The Chocolate AP: The Last Chapter by Bennahmias
AP's current, and for a short time yet, CEO is behind a series of much-discussed collaborations, the latest being last week's with Travis Scott
We had just recovered from all that went on during the Geneva auctions that a new storm was brewing among watch industry enthusiasts and insiders. This time the reason for the debate is the unprecedented collaboration between Audemars Piguet and American rapper Travis Scott.
Unlike the collaborations we have been used to seeing in past years, where a brand makes a product for a celebrity, in this partnership there was a lot of work on both sides.
On the one hand, Cactus Jack, the label owned by the Hutson rapper, made a capsule collection together with AP, with themed shirts, sweatshirts, pajamas, and other accessories that sold out in minutes.
On the other AP made a Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar limited edition of 200 pieces costing $201,000, about €185,000.
As has repeatedly happened with other collaborations or his merchandise products, Travis chose brown as the coloring, calling this watch himself "The Chocolate AP".
It was based on the skeletonized perpetual calendar that the house still has in production with reference 26585. The case is ceramic, a material used many times for this type of model, while the textured calfskin strap is a first for this complication.
The musician's handwriting was used directly for the dial font, so that the numerals and lettering appear to be handwritten. There are also numerous references to the Cactus Jack brand, the logo is featured on the month indicator hand at nine o'clock, while the moon at six o'clock has been replaced by the iconic smiley.
If you think the twists and turns ended here, well you are wrong! During the collaboration presentation event in New York, Travis Scott wore this model but with a rainbow bezel, most likely a one-of-a-kind piece made just for him.
Ever since the images of this new Royal Oak made the rounds on social media, a war immediately broke out among enthusiasts, on the one hand the more intransigent and traditionalists who view these collaborations unfavorably as betraying the elegance that has always distinguished a haute horlogerie maison like Audemars. On the other hand, however, there are those who are more open to this turn of the industry toward more informal and flashy designs.
Whatever one's judgment, one cannot help but recognize that AP's was not a great marketing move, associating its brand with one of the world's most influential artists. All this was done with the aim of winning over the new generation, and thus future watch wearers, by veering toward less elegant and more streetwear lines, as today's fashion dictates.
The maison is not new to these kinds of collaborations; the attempt to 'modernize' watchmaking is a project started by CEO François-Henry Bennahmias and has been going on for many years.
Royal Oak Offshore Chronograph “Jay-Z”
Following a chronological order, the first AP related to the world of rap, and Pop culture in general, dates back to 2005 and is Jay-Z's Offshore.
This model was made for the tenth anniversary of Roc-A-Fella records, the artist's historical label, founded just in 1995 in New York. Precisely for this reason inside the dial the number "10" has been covered with diamonds, a perfect nod to the rap world where these stones are lavished with them.
100 pieces were produced, 20 of which have platinum cases. All bear the engraving "JAY-Z 10TH ANNIVERSARY" on the case, and there is also an iPod in the personalized box.
Royal Oak Offshore Chronograph “LeBron James”
Presented in 2013, this Offshore was made with one of the most prominent sportsmen of the current era, as well as one of the absolute champions of the NBA.
It is curious to note that for both the model made for Jay-Z and the one for LeBron, Audemars did not dare more in the design; there are no direct references to the star for whom the watch is dedicated, no logos or garish coloring, but they are watches similar to those that are normally produced in Le Brassus.
This is because already the concept of collaboration with such figures was considered something out of the box for the watch industry. This concept then changed not more than a decade later, when by then making partnerships had become something more accepted and as a result we could dare even more in making more and more distinctive watches as Travis Scott's is and as the ones we will present in a moment are.
Audemars Piguet X 1017 ALYX 9SM
In this case, the collaboration departs far from the house's classic canons with an extremely minimalist design, a workhorse of the fashion brand ALYX founded by Matthew Williams.
The Royal Oak and Offshore watches in this collection have been simplified as much as possible by removing all hour indications on the dial, effectively leaving only the hands and logo of the two brands.
A Royal Oak reference 15550BA in yellow gold was produced from this joint effort, with a price tag of €73,800 ($73,500). A Royal Oak Chronograph in yellow gold, reference 26240BA, priced at €90,700 ($90,400) and limited to 200 pieces, and finally two Royal Oak Offshore Chronographs in white gold (26238BC) and yellow gold (26238BA), both priced at €111,900 ($111,500) and limited to 75 pieces.
As in the collaboration with Travis, one unique piece, a Royal Oak Chronograph in steel and gold with a black dial, was produced and auctioned on August 24 in Tokyo.
Audemars Piguet X Marvel
Finally, we come to the collaboration with Marvel, the one that has caused most discussion among enthusiasts.
Both watches are Royal Oak Concepts, the line where being bold and experimental is allowed, and feature a flying tourbillon at six o'clock.
Both the Black Panther and Spider-Man are limited to 250 pieces, with the former having a list price of €150,000 and the latter €195,000.
In both cases, special models have also been made and sold at auction for truly astronomical prices.
Much has been written and much has been said about this collaboration, both when the Black Panther was released in April 2021 and when the Spider-Man was unveiled two years later in May 2023.
Among the models made in the collaboration are definitely the most unique watches, especially because they are made for superheroes, not exactly the first thing that comes to mind when talking about haute horology and luxury. However, if you widen your gaze, you can see that Audemars Piguet's strategy has been in place for a long time, and despite the repeated hype when these watches are unveiled, it seems that this corporate direction is paying off.
The results produced so far have been great in terms of business growth.
In the primary market AP has grown year after year, in 2022 it is the fourth largest brand in terms of sales, falling into that small club of maisons that exceed one billion. On the secondary market, the performance of a large majority of watches is positive, with consistently high returns when it comes especially to Royal Oak and Offshore. Our AUDEMARSPIGUET35 index, which monitors the prices of the 35 most influential brand models over the past 3 years has risen from €58,807 to €93,749, roughly a +60% increase.
In a few weeks Bennahmias' era as CEO will come to an end, and most likely his collaboration with Travis Scott will be his last.
As of January 1, 2024, Ilaria Resta will take over at the helm of the maison, from then on we will see if the company strategy will follow François-Henry's path or the Italo-Swiss manager will upset the plans.
