GPHG 2025: Luxury Watchmakers Gear Up for Historic Geneva Ceremony
The Resilience of Luxury Watchmaking Amidst Industry Challenges
As the year draws to a close, the creative industries are facing numerous challenges, including funding cuts, skill shortages, and the growing threat of artificial intelligence. These issues have impacted various sectors, from the arts to crafts. However, the world of luxury watchmaking has managed to remain resilient, continuing to thrive despite these pressures.
One of the most prestigious events in the watchmaking calendar is the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG). This annual award ceremony, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this November, showcases the finest timepieces from around the globe. With 90 watches and clocks competing for awards across 15 categories, including ladies’, men’s, calendar and astronomy, jewellery, and mechanical, the event highlights the exceptional craftsmanship that defines the industry.
The top honor at the GPHG, known as the ‘Aiguille d'Or’ Grand Prix, is open to any watch across all categories. Last year, IWC Schaffhausen's Portugieser Eternal Calendar claimed this prestigious title. The winners will be announced on Thursday, 13 November, during the awards ceremony held at the Bâtiment des Forces Motrices in Geneva.
The Role of the GPHG Academy
This year also marks the fifth anniversary of the GPHG Academy, a group of over 1,000 members dedicated to supporting and promoting the global influence of watchmaking. The Academy plays a crucial role in the selection process for watches in competition. Each spring, members begin proposing eligible timepieces, subject to brands’ approval. In summer, academicians nominate six finalists per category before participating in the autumn selection of the prizewinners, alongside the jury, which is composed of Academy members.
Global Exhibition Tour
Nominated watches take a world tour, with the 84 watches and six clocks from among the 302 models submitted by 184 brands this year traveling globally in anticipation of the awards ceremony, often referred to as the "Oscars" of watchmaking.
The tour began in Shanghai at the start of October as part of Golden Week, an initiative aimed at promoting cultural exchanges between East and West.
The exhibition continued in Istanbul from 15 to 20 October, organized in collaboration with the Turkish fashion group Vakko in its private hotel on the banks of the Bosphorus.
Geneva’s Musée d’Art et d’Histoire will host the nominated timepieces from 29 October to 16 November 2025, offering a wide-ranging cultural outreach programme to the public and schools.
As the final stop on the 2025 tour, Dubai Watch Week will celebrate the 2025 winners from 19 to 23 November.
Timepieces to Watch Out For
Six timepieces are nominated for each category, and some have already captured the attention of industry experts.
In the Ladies’ category, Gérald Genta’s Gentissima Oursin Fire Opal stands out. Watches competing for this prize are not allowed to be overly ornamented, so Genta’s timepiece makes a statement instead with a flame-hued dial surrounded by 137 individually set fire opals. GPHG describes it as “audacious elegance.”
Last year, Van Cleef & Arpels won both the Ladies’ and Ladies’ Complication prizes, but has no entries in either category this year.
In the Men’s category, the Grand Seiko Spring Drive U.F.A has been a much-hyped object of interest, as it is the most accurate mainspring-powered watch in the world. While the sizing and design might not be the most eye-catching, its achievement is undeniable.
Last year, the precision of IWC Schaffhausen’s entry won the maker the Aiguille d’Or. The Portugieser Eternal Calendar is officially recognized by Guinness World Records as the “most precise lunar phase wristwatch,” with a theoretical deviation of just one day in 45,361,055 years.
Mechanical Exception Category
The Mechanical Exception category is defined by GPHG as watches featuring a special mechanism, such as an innovative or sophisticated display, an automaton, a striking or any other acoustic function, a special escapement, a belt-driven movement, or comprising another original and/or exceptional horological concept.
Given that requirement, it is hard not to single out Louis Vuitton’s Escale au Pont-Neuf pocket watch. More like a piece of fine art than a timekeeper, it depicts the French capital's oldest bridge in exquisite, whimsical detail using a bas-relief engraving technique. There are 13 moving elements, including a barge loaded with Louis Vuitton trunks that slowly open to reveal golden monogrammed flowers. It is priced at an eyewatering CHF 3.15 million (€3.4 million).
