By Michael Friedberg at SIHH in Geneva, Switzerland

In 1963, there was a popular song called “Oh What a Night”. In 2012, as SIHH closes we can all sing “Oh What a Week”.

This was an SIHH to top all SIHHs for IWC. Pilot’s watches are part of the IWC lifeblood, and there was no doubt that their new models would be hits of the show. Everyone loved the new ceramic references, including the very special Miramar models. The day-date/digital perpetual flight watch is as special as any flight watch has been. The new Spitfire models exude elegance. The classic pilots’ watches were tweaked ever so perfectly, and the new WorldTimer was especially popular with the world travelers who attended this fair.  

But SIHH wasn’t just about watches. For IWC, it also was an incredible booth, taking a person on a flight deck to feel the exhilaration of supersonic flight.   It was fun trying out a flight simulator, even if a poor trainee crashed, at least virtually.  And it also was IWC’s red carpet soiree, the glamour-filled Tuesday evening dinner, with all sorts of celebrities participating in the festivities.  Like the Sidérale, on Tuesday the stars came out at night.

But there was still more. There was Kurt Klaus, genius watchmaker, explaining technicalities to journalists. There was an entire day for 20 ardent collectors.   Every collector enjoyed getting together, sharing anecdotes, and figuring out which of the new models would be his next. 

And, to top everything off, there was the Sidérale. A watch to trump all watches, literally showing the stars in a new light.

At SIHH there were many IWC stars. There was Georges Kern, CEO of IWC, taking well-earned kudos with style and clearly explaining his vision. There was Karoline Huber fine-tuning many of the marketing initiatives.  There were icons of IWC, such as Hannes Pantli (now known as “Mr. Sidérale”) and of course Kurt Klaus.   And there were dozens more.

This was a week of star-power for IWC. Oh what a week!