A luxury brand that’s nearing its 150th birthday, you won’t be surprised to learn that Audemars Piguet has enjoyed countless design innovations throughout its history – from pocket watches to wristwatches, and from heavy and oversized designs to the more sleek and elegant timepieces of today.
Audemars Piguet is considered an authority figure in the industry. It is one of the few brands that has retained its popularity throughout the years, recognised as a leading innovator with two founders who know the intricacies of watchmaking better than they know themselves.
So, how have Audemars Piguet evolved in terms of design, and what impact has the ever-changing world of fashion and consumer demand had on the luxury brand?
How Audemars Piguet Became a Prominent Luxury Brand
The history of Audemars Piguet is one filled with compromise and collaboration – a concept that remains at the forefront of the brand’s market presence, even today.
Audemars and Piguet were both specialists in the timepiece arena. Audemars was the innovative mind behind a watch’s most intricate workings and mechanisms, while Piguet specialised in putting them together to create a precise piece of machinery. From the dawn of the brand in 1875, Audemars Piguet continued to embody progression in their design – conceptualising the following designs and mechanics…
- In 1892, the brand launched watches with an improved primary moment repeater.
- In 1921, the brand unveiled a pocket watch and wristwatch with a ‘jumping hour’ display – that is, a mechanism that allowed the watch to display the start of a new hour instantly and with complete accuracy.
- In 1955, Audemars Piguet became the first watchmaker to invent a timepiece with a perpetual calendar that had a built-in leap year function.
- In 1972, Audemars Piguet released the iconic Royal Oak – more on that in the next section of this blog.
As you can see from some of these most notable achievements, Audemars Piguet isn’t just respected in the watchmaking industry for its design flair, but also for its exceptional and industry-changing innovation.
Throughout its history, the brand has remained married to traditional methods but on the grandest and most impressive scale possible.
Watches Made with Quality and Design Flair
Much of the brand’s success is owed to the original founders, who combined their individual skill sets to create a brand centred on quality, accuracy, precision, and of course style.
When Audemars and Piguet came together, one an expert in complex watch movements while the other specialised in regulating those movements for optimum precision, the result was a collection of watches that broke boundaries from day one.
Perhaps the most notable model in the entire collection is the Royal Oak timepiece. This particular watch, marketed with “a body of steel and a heart of gold”, was created in 1972 and recently celebrated its 50th anniversary with an exclusive range of exciting new designs. The Royal Oak turned heads because of the way it broke the norms that had been laid out in the world of wristwatch design, using a steel case and an angled octagonal bezel. Prior to this, steel was considered an industrial material and not one that would be used in something as intricate as a wristwatch – with designers and manufacturers leaning towards gold and platinum.
In 2002, a 30th anniversary Royal Oak special was released, with the 2022 50th anniversary model an even more intricate version of the original timepiece. Both of these anniversary models respected the original aesthetic of the Royal Oak timepiece but with innovative features and modern details, continuing to deliver on the expectations of modern buyers.
And it’s this commitment to tradition, bridged with a respect for modern design, that really underpins the evolution of Audemars Piguet’s watch design. When browsing the authentic Audemars Piguet watches available to buy through reputable second-hand buyers and sellers, you will notice how the brand is almost one of two halves – pairing the often innovative and modern aesthetics with an underlying respect for classic horology and manufacturing.
The Role of Collaboration in Audemars Piguet’s Ever-Changing Design
One way that Audemars Piguet continues to embrace innovation and design flair is through collaboration. The brand has partnered with names like Tiffany & Co, Bulgari, Tamara Ralph, and even Cartier to remain relevant and popular, connecting timeless design with the practical features and aesthetic finishes that modern buyers want.
These collaborations combine the artistic flair of other designers with the impeccable build of Audemars Piguet’s timepieces. They add unique personality to the ever-changing collections, and even connect the luxury brand with unexpected design concepts – for example, the Marvel x Audemars Piguet union, which saw an exclusive Spiderman watch being released.
As well as these luxury partnerships and collaborations, Audemars Piguet has a rich history of working with other watch specialists and merchants – one example being a commission from Louis Brandt & Frère, who requested a watch that could be worn on the wrist by their buyers. This is a lesser-known watch that is often overtaken in conversation by innovative Rolex and other models, and usurped by the Royal Oak from Audemars Piguet. However, from a design perspective, and particularly in terms of evolution, this design marks Audemars Piguet’s first move towards the popularisation of wristwatches.
Why Is Audemars Piguet Such a Good Investment?
With all that said, and with Audemars Piguet such a revolutionary brand in terms of design, manufacturing, quality, and innovation, is it worthy of the investment?
As one of the leading luxury brands, there is no doubt that Audemars Piguet is a pricey investment – however, it remains at the forefront of investors’ wish lists thanks to its market presence, the exclusivity of each collection, and the fact that any authentic timepiece from Audemars Piguet increases in value as soon as it leaves the retailer.
Provided you purchase your Audemars Piguet watch from a reputable reseller with access to all the proper authentication checks and valuation information, a genuine AP watch is a great investment with potential for high returns. Not to mention, owning your very own piece of Audemars Piguet history is considered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity by watch collectors across the world.