Audemars Piguet Luxury Swiss Watches

The Swiss are known to be legendary watchmakers, even to the layperson who does not know a lot about luxury timepieces. This is due in large part to excellent Swiss timepiece manufacturers such as Audemars Piguet, which continue to pace the industry to this very day with their breathtaking designs and amazing quality.

Audemars Piguet timepieces trace their roots back to when Jules-Louis Audemars and Edward-Auguste Piguet in their early 20’s. Both young men had a passion for watchmaking, and it was only natural that this was the case, as they grew in what is known by some as the “cradle of prestige watchmaking”. In 1875, the two began their modestly sized company, as Audemars took care of the technical duties, with Piguet becoming the face of the company in regards to sales and marketing. For Piguet, this meant long hours of travel and hard work to make the connections necessary to thrive in such a competitive area.

In time, the company grew and prospered, even as other watchmakers struggled and fell by the wayside over the years. As the first World War and the Great Depression took their respective tolls on many small businesses and watchmakers around the world, Audemars Piguet continued on with steady growth. A lot of this was thanks to their designs, which were often led by women’s watches and very thin designs. Throughout the history of Audemars Piguet, events that caused other watchmakers to fall behind were avoided by smart and sophisticated designs.

This was also true after the second World War, when Audemars Piguet decided to make more accessible watches to further their success. Then, in the 1970’s, as other watchmakers were struggling mightily, Audemars Piguet made a bold choice to present the Royal Oak, the first truly high-end steel sports watch. Again, these choices and bold design efforts have kept the company high above much of its competition through all kinds of political and economic events.

The Royal Oak boosted awareness of Audemars Piguet, which was always known by serious watch collectors and enthusiasts, but not always by others. With a design that absolutely changed the way that people thought of luxury watches, it was inevitable that Audemars Piguet would become a name known worldwide.

Other firsts throughout Audemars Piguet’s history included the first wristwatches with mechanical winding and tourbillion, as well as creating the smallest self-winding watch with a perpetual calendar. Some of the company’s most popular creations include its Haute Joaillerie watches.

Today, the company has grown in prestige and reputation, if not necessarily in size: only about 500 employees across the world have the right to say that they are affiliated with Audemars Piguet. Much of the work is done in the Le Brassus workshops, and in Le Locle, where one of the subsidiaries of Audemars Piguet is located. Another is in Meyrin, Geneva and is dedicated to creating top of the line watch cases. Audemars Piguet is still known for producing extremely complex and thin styles of watches that are a true sight to behold.