The Business of Watches [009] Audemars Piguet CEO Ilaria Resta Drives Double-Digit Sales Increase For Brand's 150th Anniversary Year¶
Published on Wed, 24 Dec 2025 16:00:00 +0000
How AP managed to grow sales amid an industry downturn and how its Chief Executive is positioning the brand for the next century.
Synopsis¶
In this episode of The Business of Watches, host Andy Hoffman sits down with Ilaria Resta, CEO of Audemars Piguet, at Dubai Watch Week to discuss the brand's remarkable 150th anniversary year. Despite a challenging period for the Swiss watch industry overall, AP achieved double-digit growth in 2024, driven by innovative releases like the user-friendly perpetual calendar set through the crown and the versatile Code 11.59. Resta emphasizes that the anniversary year allowed AP to honor its heritage while launching products that embody the brand's core strategy: putting watchmaking at the center of everything, opening doors to younger audiences through exhibitions and education, and focusing on usability and client experience.
Resta outlines her vision for sustainable, organic growth rather than aggressive expansion, with a particular emphasis on increasing the percentage of complications in AP's production mix. She discusses plans to differentiate complications across product lines—ensuring a chronograph on the Code 11.59 looks and feels different from one on the Royal Oak. The Offshore line will receive renewed focus, repositioning toward sport complications in line with its original mission. Resta also addresses the brand's exploration of vintage-inspired models and shaped watches, though she emphasizes these won't be nostalgic reproductions but forward-thinking interpretations of AP's rich 150-year history.
On the business front, Resta confirms AP produces around 50,000 watches annually with revenues around 2 billion Swiss francs, and she directly addresses false rumors about her departure, stating she remains fully committed to the brand. She reveals that AP is developing a unique certified pre-owned (CPO) program that will differ significantly from existing market offerings, though she declined to provide specific details. Resta also discusses the challenges facing the industry—including the strong Swiss franc, increased gold costs, tariffs, and slowdown in China—but maintains an optimistic outlook based on genuine interest from younger collectors who view watches as passion objects rather than status symbols.
Perhaps most notably, Resta addresses AP's success with women clients, reporting over 25% growth in this segment. She challenges the industry's traditional gender-based watch categorization, arguing that women, like men, should be offered complications and larger cases based on individual preferences rather than assumptions. Through observation and listening to clients rather than prescribing what they should want, AP has grown its female client base to represent 20-25% of sales, with ambitions to reach the industry-projected 45% within seven years. Resta concludes by praising the watch industry's unique collaborative spirit and interconnectivity while advocating for greater openness to external influences and cross-category learning.
Links¶
Transcript¶
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| Andy Hoffman | Welcome to the Business of Watches, where Horology meets high finance, and each tip tells a story of markets, margins, mishaps, and mechanical mastery. I'm your host, Andy Hoffman, Senior Business Editor at Hodinky. In this series, we dive deep into the global watch industry, a place where centuries-old craftsmanship intersects with billion-dollar valuations, executive brand strategy, and investor speculation. From Swiss Valleys to Silicon Valley, we trace the movements shaping this uniquely resilient sector. Just how big is the business of timekeeping? Well, some estimates place the entire watch industry from ultra-luxury maisons to smartwatches and micro brands at north of $100 billion globally. But behind that figure is a complex web of legacy, innovation, and ever-shifting consumer tastes and demand. This is the podcast for collectors, analysts, watch buyers, and sellers, and anyone who's fascinated by the intersection of wristware and wealth. Because if time is money, then money is most certainly time. So let's get down to business. It's been a banner year for Otomar Piquet. Not only did the Le Brasso Watchmaker celebrate its 150th anniversary, the brand was responsible for some of the most important and newsworthy releases and events in twenty twenty five, from its novel and innovative perpetual calendar design set and operated through its crown to its highly wearable and user-friendly RD No. 5. Odomar P. Gay has dictated the conversation this year. At the helm is Alaria Resta, a veteran business executive, but still a relative newcomer to the business of watches. This was a year that Resta put her stamp on the brand, building momentum and culminating in a Tour de Force showcase at Dubai Watch Week with what was undoubtedly the most impactful and impressive display from a brand at the show, and possibly a preview of what's to come when AP returns to Watches and Wonders in 2026. It was at Dubai Watch Week that we caught up with Resta, and she had plenty to say about what the anniversary has meant for the brand, but also what her plans are for the future. Specifically, she outlines AP's performance in a challenging time for watches, what the future production mix will look like, how AP plans to play in the fast-growing secondary market via certified pre-owned, and what we might see from specific model lines, including the Royal Oak Offshore, the Evolving Code 1159, and the shaped watches in previously discontinued models in the back catalog. Most importantly, Resta talks about her strategy to bring new kinds of buyers and clients into watches and Odomar P. Gay. Here's our conversation with Alaria Restaurant. Alaria Resta, the CEO of Otomar P Gay. Welcome to the podcast here at Dubai Watch Week. Thank you for joining us. Thank you, Andy. Glad to be here. So how are you finding this show? What is the mood? Um how has it been for Odomar P. Gay? You've got a magnificent booth, stand |
| Ilaria Resta | , building. Well, the mood couldn't be more positive because we are here with so many friends in the watchmaking industry is a great happening that celebrates watch making at the best. In a year that has been definitely a complicated year for the industry. For us, it has been the year of celebration of the 150 years anniversary, so a wonderful year where we could pay tribute to our past, but at the same time, as you know, we launched lots of novelties. So as I say, we had the two eyes uh looking backward at our past and two eyes looking forward at uh a bright future. And I mean how |
| Andy Hoffman | do you think I mean I guess we're n getting to be the near the end of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary year. How do you think the brand has done in terms of marking that with product, with literature, ideas, with celebration for the brand? Do you think you've made the connections and made the points and the the ideas about the brand |
| Ilaria Resta | . I think it was an exemplary year in terms of bringing to life all the strategies that we have been launching to bring forward in in the future years. The first strategy is watchmaking at the centre of everything we do, and definitely in the exhibitions that we have done around the world in different places, we really put forward all the expertise in watchmaking from the entire industry, not only from Oudemar Piquet. So I really see these exhibitions as an opportunity to engage younger generations, people who definitely love watchmaking, people who don't know anything about it but they wanna learn. It's a real opening to the broader public. And we have had thousands and thousands of visitors around the world. We are talking tens of thousands and Dubai Watch Week is definitely the culmination of this year of celebration. The other key pillar of our strategy, of course, is to continue moving forward on watchmaking innovation. And we have been launching at the beginning of the year the new Cupet, which was on purpose again a tribute to the perpetual calendar of the late 70s, that in a way saved Oudemar Piquet from the coarse crisis, together of course with the Royal Look. And going back to that movement, but moving it forward with a setting that is so user friendly and ergonomic for client is uh in a way an opportunity for us to bring forward a usable perpetual calendar for every day. yourself. Trevor B |
| Andy Hoffman | urrus It's interesting, yeah. I mean I'm getting a sense of a theme in terms of some of the major releases we've seen from you this year about client experience, usability, wearability, not just about the intricate and extraordinary complications and movements. I mean d you know, is that something that you think that you're uh sort of focusing on partially in your role as CEO? A |
| Ilaria Resta | aron Powell Indeed it is because we we're talking two things that are very close to my heart. On one side is usable watch, watch that are part of the everyday life of people. We celebrate the relationship of the user with the watch, and we make it so ergonomic not only from a comfort standpoint but in any aspect of the design of the watch. For instance, if you look at the date of the perpetual calendar, even the way the little indentation of the of will have been thought to be ergonomic in the reading. But everything related to using the watch is part of a broader filosofi of opening watchmaking to many more people. That's why we do exhibitions because exhibitions open the doors to people who are just interested in learning more. That's why we published a book. A book that is not Aud.emar Piget The book is The Watch. The title of the book is: Inviting people to just learn more about complications, but also about how a watch is made, and in that book, you see the collaboration of suppliers and all the people that have been working broadly in this industry, including our we don't call competitors, but the other fellow partners in this journey of watchmaking. So all this is the philosophy of is a wonderful product, it's a wonderful industry, let's celebrate it and open the doors. Indeed. And so it it |
| Andy Hoffman | certainly has been a year of celebration, a year of some very high profile releases for you. So what is that going to look like in terms of, you know, the top and bottom line for the company? I mean, it's well established in the past that Otomart P game made around fifty thousand watches a year, sales of around two billion Swiss francs. What's the trajectory of the pattern for those metrics? |
| Ilaria Resta | This year specifically has been an incredibly successful year where we had uh double digit growth, which has been specifically remarkable in the current context, where we know that the Swiss exports have gone down. And this is a testament of when you have the right proposition for clients. Like again, this exhibitions, this uh approach of opening but also the right launches, things can and will continue go well. I believe in the next years in a growth that is sustainable and organic. I'm not looking for an extreme acceleration of growth because I don't think it's the right thing to do for the brand for our philosophy of production and manufacturing. Also, because one of the most important metrics of success for me will be the percentage of complications that we produce. And this is something that we look very carefully at. And if we need to make a choice, we'd rather invest on long-term innovation Aaron Powell |
| Andy Hoffman | So does that mean we're going to see you know production that probably looks somewhat similar to what we've seen this year and and that's the the plan going forward. But um but more complications |
| Ilaria Resta | . In our portfolio and as watchmakers enthusiast and fanatics as we are, we like to experiment in new territories of complications, in new display of time, in new interpretations of time um and this is the the the avenue moving forward so that we need to create space for this type of manufacturing uh focus. With |
| Andy Hoffman | in the model range, I mean you well know that sometimes O'Domar Piquet's criticize for being too focused on on the Royal Oak and also the offshore, obviously the Code eleven fifty nine exists uh and has been continued to evolve with new models and and uh new designs. At this point do you see those model lines being sufficient to you know achieve those goals, more complications, different iterations, or does Otomar PG need to come up with new model |
| Ilaria Resta | lines? Well we have two focus areas for the future. The first one as I told you is complication but also what we want to do with those is differentiate the complications by product line. The idea is: if we do a kronograph on the code, it will look like differently from a kronograph on the Royal Lock. Because each of the cases is different, the type of client is different. And we want to make sure that we tailor made our movements to the different families of products. Next year there will be also focused on the on the offshore, which has been a very important pillar of our architecture, and the offshore will position more clearly towards the sport complications that was historical positioning when it was launched. Uh so there will be this type of focus and then we continue exploring uh shapes and we will see what's what's happening next year. |
| Andy Hoffman | Yeah I mean you've done some sort of limited edition special shaped model watches. I mean we've some of us have been looking back at previous models in the catalogue with the heritage of the brand. Yeah, is there room to do more of that? |
| Ilaria Resta | I think there is because if um if you look at the rise uh in interest of vintage watches in reality is signaling a trend which is bigger than that. The trend is going back to the history and the roots of brands and going to the authentic nature of the brand. That's why we are looking to continue being inspired even more by our story, which is by the way a very rich story of models, because indeed the, Royal Oak is an important pillar. But is 52 years younger out of 150 years history of the brand. And there is so much inspiration from previous models. But we don't want to do that in a nostalgic way, just reproducing the pass. The pass is a guardrail to tell us this belongs to us if you want as a DNA, but we can do and we want to do more than that. So, yes, the the answer is it's an inspiration. We will continue looking at that and also think through how do we push it further from a mechanical standpoint |
| Andy Hoffman | . And you talked about the offshore. I mean considering the sort of mark that you're leaving um on the brand in terms of usability, in terms of accessibility, I mean what what's that going to mean for the offshore going forward? Because it's a it's a great part of the lineup |
| Ilaria Resta | . Part of the lajap and it feats a clear segment of our klients we want a watch that can express their free spirited exploration of the world. We know that offshore is used very often when of course people practice sport when they travel. And there is this much more exploratory in the sens that opens of nu materials, nu combination avatar the desire to have certain materials that fit the lifestyle of the offshore. So this is all the thinking that we have been doing over the last year or so in to make sure that the architecture of our line fits the purpose and the mission of each line. So we are very strict in for this line: the offshore, the code, or the royal or concept. The movement is intentional in delivering that purpose. The material we choose is just not a material. |
| Andy Hoffman | Are we going to see more uh variety inside |
| Ilaria Resta | Indeed, with time because as you know, this is one of the vectors where it requires patience because the size of the movement uh is a rethinking completely of the movement from the main play to the bridge to all the other wheels. So we need to work on those. But the idea is: in the broad spectrum of innovation, size will be one that we look at. Aaron Powell Inter |
| Andy Hoffman | esting. And you know, I want to bring up uh something. I mean, you know, there was a story published a few months ago suggesting that you might be leaving the brand. The uh board of Odomar P G putay out a statement basically vehemently denying that this was the case and giving your you know your full support. Has there been any fallout from that? How has it impacted your your ability to lead and and do the job at Otomart P |
| Ilaria Resta | iquet? Well it's uh fake news, complete fake news. Uh we moved forward uh past that news quite smoothly, celebrating an amazing year with outstanding resul Very good. Thanks for clearing that because I |
| Andy Hoffman | think it certainly uh had a lot of people talking. You talked about vintage, talked about heritage. Obviously, you're you're working on a Odomar P Gay certified pre-owned program or CPO program. Can you give us any details on what that's gonna look like? When it's going to when we're gonna see more from that. I mean it's been something that the brand itself has been working on even before you arrived a couple of years ago. Yes you will uh |
| Ilaria Resta | you will discover more when we are ready to launch it. In the last two years, we rethought completely the model of the CPO. So the way we are gonna launch the CPO är oddra-figy-type CPO. So you should expect a very different take from the existing offerings which are excellent offerings. So we didn't want just to duplicate what was existing in the market. If we are there is to offer a different service to our clients and more to come. Okay so you're not |
| Andy Hoffman | gonna give us any details. But I mean, is it going to be as you say a different kind of model? It'll be unique to Odomarpate? Ver |
| Ilaria Resta | y unique to the Marpaget. That's why it took us a while uh to define exactly, the business model. And most importantly, the service we offer uniquely to our client because that's really the purpose is to offer a service that they need and they want. And in the last years, the market changed. So we started this project some time ago, but is recently that we craft the final model. We still need time to finalize it. And talk to me a bit |
| Andy Hoffman | about how the volatility and you know the politics and market dynamics, which has basically been sort of a you know uh an overall bit of a downturn in demand for the industry as a whole, as you say, we've seen watch exports come down, but how does that play out at Odom RPG though? Working at a higher level in terms of price point, waiting lists for plenty of models? I mean, how do you feel it in the business day to day and then and then how do you plan for when those, you know, shifts in the market actu |
| Ilaria Resta | ally, you know, play out. Let me tell you the forces that affect those Marpigued that because they might be not all common to the total market. Definitely common to the market and not only the market of watchmaking but common to the entire uh many sectors is of course the role of the strengthening of the Swiss franc since we report and and that's affecting the Swiss companies. Then we had increase of the gold for all the companies where there is gold in the mix. It has been affecting and the role of the tariffs, and definitely China that has been slowing down. These were the four macro forces that defined in a way 24 and 25. These forces didn't affect us in terms of softening demand. But of course, we suffered an increase of cost like everybody else. We are delivering a very solid financial performance top and bottom line, but without not without efforts, just to be very clear. Somebody was telling me was telling yesterday that indeed it's like pedaling uphill, and very few have the skills to do that. And I think we see now that it's it's becoming a tougher job to succeed in watchmaking, which in a way has been the case for many decades. We have been on a roller coaster with this industry. But I'm extremely positive because the signals I see are positive in terms of demand and interest in watchmaking. I would be worried if I wouldn't see the young generation interested, and what I see is exactly the opposite. I see an average age of clients opening the door over the Marp Gay and I'm sure of the other brands at a much younger age than the previous generation. What I see is I see a genuine interest for mechanic, for uh the movement and much less watchmaking as a status symbol, which is interesting because it's much more sustainable. You can change status symbol very easily. But when the passion is there and it's a genuine passion for watchmaking, it's there to stay. And how do we see that? We see the interests of visiting our museums, the manufacturing, reading articles on watchmaking more and more that we issue. You guys play a critical role journalists in bringing the attention to the inside the watch, the moment, the behind the scenes of the production, and interesting master classes. Because we have been offering master classes to clients, thinking this is something very specific for the passionate. In reality, since we opened the door very recently to sign up for the master classes to the general public, we see younger kids with families being really interested in learning more about this uh industry. And you realize it's no longer as an industry, it's truly culture, it's art and is a form of education that we want to sustain further. So I am extremely bullish and positive about the future of uh watchmaking in general. And you |
| Andy Hoffman | know it's not something that since I've been talking to you in this role that you really like to talk about and focus on, but you know, you're a woman CEO in the watch industry, that's still a very rare thing. And I think that you want Odomara P. Gay to appeal to more women clients. How have you done on that, do you think, and what ways have you, you know, what tools have you used do you think to expand, you know, that |
| Ilaria Resta | that that customer base. It all starts from the basic of uh listening and understanding your client base, right? And and women like men have their own needs, desires and interests. And surprisingly, the first learning is that we have been doing a mistake in watchmaking by classifying watches by gender. This was right some time ago. I'm not denying that there was that type of preference. But if you look at the world of today, women do not choose the watches that we think are meant for them. And the other way around for men. So, yes, definitely there are certain models that cater for women than more for men, yes, but when we say complication for men and complication for women, we make a fundamental mistake in creating a bias that in reality doesn't exist. And this is what I'm trying to break as a barrier number one to attract women. Because when I when I see a client woman, I first ask the question why do you use a watch? What is the role of the watch in your everyday life? And based on the answer and based on her knowledge and interests, you realize that many of these women actually are very interested in having even a big diameter or they are absolutely not interested in having uh diamonds on the on the dial, but they rather want to see a complication. And there is a c there is room for everything. Like in everyday life we play with our clothes. In the morning you wear a suit, in the night you wear a dress, and we see women and men playing a lot with an assortment of watches that is extremely diverse. So, my first point is listen to women, like listen to men, listen to young generation, and really observe how they use the watch. And when you observe, you see things that they cannot even verbalize. Never ask people what they want. Observe how they live their life, and that's where ideas come from. And women more and more are interested in mechanical watches in complications and are interested in watches with a story. Like for instance the Sarwill on the code is a complication that is particularly loved also by women. The tourbillon. Uh we are we are the new codes thirty eight to tourbillon are very much liked by women, like like men as well. So again, I'm trying to break this paradigm and this is it is working. So we are growing up proudly more than twenty five percent with women targets. Wow. So can you can you give me some more metrics on that? I mean in terms of your growth. That I I gave yeah, this is the growth. This is the real Yes. So is we're going faster with women than with men because of course we started from a lower pace. Yeah. Can you give us any |
| Andy Hoffman | sense of w uh you know that uh percentage uh women vr men versus women |
| Ilaria Resta | in A |
| Andy Hoffman | aron Powell And you would know though that's actually probably better than many of your peers |
| Ilaria Resta | in in class? Based on the studies uh uh run around watchmaking in the next uh seven years they should reach forty five percent of the market of mechanical work So we follow we should follow the market, right? There is a reason why we shouldn't. And you think you can get there, yeah |
| Andy Hoffman | , for sure. I think we can. Last thing, I mean, you and I have been talking uh over the past little while ahead of uh that panel we did the other day. And you know, I was asking about what things coming into the to the watch industry as an outsider that you've been surprised about or frustrated about and that you are you know, a little bewildered that the the Swiss watch industry does things this way. Talk to me about some of those those things and then what you think you can do to to make those things |
| Ilaria Resta | Let me tell you that the the surprises and the wonderful things these of this industry are by far the majority of my observation. That I've always respected and liked from outside, but I never realized the love, the passion, the genuine interest and knowledge that exists in this industry. And most important of all that I've never seen anywhere this cousin and interkonnektivity that exists among companies in watchmaking, suppliers, but also other brands and other companies. There is a true genuine interconnectivity that comes from historical reasons where companies were depending on one another. They were co-developing movements together. They were co-signing the dials of the brand. It's just a an amazing emotional signal of ability to work together. And this is something that surprised me and made me fall in love with this industry. That's why I really never talk about competition. And why is that? Because the addressable market is so big. And actually one another we are helping creating interest and passion for watch And I love the collectors when they come to our AP house, they come also with another brand. And I always ask them, don't hide it. There is nothing you should be proud. You have an amazing piece from another company |
| Andy Hoffman | But you also found that the the industry sometimes on certain issues and and tasks moves too slow. Do you think that you can make that pace of change increase |
| Ilaria Resta | and and and shift? I think we need to respect the timing of watchmaking development that have a reason for existing. So everything that is manually done needs to remain manually done and keep the tempo. I like also that we don't set a deadline Especially when you wanna invent something new. If you set a deadline, ultimately you make a compromise. So that's something that I respect and uh it I think is important that remains as such. What we can all do better is listening to the external, being more open to the stimuli from other categories, other markets and uh and be uh uh learning and cross-fertilizing. Excellent. Alaria Resta, thank you for your time |
| Andy Hoffman | . Really appreciate it. Thank you so much for inviting. Thank you. And that's the business of watches for this episode. We hope you enjoyed. Please head on over to hodinky.com where you can join the discussion and leave any comments or questions about this episode or the business of watches in general. Who knows? We might even answer your question on a future episode. Thanks for listening and see you next time. We'll be back in two weeks with a fresh episode of the business of watches. Until then, I'm Andy Hoffman, and I'll see you on ho Dinky.com |