Luxury watchmaker Audemars Piguet has seen record sales and engagement since its risky and eye-catching Royal Pop collaboration with Swatch earlier this year, the company’s CEO said.
Audemars Piguet teamed up with Swatch in May to launch a line of brightly colored watches on straps that cost $400 each. The collaboration with Royal Pop sparked a frenzy on social media, with Swatch posting on Instagram asking customers to “not rush to stores.” The scandal sparked a debate in the luxury goods industry over whether Audemars Piguet, which sells ultra-rare watches for more than $30,000, was underselling its brand and disparaging a respected member of the “holy trinity” of Swiss watchmakers that includes Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin.
But Audemars Piguet CEO Ilaria Resta said sales and interest in the brand are surging. The announcement generated more than 20 billion mentions and conversations on social media, she said. Millions of young consumers were suddenly diving into mechanical watches and watch mechanisms. Top Audemars Piguet collectors were also calling to request their Royal Pops.
“We’ve had a record month every month since the launch of Royal Pop,” Resta said. “Our website has crashed. We have a constant flow of visitors to our boutique. Just by highlighting objects and mechanical movements, you suddenly discover the world of Audemars Piguet.”
The company’s success has become a case study for the struggling $50 billion Swiss watch industry and the broader luxury economy. While the ultra-luxury Swiss watch industry is thriving, the broader industry’s performance and profits are in decline.
Global exports of Swiss watches have more than halved since 2011, with total sales down 1.7% last year, according to a report by Morgan Stanley and Lux Consult. There are around 450 Swiss watch brands, but the top four (Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille) currently account for about half of the industry’s sales and 76% of its profits, the report found.
The top of the market has become extremely rare and inaccessible even to wealthy watch enthusiasts. According to Morgan Stanley, Rolex produces more than 1 million watches a year, while Audemars Piguet only produces 53,000 watches a year. Audemars Piguet’s popular Royal Oak models typically start at $30,000, with the most complex models selling for more than $200,000. For those lucky enough to purchase, the waiting list is long. Used APs are in such short supply that they typically sell for 30% or more above retail price.
Resta said Swiss watch brands that follow old strategies that rely on history, older customers and elitist marketing are on the verge of extinction.
“You either have to be brave or you die,” she said.
Audemars Piguet CEO Ilaria Resta.
Jason Alden | Bloomberg | Getty Images
She calls her new strategy “radical openness.” The goal is to open up the elite world of Swiss watchmaking to a wider, younger audience. Alongside the Royal Pop collection, Audemars Piguet is also rolling out AP Labs, a pop-up experience that immerses visitors in the world of mechanical watchmaking. Visitors can play watch-themed games, learn about movements and complications, watch watchmakers at work, and try their hand at fixing small watch parts.
Resta said AP Labs does not sell watches. Its purpose is exclusively educational, and also to recruit new watchmakers to an industry where there is always a shortage of skilled craftsmen.
“This is a category born and driven by love, passion and understanding,” Resta said. “If you don’t understand watchmaking, you’ll never appreciate mechanical watches. You’ll always default to the easiest and cheapest way to tell the time. Knowing the time is the ultimate reason to buy a mechanical watch. You buy a mechanical watch because you understand the mechanical invention behind it, appreciate the movement, and understand the beauty and meaning of something that lasts forever.”
Collaboration between Audemars Piguet “Royal Pop” and Swatch
Provided by: Swatch
Audemars Piguet, one of the few luxury watchmakers still privately owned and family-run, does not report sales or profits. Resta said the company posted organic sales growth of 10% in 2025, driven primarily by more complex and higher-priced watches. She said that in 2026, “that record will be even better.”
Audemars Piguet will donate all proceeds from its collaboration with Royal Pop to fund initiatives dedicated to the training and education of watchmakers.
But alongside its success, Audemars Piguet also faces new industry pressures. The United States has imposed a series of tariffs on Swiss products over the past year, with current tariffs up to 12.5%. Expensive Swiss watches have been particularly hard hit. According to the Swiss Watch Industry Federation, exports of Swiss watches to the United States fell by 19% in August, despite a 9% increase worldwide.
Industry analysts say wealthy watch buyers can easily afford the extra tax, but some may want to hold off on purchasing or shipping until tariffs are raised or lowered. The price of materials for luxury watches, especially gold, has also skyrocketed, raising production costs. The Swiss franc has appreciated against many currencies, particularly the US dollar, over the past year, reducing profits for Swiss companies selling abroad.
A combination of tariffs, material prices and currency are squeezing profits for Swiss watchmakers. Some companies are passing on higher costs to customers through double-digit price increases. Resta said AP chose not to pass on tariff costs and only imposed small price increases to partially offset higher material prices.
“All these headwinds are handled in a way that I don’t punish my clients,” Resta said. “I’m not looking for annual profit results. I’m fortunate to be on the management team of a privately held company that has a very long-term horizon. I want to maintain relationships with my clients, but I also want to maintain good value for the products I offer.”
Resta said difficult times are when companies need innovation the most. As other watch manufacturers reduce their footprint, AP is opening a new state-of-the-art service center for watch repair and service in Raleigh, North Carolina.
“I always say, if you change your strategy because you’re going through a crisis, you’ve done a lazy job of developing your strategy,” Resta said. “Strategy must be perfect in any crisis.”
A bright spot in demand is high-tech assets, with many new AI millionaires and billionaires starting to collect luxury watches. Silicon Valley executives and founders seek out hobbies and experiences that are decidedly anti-technology, such as hiking in the wilderness, fly-fishing in remote areas, or buying classic cars and mechanical watches.
“These are two worlds that should theoretically be opposed,” Resta said. “The analog and digital worlds, the hyperconnected and disconnected worlds are converging.”
