The 20th edition of the international high precision trade show EPHJ featured over 700 exhibitors and over 18,000 visitors.
The show, which covers high precision, watchmaking, jewellery, microtechnology and medicine was held last month at Palexpo, Geneva.
Show director Alexandre Catton said: “We knew that visitor numbers would be higher than in September 2021, when the health crisis ended," explains Alexandre Catton, EPHJ director, “however, this has exceeded our expectations. This development reflects the market trend, particularly in the watch industry, in which the order books tend to be quite full."
The 700 exhibitors can from 14 countries, and the 18,000 visitors was a 33% increase on the 2021 show.
Mr Catton continued: "We are gradually witnessing the return of foreign visitors, who will certainly be even more numerous in 2023.”
In the opinion of the exhibitors, the quality of the visitors made the difference.
Several highlights marked this 20th edition, including the last day being dedicated to Job Dating to attempt to fill the 300 vacant positions in these companies. At the inauguration of the EPHJ, the results of a survey performed among young Swiss people to better assess their relationship with watches revealed their attachment to fine mechanical watches, despite the notable progression of smartwatches.
The 2022 Exhibitors' Grand Prix was awarded to Polycrystal for its transparent ceramics. Altimet, which has technology to predict the wear and tear of implants, won the Watch Medtech Challenge.
The next EPHJ will be at Palexpo, Geneva, from 6 to 9 June 2023.