"To break the rules, you must first master them." – This is how gallant the current philosophy of the luxury manufacturer Audemars Piguet sounds. The company headquarters of the family business, which remains independent to this day, is still located in Le Brassus in the Swiss Jura. It was here that Jules-Louis Audemars began making his own watches as early as 1875. With the official founding of Audemars Piguet & Cie. in 1981 together with his childhood friend Edward-Auguste Piguet, the watch manufacturer initially specialised in the production of high-quality and complicated pocket watches - and did so successfully.
Just one year later, the two founders presented their first pocket watch creations with a perpetual calendar and minute repeater. In 1889, they even won a prize at the World Exhibition in Paris with the "Grande Complication" pocket watch. They later developed the smallest movement with minute repeater and the first wristwatch model with minute repeater. The pocket watches' outstanding quality helped Audemars Piguet gain a reputation and business success as early as the end of the 19th century.
The heirs of the family business continued this tradition when they began producing wristwatches in 1919, which became increasingly fashionable and were in greater demand by customers than classic pocket watches. The brand positioned itself in the luxury segment by producing precise and high-performance chronometers, including those for the military and the addition of precious stones and metals to the watches. The launch of its popular classic Royal Oak in 1972, at the latest, established Audemars Piguet as a permanent player in the luxury watch sector.
