Audemars Piguet

Audemars Piguet was founded in 1875 in Le Brassus, a village in the Vallée de Joux, Switzerland, by Jules Louis Audemars and Edward Auguste Piguet. The two men had known each other in childhood and reconnected in 1874, forming a partnership the following year. The company officially became Audemars Piguet & Cie in 1881 and has remained family-owned ever since, now in its fourth generation of family leadership. The oldest building where the founders set up business was constructed in 1868 in Le Brassus, with the first production atelier following in 1907, which remains part of the headquarters today.

The brand gained worldwide fame with the launch of the Royal Oak in 1972, the world's first luxury sports watch in steel, designed by Gérald Genta. Created during the quartz crisis when Asian manufacturers were flooding the market with cheaper quartz watches, the Royal Oak defied convention with its octagonal bezel and integrated bracelet, saving the brand and creating a new category. Earlier milestones include creating the first minute-repeating movement for a wristwatch in 1892 and producing the first skeleton watch in 1934. Audemars Piguet also released the ultra-thin automatic tourbillon Calibre 2870 in 1986, one of the thinnest watches ever made.

Audemars Piguet is considered one of the Big Four privately-owned watch brands alongside Rolex, Patek Philippe, and Richard Mille, and is frequently grouped in the Holy Trinity of Swiss watchmaking with Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin. The company is not owned by any luxury group like LVMH or Richemont, maintaining its independence. As of 2025, Audemars Piguet reported revenue of 2.93 billion Swiss francs and employs approximately 3,450 people. The brand produces an estimated 50,000 watches annually, with the Royal Oak collection generating over 90% of revenue. Criticism has been directed at this heavy reliance on a single model line, with the Code 11.59 collection launched in 2019 intended to diversify but viewed by many as underwhelming. [edit]