Looking ahead to this year’s flagship watch fair, Watches & Wonders, the industry seems to be both robust and growing. Running from April 14 to 18 in Geneva, the 2026 edition will host 55 returning brands, plus 11 newcomers including Audemars Piguet. The exhibition area has expanded from 77,000 square meters in 2025 to 84,000 this year, with space for live performances by emerging musical talent and DJs. Visitor numbers are also continuing to grow, up 12% year-on-year in 2025, per Watches & Wonders.
But despite the rising interest, recent export figures published by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry paint a different picture. Total exports halved between 2000 and 2025, from 29.7 million units to 14.6 million units, while the value of those exports almost tripled from CHF 9.3 billion to CHF 24.4 billion ($11.8 billion to $30.9 billion) over the same period. Growth has consolidated at the top end, as the mid and entry-level consumer retreats and the industry becomes increasingly reliant on the high-end watch enthusiast.
The value of the high-end segment (watches priced CHF 3,000+, or $3,800+) increased more than sixfold between 2000 and 2025, from CHF 3.1 billion to CHF 19.5 billion ($3.9 billion to $25.7 billion), while volumes rose more modestly from 488,000 units to 1.87 million. By contrast, entry-level watches (watches priced CHF 200 and below, or $250) saw volumes collapse from 22.8 million to 8.3 million units, as value declined from CHF 1.2 billion to CHF 704 million ($1.5 billion to $892 million). The mid-range segment (watches priced CHF 200-500, or $250-650) also contracted, with volumes dropping from 3.1 million to 1.8 million units and value from CHF 1 billion to CHF 554 million ($1.3 billion to $701 million).
The high-end consumer pool is small, and demand varies between geographies. Globally, only 5% of consumers are willing to spend CHF 10,000 to CHF 50,000 ($12,600 to $63,300) on a timepiece, and just 5% would pay above this threshold — respectively increasing to 20% and 16% in China, and to 18% for watches priced over CHF 50,000 in Hong Kong, according to a study from Deloitte.
Faced with this uneven backdrop, here are the defining characteristics of the watch industry in 2026 and how brands are navigating them.
Premiumization accelerates
According to Morgan Stanley and LuxeConsult’s latest Annual Swiss Watcher report, one of the defining features of the watch industry remains premiumization. Watches priced above CHF 50,000 accounted for 37% of total export value and generated 89% of total export growth in 2025, despite representing just 1.4% of volumes. This reinforces the increasing concentration of value at the very top end of the watch segment.
