Worn & Wound
Notes From a Very Busy Day at Watches & Wonders
Wednesday April 2, 2025 5:30 AM: 9Hotel Paquis I’m awake for day two of Watches & Wonders an hour before my (first) alarm, which was probably an hour earlier than it needed to be anyway. Am I refreshed? I am not. My internal clock is still on east coast time, which means if I were back home I’d be settling in on the couch getting ready to stream some movie that I’ve seen a million times and am comfortable falling asleep to. Maybe Prometheus, a favorite among members of the watch media for reasons I can’t quite articulate. 8:30 AM: the shuttle to Palexpo We are at a new hotel this year deeper into the red light district which is the second or third stop on the shuttle line. By the time the shuttle gets to us, it’s quite crowded, standing room only. A shorter trip though, which is welcome. I always find myself wondering who these people on the shuttle are. The answer, almost certainly, is that they are retailers. Retailers are everywhere – they outnumber media by a significant percentage. Watches & Wonders is an important business event for retailers, hence the suits. European retailers are almost always wearing Cartier. American retailers are almost always wearing those sneakers that look like dress shoes. A note on shuttle etiquette: when you board a crowded shuttle, move as deep into the center as possible. Don’t stand by the door – it makes it more difficult for people to board at the next stop. 9:30 AM: Palexpo I’m at a table in a section of ...