Swatch and Audemars Piguet, the odd couple: this is what the eagerly awaited Royal Pops will look like
Two very different brands with very different histories, models and prices come together with a collection of eight versatile novelties (which can also be worn around the neck) and which can give new energy to the whole industry
The wait is over: the AP x Swatch Royal Pop watch collection was finally unveiled on Tuesday evening, at least appeasing the curiosity of a community of enthusiasts (and others) who have been talking of nothing else since last Saturday, when the surprising project involving Swatch and Audemars Piguet was made official. And which from 16 May, it is easy to predict, will be pouring in en masse in front of the selected Swatch shops that will sell them (each person will be able to buy a maximum of one per day per shop), turning back the hands of time to 2023, and to the images of the queues in front of the shop windows at the launch of the million-dollar sales of Bioceramic Moonswatch by Omega x Swatch.
The partnership between Swatch and Audemars Piguet has set the whole industry abuzz. If previous collaborations between Swatch and other watch brands such as Omega and Blancpain had been within the same ownership (the giant Swatch Group, which also has Longines, Tissot, Breguet, Hamilton, Rado and Mido, among others, in its portfolio), the same cannot be said in this case, as Audemars Piguet is an independent brand and positioned in the very high watch segment.
On the one hand, therefore, Swatch, with its accessible, pop, colourful and ironic proposal, and on the other Audemars Piguet with its important and precious mechanical production, and with the jewel in the crown, the coveted Royal Oak which, born in 1972, introduced the concept of the sporty-elegant watch and of which, currently, there is no model in the price list costing less than 20,000 euros. Two contrasting realities that nevertheless attracted each other.
The Royal Pop starts with eight colourful pocket models reminiscent of Audemars Piguet's Royal Oak, with its unmistakable design featuring an octagonal bezel and exposed hexagonal screws securing it to the case, as well as the Swatch Pops, watches of a larger size than the classic Swatch, introduced in the 1980s and which became a success due to their versatility, with the case that could be removed from the strap, turning them into an accessory to be worn not only on the wrist.
In fact, Royal Pop, thanks to its calfskin cord, can be worn in many ways: in a pocket, of course, but also around the neck, on the wrist, or as a charm attached to a handbag. Then, thanks to a removable stand, it can also become a table model. This watch, which comes with eight patents, has a 40-mm-diameter case, bezel, visible screws and the clip for attaching the case itself, all of which are made of Bioceramic (a composite material patented by Swatch, two-thirds ceramic powder and one-third biological substance from the castor-oil plant). Also made of the same material is the crown, which features the partnership logo and which, in six versions, is positioned at 12 o'clock (costing €385), and in two is at 3 o'clock (costing €400 and featuring, on the dial, the small seconds at 6 o'clock). In all eight models, the dial is decorated with a Petite Tapisserie motif, a long-standing Royal Oak classic, and is protected by a sapphire crystal. This material is also used in the case back, which allows a partial view of the unprecedented hand-wound variant of the Sistem 51 calibre, Swatch's proprietary 51-element mechanical movement (including the advanced Nivachron antimagnetic balance spring) with fully automated movement, with which the Royal Pop is equipped. A novelty because, until now, the Sistem 51 has only ever been self-winding.
