Audemars Piguet watches have become one of the world’s topmost horological brands with a reputation for desirability, complexity and quality. This level of fame and honour is not an overnight feat. It took years of painstaking hard work and commitment to quality assurance and innovation. Recently, there is a rising concern about the overvalue of the timepieces from the brand. This article will provide you with insights and details that answer the question: Are Audemars Piguet Watches overvalued?
The Advent Of Audemars Piguet
The wake of 1875 saw the meeting of Jules-Louis Audemars and Edward-Auguste Piguet and the establishment of a workshop from which spring the movement. Audemars focused on production and assemblage of movements while Piguet directed his energy to regulate the finished movements. They birthed the Audemars Piguet firm and grew it to a watchmaking company of repute in Switzerland. At the foundation of the company’s success is quality control of complicated movements. However, in 1918 and 1919, the two founders of the firm passed on.
Why Audemars Piguet Watches Expensive?
Most times, buyers may associate the quality of products with their price. This may not be different with the Audemars Piguet watchmaking company. Below are some reasons the brands’ watches could be expensive.
Cost Of Developing The Movement
Making unique watches can take years because of the need to make unique watches that will leave marks on sands of time. Micromechanical engineers develop new watch modules and movements on a system before actual development. The development of new calibres costs so much, and this process can take years to accomplish. In the same vein, designing cases and bracelets demands high-quality materials, labour and great care.
Quality Of Materials
What makes the Audemars Piguet brand stand tall among competitors are not the unique patterns and designs but the richness of the techniques and materials used in production. The brand uses black ceramics instead of stainless steel. The same applies to the use of white gold screws, which is an explicit statement of perfection spelt out in details.
Few Numbers Equate To Exorbitant Prices
That sophisticated movements of top-class watches come in limited quantities that satisfy the desires of a particular client could contribute to the high cost of luxury watches. This is the case with the brand, which produces a few timepieces at a time. If the brand were to produce millions of watches, the cost would be distributed across the collections. Audemars Piguet watches come in limited edition, and this explains the high cost.
Are Audemars Piguet Watches Overvalued?
What comes to mind when you mention Audemars Piguet is Royal Oak. This model of the brand came into the market in 1972, followed by many other models. Royal Oak is a perfect blend of unique designs, glorious history, world-class quality materials and amazing craftsmanship. One of the interesting stories behind the brand is that the designer, Gerald Genta, was given only a day to produce the watch, and he was successful. His inspiration for the HMS Royal Oak came from the 1862 battleship from where he adapted the octagonal portholes as a basis for the case. At the launch of the timepiece in 1972, the cost was ten times the price of a Rolex Submariner. This created a slow initial take-up, but this ushered in a super-premium luxury device. In 1993, the Royal Oak subsequently evolved into Royal Oak Offshore, which was a unique advancement of the original watch. The Royal Oak Offshore ushered in the super-luxury market niche allowing the entrance of other super-premium watch brands.
Another of Audemars Piguet models that are worth considering is the Royal Jumbo, Ref. 15202, with its precursor Ref 14802. The update of its dial and bracelet offered the timepiece a dissimilar clasp. With the evolution in the luxury industry, the value of these watches had soared. A key factor that could be responsible for this rising value might lie in the limitation of the editions. The discontinuance of a model or brands’ production process may force existing timepieces to become scarce. This is the case with Sinn 142, which disappeared from the market when the Lemania 5100 movement stopped production. Originally, the cost could be around $1600, but afterwards, not only was the timepiece scarce, it cost $3000.
Conclusion
Preferences differ. A class of people may prefer the living legends while others may have a modern taste. Whichever the taste of an individual, the truth remains that what goes into making luxury watches demands recommendation. Audemar Piguet may not have been valued highly if they didn’t merit the new status. I will prefer to say that the brand deserves its place in the luxury market. Anyone with the capacity can opt for any of its models, whether traditional or modern watches.
