the same way and the experience was almost the same.
Secondly, I apologize for the pictures as my camera was an old one (the new one is with a friend) and it was extremely difficult taking pictures in the low lighting conditions there. Also, the glass showcases where the watches were kept had finger prints and smudges all over, which only added to our problem.
OK, so lets move on...
Its been two years since the last Watch and Clock Fair, and as with the previous one, there was little advertisement done for this one. Had a friendly reader not commented on the blog and reminded is of it, we might have missed it. Like I mentioned above, the venue for this was the same as the previous one's. It was open to the general public from 2pm - 7pm and although Bio and I wanted to get there a bit early, we got delayed and ended up reaching at 5pm.
Just like the last time, Seiko had its booth outside the main exhibition hall. It was the first thing you saw when you entered. They had a section for clocks too and you could place your order if you wanted one.
At this point, Bio had the camera and we were generally checking some of the watches in the display case, when he was approached by someone who was excited to show off his watch. It turned out that the watch Bio was taking a pic of was the same one that guy had on his wrist and thus, was eager to get a picture taken of it. Once again, apologies for the blurry pic because of the low light:(
They had a good number of watches on display, with some really interesting vintage models. They also had the Ananta line up which was a nice to see in person. Some of them were quite stunning, but cost a pretty penny.
There was a representative there who started talking to us and I asked him if there are any Grand Seiko watches around, unfortunately there weren't but they did have a movement on display under a microscope. I guess that would have to do for now.
They also had a large number of clocks on display. Below is the clock Bio liked and almost picked up (they weren't readily available, and the guy recommended us a store, close to where we stay that should have it)
The fair was spread across two halls - one on the ground floor and the other on the second floor. As with last time, Titan had the largest booth, though it was differently set up from last time. This time they had a place to sit and even a cafeteria, with the shakes and drinks named after different Titan collections. They didn't have anything to really catch our eye, so we moved on.
As expected, there were a lot of fashion brands like Guess, Guess Collection, Salvatore Ferragamo and all. We then came across Ice Watch. We had covered this brand in our post for the previous watch fair and always thought it would do well if launched in India. Here we met Victoria who had previously commented on our blog. She was very nice to talk to and took out some time to update us on how the company was doing. She told us that Ice Watch was looking for new distributors for their watches in India and that they may have found a few already. I was having a real tough time taking photos of their watches, so she took out the whole case for me to photograph. It was nice to see them up close in person (last time they were in a box). With all the different color options and some with Swaroski crystals, I can really see these watches getting popular with the ladies here. They are priced pretty reasonably too, with the basic ones going for a lil over $80 (USD). That's the starting price for most of the designer watches you get in the market here.
Victoria posing with her Ice Watch with Swaroski Crystals.
We wish them all the best and hope they do well here.
Casio was next and it was buzzing with people - not too much of a surprise as the brand is quite popular here. I darted towards the display for G-Shocks and I wasn't disappointed. They had a lot of different kinds there, most of them which I've only seen on watch forums. I honestly couldn't choose which one I would take if I had a choice.
They even had the Baby Gs on display.
Another collection which I hadn't seen before that was on display was the Sky Cockpit. Some of the watches were pretty sweet although more expensive than the G-Shocks.
Somewhere amongst all the booths was the booth for Victorinox. It was pretty small that we almost missed it, and I'm glad we didn't. Not only did I get to have a look at my favourite watch from the brand - the 500 Mecha, I also instantly fell in love with the Airboss Mach 8. That watch was something else and I couldn't stop admiring it. I was a little amazed to hear it was priced at just Rs. 80,000 ( $1600 USD) for a mechanical chrono (Valjoux 7750). Maybe if I get a good discount and if I have some cash to spare, I just might pick it up. Another addition to the wish list!
We next came across the brand from another reader of the blog, Omax Watches. Here too we met a very nice gentleman who told us about the company and showed us the watches. They had lots of different designs on display and we asked him to show us one of their signature watches. It was pretty neat, but what blew away me was the price - just Rs.2000 ($40 USD). Now that's what you call affordable! I have a feeling they're going to do well with what they're offering at those prices. Maybe we could do a review on it someday.
Then there was Timex with a huge collection of watches. They had some watches from a few different brands they owned like Nautica and Helix. They had a green watch from Helix on display with caught my eye.
Aha! We spotted HMT and went straight for it. They had a lot of watches from different collections on display. Some of the automatic ones were pretty neat.
OK, just wanna say the next thing I am about to talk about will probably delight a lot of people and that you read this first on India Watch Blog. They had a Pilot on display which Bio and I immediately spotted. Its been quite a while since I spotted one in a display case and we instantly asked if we could buy it - we couldn't, BUT what he said next was something I couldn't wait to share. He said that HMT has put the Pilot back in production and there was NO shortage of it anymore!
I'm back!Next, we went to the second floor to see if there is anything that may interest us. It was mostly for traders and exporters. They had more fashion watches and lots of clocks on display, but nothing that really took my fancy.
One display that was catching a lot of people's attention was by Giordano. They were showcasing a few water resistant watches and they did it nicely by placing them inside a fish tank. One of them resembled a Breitling Navitimer.
I did spot a PAM style strap and buckle at display in one of the booths but the person there said that they hadn't decided on the price yet and the minimum quantity I had to order was for a 100 straps. We even came across a manufacturer of watch tools who was proudly telling someone that they were the competitors for Bergeon in over 60 countries.
Well I guess that brings me to the end of the report. I really wish we had some big watch fairs where we could see some Higher End Swiss brands or maybe I'll just have to wait till I get a chance to go to the Basel World someday. Hope you guys had fun reading this :)
