A brand specialising in affordable watches priced under US$2,000, Emile Chouriet has a fairly generic line-up, but with one obvious exception, the Héritier à Guichets. Showing the time and calendar in windows, the watch is inspired by timepieces of the 1920s, while having a titanium case with fancy lugs.

Named after a 17^th century French watchmaker, the brand was founded in 1998 by a Swiss businessman but acquired a decade later by Fiyta, a Shenzhen-based watchmaker best known for producing the chronograph issued to Chinese astronauts. Consequently, Emile Chouriet now focuses its efforts on the Chinese market, but the Héritier à Guichet combines an Art Deco style and novel time display that doubtlessly has wider appeal.

Digital time displays became fashionable during the Art Deco period, with pocket watches sporting jumping or wandering hours, or even full calendar displays in an elongated window. The Héritier à Guichet takes inspiration from that early 20th century style, reproducing it in an affordable manner.

A pale metallic grey with a radial-brushed finish, the dial consists of four windows, with the two closest to the centre showing the hours and minutes, while the outer apertures with wider bevels displaying the day and date. The hours and minutes, however, are not instantaneously jumping displays, instead they are “dragging” indicators that continually move just as conventional hands would.

Also unusual is the case: though it has a moderate 40 mm diameter, the material is titanium – an unusual choice of metal for a classically-styled watch – while having distinctive, double-fluted lugs.

The movement inside is the ETA 2834, which is essentially an ETA 2824 with a day and date display. Mechanically, the modifications made to create the window-type display are minimal, primarily replacing the hour and minutes hands with discs, but the result is nonetheless a watch that is an interesting contender in a price segment that doesn’t have many such offerings.

Key facts and price

Emile Chouriet Héritier à Guichets
Ref. 18.1129.G.7.2.63.2

Diameter: 40 mm
Height: 11 mm
Material: Titanium
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: EC9227 (ETA 2834)
Functions: Hours, minutes, day, and date
Winding: Self-winding
Frequency: 28,800 beats per hour (4 Hz)
Power reserve: 38 hours

Strap: Embossed calfskin

Availability: From authorised retailers
Price: US$2,070

For more information, visit Emilechouriet.com.

Hours after the momentous but unsurprising exit from Baselworld by Rolex, Patek Philippe, Chanel, Chopard, and Tudor, the fair’s organiser, MCH Group, issued a strident response expressing “great surprise and equally great regret” at the brands’ departure, while noting that all the brands were privy to the discussions about “postponing” Baselworld 2020 to January next year.

And MCH Group then took a swing at its former exhibitors, implying a long-planned conspiracy to depart Baselworld: “[We] must therefore conclude that the relevant plans [to leave Baselworld] have been in preparation for some time and that the discussions concerning the financial arrangements for the cancellation of Baselworld 2020 are now being put forward as an argument.”

Memories of days past – the main hall of Baselworld 2019. Photo – Baselworld

Unilateral decisions, and more

According to insiders, however, the MCH Group statement is only half the story. Most crucial were the circumstances surrounding the negotiations for changing the date of Baselworld, once the world’s largest watch and jewellery fair, a status that likely buoyed MCH Group’s confidence to unsustainable levels.

The major brands, led by exhibitors’ committee head Hubert J. du Plessix – who is also the chief of investments and logistics at Rolex – were amenable to postponing Baselworld to January 2021. Amongst the most vocal proponents for the move were the LVMH-owned brands, namely Bulgari, Hublot, TAG Heuer, and Zenith, which staged their own mini-fair in January this year in Dubai, finding the April date for Baselworld too late in the year.

But the other exhibitors were amenable to the postponement only if an agreement on coordinating the timing of the fair was first reached with the organisers of Watches & Wonders, the Geneva fair formerly known as SIHH. Instead, the postponement of Baselworld was done in haste, and adding insult to injury, the decision was announced publicly before any of the exhibitors were informed, something the departing brands cited as one of the “unilateral decisions made without consultation by Baselworld management” that compelled them to leave.

So the dispute over fee refunds was the last straw, but by no means the most important factor. In fact, even a full refund would be negligible for all of the departing brands – the combined annual revenue of the biggest three, Rolex, Patek Philippe, and Chanel, is well over US$20 billion.

And it’s important to point that that until recently, most of the departing brands remained supportive of Baselworld. In fact, at Baselworld 2019, Rolex made it known to retailers that it was committed to the event, as did Patek Philippe. According to inside sources, negotiations about the fate of Baselworld continued until a few days ago – with the departing exhibitors continuing to make efforts to find a solution that would allow them to stay.

The aluminium facade of Messe Basel, the pricey convention hall where the fair used to take place. Photo – Baselworld

The next act…

The MCH Group statement closed with “[We] will be making a decision on the continuation of Baselworld and on investments in its further development, which is geared to the long term.”

The decision is a foregone conclusion – and the market has priced that in. In the trading day after the exhibitors announced their withdrawal, the share price of the MCH Group fell by 7.34% to just 13.25 Swiss francs. At its most recent high in May 2017, the stock peaked at 81.50 francs. As a result, the market capitalisation of MCH Group – which also owns Art Basel – is a bit under 80 million francs, about equivalent to the total retail value of the Omega Speedmaster Apollo 11 50th Anniversary limited edition.

MCH Group’s other major franchise, Art Basel, retains significant goodwill, with its diligent managers being highly regarded by the art business, giving the art fair has a good chance of survival by being spun off or bailed out.

Baselworld, on the other hand, does not enjoy that luxury, having neither goodwill nor a quorum of exhibitors. Will it struggle on on a bit as a fair for brands that are has-beens and also-rans? Might the Swatch Group swoop in and pick it up on the cheap? Or might Baselworld just call it quits for good?

The saga has not yet reached it final chapter, so stay tuned.