As an international order and communication platform for the jewelry and watch industry, Inhorgenta brought together 987 exhibitors from 40 countries with 27,500 trade visitors from over 70 countries from 18 - 21 February 2017. Young professionals were given the opportunity to make direct contact with experts and find out about opportunities in the industry at workshops and presentations.
Changing consumer behavior through digital sales channels is also affecting the jewelry and watch industry. Bloggers on social media are also influencing the jewelry and watch industry. The extensive 2017 seminar program in Hall C2 provided visitors with new ideas for future business models. One of the highlights of the seminar program was a presentation by Google guru Jeremy Abbet on the topic of "The store ot the future - concepts and ideas". Patrick Schaab's thoughts on the topic of smartwatches also attracted a great deal of interest from the audience.
Watches, jewelry, gemstones, design and technology are the métier of Europe's leading jewelry, watch and gemstone fair. In an exclusive atmosphere, trade visitors gained an overview of the latest trends, innovations and popular designs. Great emotions were released at the jewelry shows, where models presented selected pieces of jewelry from exhibitors on the catwalk. Renowned watch brands such as Doxa, Traser H3 and Victorinox were new to Inhorgenta, as were Colpo & Zilio, London Pearl, Roberto Demeglio and Zoccai.
On a tour of the exhibition, Messe.TV was able to immerse itself in the sparkling world of gemstones and the wide variety of materials used in jewelry at various trade fair stands and learn from renowned watch manufacturers that a watch can be much more than just a timepiece. The CEO of Messe München, Mr. Klaus Dittrich, spoke to us about the jewelry trends for men. Overall, he was very satisfied with the trade fair and diagnosed a "spring mood". The annual orientation of Inhorgenta at the beginning of the year proves to be an ideal time for retailers to place orders. In contrast to previous years, Inhorgenta 2017 took place from Saturday to Tuesday in order to avoid an overlap with the carnival period.
The jewelry and watch industry described the creation of an award for the sector as long overdue. Over 100 applications were received in advance for the Inhorgenta Warad. No easy task for the renowned jury. Robert Demeglio from Turin was named Designer of the Year, while the audience award for "Best Piece of Jewelry" went to Portuguese jewelry designer Liliana Guerreiro. The winners of the 6 different categories were honored with a 3.5 kg diamond-shaped trophy at a grand gala at the Postpalast in Munich.