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AP 2385 is based on the Frédéric Piguet caliber 1185 and AP 3126/3840 (used in the ROO chronographs) has a piggyback chronograph from Dubois-Depraz. How come AP don’t make their own chronographs for these movements? Is it too difficult and/or too expensive? Do you have any real in-house chronographs?
In case I missed something, I do believe the Royal Oak Concept Laptimer Michael Schumacher is the ultimate chronograph, and it is our own movement. Then who tells you that we are not working on other in-house chronographs? A little bit more patience: all good things come to those who wait.
Are we finally going see AP release the long overdue in-house integrated chronograph movement in a Jules Audemars in 2017?
Back to answer 1, you’ll know soon enough. But I can already say that it won’t be the Jules Audemars anymore and it won’t be in 2017.
What are APs internal standards for the movements timekeeping?
Many improvements have been made thanks to the AP label with the reinforcement of chronometry controls on movements via:
- More selective criteria
- A longer control period (more than 2 weeks)
Which is your favourite piece in the Royal Oak line excluding the jumbo (...as that would be the boring obvious answer)?
The Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar. The fact that all the perpetual calendar functions have been created at a time when computers didn’t exist and all people had to cultivate their passion was their own eyes to look at the marvels of the world and time to study the mechanism of the universe doesn't cease to amaze me. Plus, think about this for a second: there are 4 parts in that movement that are hibernating most of the time, only to wake up 1 day every 4 years in order take into account the 29th February! It is the most poetic timepiece I can think of.
What was the reason(s) to scale up the 39mm Royal Oak(15300) to 41mm(15400)?
Mankind evolution and a strong demand from the markets!
Will we ever see a 39mm Royal Oak Chronograph (ROC) again or are the oversized sports watches here to stay?
I don’t believe 41mm is oversized, do you? But why focus on 39mm? Why not 37mm? Time will tell.
Are there plans to offer other dial colors for the RO 15450?
Sure, we want to offer choices. Life is about diversity and our collections are very lively ones. Our watches are meant to be worn and they have to evolve so dial colors are definitely in the pipeline.
How important do you think the Limited Editions are to the company and the brand itself?
At one point we were making quite a few, today we almost stopped completely. Since we decided to cap our production at 40,000 pieces, there’s no reason or room to make them. If we decide to launch one, it will be a very special piece as today Limited Editions represent less than 1% of our production.
How do you work to implement your motto “To break the rules, you must first master them” and savoir-faire into your watches?
We never settle. We never stop looking at how to improve on what we already achieved, even though we were responsible for many world firsts over the years. Take the Royal Oak Concept Supersonnerie or the Royal Oak Openworked Double Balance Wheel for instance. We use all the chances we have to push our own boundaries on a constant basis. And that’s just to start with. This is a culture we keep implementingwithin the whole company. Let’s go back to the Royal Oak Openworked Double Balance Wheel: the idea came from a couple of watchmakers who, when looking at the movement one day, decided that there were quite a few elements they wanted to improve. They worked on it without telling anyone and then started wearing a few prototypes to test the new movement. That’s when I noticed one of these prototypes on their wrists and started asking questions. They explained their idea and we went ahead with it. We push people to not only work on their assignment but also to keep their creative juices flowing as much as possible. The expression “Thinking outside of the box” has been over used by many, but we definitely believe in it. That’s when you can push back boundaries of your own Savoir-Faire.
Your production is around 40 000 watches per year, how many of these are being sold in the East?
It is exactly 40,000 pieces and if East means Asia at large, then it represents slightly more than a third of our sales.
Do you educate your own watchmakers like some German brands, or do you recruit from different WOSTEP schools? And is WOSTEP a criteria to be able to work at AP?
We sometimes recruit from WOSTEP but we have our own apprentices, we like training youngsters ourselves and the good news is that we receive 2,000 CVs per month! For a company of 1,500 staff worldwide it is wonderful. But in order to train young apprentices, we also keep senior watchmakers for as long as possible in order to make sure our Savoir-Faire is being transmitted as it should be. Some of our more senior staff have been with us for 40 years, we value that. Continuity is key for a Manufacture like Audemars Piguet.
And last, were you familiar with Klocksnack.se prior to this interview? Do watch communities such as this inspire you to make certain decisions on product development and marketing?
Our clients are the ones motivating us to push our own boundaries, they are our inspiration. I just came back from our last client event in Dubai during which some of our customers had the opportunity to talk with Giulio Papi, one of the most inventive geniuses within the watchmaking world today. Dinner literally turned into a brain-storming session. The true source of our inspiration is simply passion.
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Thank you Mr. Bennahmias
-
AP 2385 is based on the Frédéric Piguet caliber 1185 and AP 3126/3840 (used in the ROO chronographs) has a piggyback chronograph from Dubois-Depraz. How come AP don’t make their own chronographs for these movements? Is it too difficult and/or too expensive? Do you have any real in-house chronographs?
In case I missed something, I do believe the Royal Oak Concept Laptimer Michael Schumacher is the ultimate chronograph, and it is our own movement. Then who tells you that we are not working on other in-house chronographs? A little bit more patience: all good things come to those who wait.
Are we finally going see AP release the long overdue in-house integrated chronograph movement in a Jules Audemars in 2017?
Back to answer 1, you’ll know soon enough. But I can already say that it won’t be the Jules Audemars anymore and it won’t be in 2017.
What are APs internal standards for the movements timekeeping?
Many improvements have been made thanks to the AP label with the reinforcement of chronometry controls on movements via:
- More selective criteria
- A longer control period (more than 2 weeks)
Which is your favourite piece in the Royal Oak line excluding the jumbo (...as that would be the boring obvious answer)?
The Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar. The fact that all the perpetual calendar functions have been created at a time when computers didn’t exist and all people had to cultivate their passion was their own eyes to look at the marvels of the world and time to study the mechanism of the universe doesn't cease to amaze me. Plus, think about this for a second: there are 4 parts in that movement that are hibernating most of the time, only to wake up 1 day every 4 years in order take into account the 29th February! It is the most poetic timepiece I can think of.
What was the reason(s) to scale up the 39mm Royal Oak(15300) to 41mm(15400)?
Mankind evolution and a strong demand from the markets!
Will we ever see a 39mm Royal Oak Chronograph (ROC) again or are the oversized sports watches here to stay?
I don’t believe 41mm is oversized, do you? But why focus on 39mm? Why not 37mm? Time will tell.
Are there plans to offer other dial colors for the RO 15450?
Sure, we want to offer choices. Life is about diversity and our collections are very lively ones. Our watches are meant to be worn and they have to evolve so dial colors are definitely in the pipeline.
How important do you think the Limited Editions are to the company and the brand itself?
At one point we were making quite a few, today we almost stopped completely. Since we decided to cap our production at 40,000 pieces, there’s no reason or room to make them. If we decide to launch one, it will be a very special piece as today Limited Editions represent less than 1% of our production.
How do you work to implement your motto “To break the rules, you must first master them” and savoir-faire into your watches?
We never settle. We never stop looking at how to improve on what we already achieved, even though we were responsible for many world firsts over the years. Take the Royal Oak Concept Supersonnerie or the Royal Oak Openworked Double Balance Wheel for instance. We use all the chances we have to push our own boundaries on a constant basis. And that’s just to start with. This is a culture we keep implementingwithin the whole company. Let’s go back to the Royal Oak Openworked Double Balance Wheel: the idea came from a couple of watchmakers who, when looking at the movement one day, decided that there were quite a few elements they wanted to improve. They worked on it without telling anyone and then started wearing a few prototypes to test the new movement. That’s when I noticed one of these prototypes on their wrists and started asking questions. They explained their idea and we went ahead with it. We push people to not only work on their assignment but also to keep their creative juices flowing as much as possible. The expression “Thinking outside of the box” has been over used by many, but we definitely believe in it. That’s when you can push back boundaries of your own Savoir-Faire.
Your production is around 40 000 watches per year, how many of these are being sold in the East?
It is exactly 40,000 pieces and if East means Asia at large, then it represents slightly more than a third of our sales.
Do you educate your own watchmakers like some German brands, or do you recruit from different WOSTEP schools? And is WOSTEP a criteria to be able to work at AP?
We sometimes recruit from WOSTEP but we have our own apprentices, we like training youngsters ourselves and the good news is that we receive 2,000 CVs per month! For a company of 1,500 staff worldwide it is wonderful. But in order to train young apprentices, we also keep senior watchmakers for as long as possible in order to make sure our Savoir-Faire is being transmitted as it should be. Some of our more senior staff have been with us for 40 years, we value that. Continuity is key for a Manufacture like Audemars Piguet.
And last, were you familiar with Klocksnack.se prior to this interview? Do watch communities such as this inspire you to make certain decisions on product development and marketing?
Our clients are the ones motivating us to push our own boundaries, they are our inspiration. I just came back from our last client event in Dubai during which some of our customers had the opportunity to talk with Giulio Papi, one of the most inventive geniuses within the watchmaking world today. Dinner literally turned into a brain-storming session. The true source of our inspiration is simply passion.
-
Thank you Mr. Bennahmias
-
