My first visit to BASELWORLD in 2007 will forever be memorable. And I mean that in more ways than a few. I can’t put into words that can honestly express the feeling of being somewhere alone but never alone at the same time. I traveled alone to Switzerland but I was among tens of thousands of friends that I never knew prior to my appearance there, but for eight days everyone was everyone’s friend.

What can make grown people stay in aw for eight days and eat, sleep and talk about one thing and one thing only, Watches! I met just about every watch company’s CEO or representative from historically great watchmakers Patek Philippe to World Series of poker sponsor Corum. Having one on one conversations with  important people in an industry dedicated to creativity at its finest can easily be equated to having lunch with Microsoft’s Bill Gates times a thousand. I guess hearing the news from the newsmakers is quite different from reading the news from conventional magazines or aggregates.

The first day, or better known as Day 1 of this exciting time centers on the Hall of Dreams which is designed for le crème de la crème of the watch making industry. You can equate this hall as finding the most influential names in the industry. Rolex, Vacheron, Brequet, Breitling, Omega, Zenith, Audemars Piguet etc. to be located in this prime real estate area.  

These fine companies showcase their products in real type storefront displays that you can’t believe will come down after the show and staffed with sales people to answer any and all your questions, assuming you could ask without a stutter from being overwhelmed. I never stutter personally (I got it like that) but I smiled at those that did, and I understood. I was more of an iconic figure myself all the eight days believe it or not. Even when I was standing next to editorial journalist or other well know industry people. My angle for attention was simple but with much fanfare. When you’re at a setting with global ethnicities except yours, you will attract some attention whether you can handle it or not.

I’m Black (African American) for those that require I be PC (Politically Correct) about my description of myself, well there you go. I have to admit, I certainly had an advantage over everyone there except the major buyers, but that’s because I must be somebody very noticeable in my country. You know, like an athlete, music industry person, big screen star, or Prince of a Kingdom; hehe. Yea, I thought you might think that was the answer. I see the attention from another point of view, perhaps as an Ambassador. For me to make the trip to the world’s largest stage and engage with the top tier players was a testament to the industry as a whole. They were bridging the gap between fine quality design and perhaps smaller but savvy interested markets and buyers. It just seemed to me that all the companies where eager to engage with me.

I enjoy watches, and my reason for being there was to make connections for the next evolution of my work. I’m above level three, but clearly not at level five if you know what I mean. So this trip was about getting me prepared for more advancement. With my over the shoulder strapped soft leather briefcase containing my portfolio of sketches, I was in my zone when it came to connecting with those that will soon become partners of success with me. I’ve learned a great deal from major manufactures and have kept contact with most throughout my time back in the states. Believe me when I say I could go on and on, but I’m going to close and dedicate this page to the companies that give us much to talk and brag about. So I will be bringing industry news here for you and looking forward to answering as many questions I can for you. Please feel free to offer your knowledge and information to help this page grow. Sincerely, Gary owner GGI / Urban Picasso brand watches. 

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 31st, 2009 at 8:30 am and is filed under Events. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.