“It’s a great success because people buy them left and right, everywhere in the world. Why? People want to have fun”
Because if it were a trend, the gold watches would have already been out there and we would only follow the trend. But, no, it’s a bet. We haven’t seen yellow gold watches since six to eight years ago in the collection. But, we made them in small quantities and wanted to see the reaction. The good news is that no other watch company is bringing in yellow gold, so we’re the only one to do that in both Geneva [at SIHH 2016] and Basel [at Baselworld 2016]. CA: Also, one of the most interesting highlights is the Royal Oak Double Balance Wheel Openworked. What’s the story behind this? FHB: I have a very important rule in business. No matter what you do in life, if you have been doing the same job for quite some time and you know what you’re doing, most likely you have good ideas as well. If you have an entry-level job, that doesn’t mean you don’t have ideas. So, what I want to give to everyone in the company is an open opportunity to bring ideas on how to do it better.
One of the biggest rewards this year is that skeletonized Royal Oak Double Balance Wheel timepiece. Neither the marketing nor the product department, nor I, asked for that creation. It’s our own watchmakers on their own who decided to assemble the mechanism, to test it out and to see if it would do better than prior editions. I saw that mechanism and asked, “Does it work better than the prior skeleton we had?” They said “Yes.” So, I asked then, “Can we start with the production for it?” “Yes.”
It wasn’t inquired by the company; they did this on their own. When you have the possibility in the company to do that, that’s a good sign. People are not boxed in anymore. You need to keep a little bit of a free spirit to be different, to make a statement. When I came onboard in 2012, some people were leaving the company. We now receive 2,000 resumes a month, and there are only 1,500 people in the company. A lot of people want to come and join Audemars Piguet, because they perceive us as a brand that delivers experiences, crafts and ultimate quality. They want to be part of the team that wins. CA: Speaking of crafts, while Audemars Piguet is always about mechanical watches, is there anything to learn from the rise of smartwatches?