Luxury watchmaker Audemars Piguet says its sales and engagement are breaking records after its risky, eye-catching Royal Pop collaboration with Swatch earlier this year, according to the company's CEO.

Audemars Piguet in May teamed up with Swatch to launch a line of brightly colored timepieces attached to lanyards and priced at $400 apiece. The Royal Pop collaboration set off a frenzy of interest on social media, with Swatch posting a request on Instagram for customers "not to rush to our stores." The furor sparked a debate in the luxury industry about whether Audemars Piguet, whose ultra-rare watches sell for more than $30,000, had cheapened the brand and debased a revered member of the "Holy Trinity" of Swiss watchmakers, which includes Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin.

Yet Ilaria Resta, CEO of Audemars Piguet, said sales and interest in the brand have skyrocketed. The launch generated more than 20 billion mentions and conversations on social media, she said. Millions of young consumers were suddenly diving into the workings of mechanical watches and horology. Even Audemars Piguet's top collectors were calling to request their own Royal Pop. "We've had a record month every month since the launch of the Royal Pop," Resta said "Our website crashed. We have nonstop visits in our boutiques. Simply by putting the spotlight on an object and a mechanical movement, all of a sudden you discover the world of Audemars Piguet." The company's success has become a case study for the ailing $50 billion Swiss watch industry and the broader luxury economy. While the ultra-high end of the Swiss watch industry is thriving, business and profits in the broader industry are on the decline. The Inside Wealth newsletter by Robert Frank is your weekly guide to high-net-worth investors and the industries that serve them.

here to get access today The number of Swiss watches exported globally has fallen by more than half since 2011, and total sales fell 1.7% last year, according to a report from Morgan Stanley and LuxeConsult. While there are about 450 Swiss watch brands, the top four — Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille — now account for about half of industry sales and about 76% of profits, the report found.

here to get access today The number of Swiss watches exported globally has fallen by more than half since 2011, and total sales fell 1.7% last year, according to a report from Morgan Stanley and LuxeConsult. While there are about 450 Swiss watch brands, the top four — Rolex, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille — now account for about half of industry sales and about 76% of profits, the report found.

The top of the market has become so rarified that it's become inaccessible even to wealthy watch fans. Audemars Piguet makes only 53,000 watches a year, compared with more than 1 million produced by Rolex, according to Morgan Stanley. Audemars Piguet's coveted Royal Oak models typically start at $30,000, with the most complicated models selling for over $200,000. Waitlists are long, for those lucky enough to buy them. Preowned APs typically sell for 30% or more above retail price since supply is so scarce. Resta said that Swiss watch brands that follow the old playbook — relying on their history, older clientele and elitist marketing — face extinction.

"Either you dare or you die," she said.

She calls her new strategy "radical openness." The goal is to open the elite world of Swiss watchmaking to a broader, younger audience. Along with the Royal Pop collection, Audemars Piguet is also rolling out AP Labs – pop-up experiences that immerse visitors in the world of mechanical watchmaking. Visitors can play watch-themed games, learn about movements and complications, see watchmakers at work and even try their hand at fastening tiny watch components. No watches are sold at AP Labs, Resta said. The purpose is solely education, along with recruiting new watchmakers for an industry that is perpetually short on skilled craftspeople.

"This is a category that is born and fueled by love, passion and understanding," Resta said. "If you do not understand watchmaking, you will never appreciate a mechanical watch. You will always default to the easiest and cheapest way to tell the time. Telling time is the last reason you buy a mechanical watch. You buy it because you understand the mechanical invention behind it, you appreciate the movement, you appreciate the aesthetics and the meaning of an object that is meant to last forever."

"This is a category that is born and fueled by love, passion and understanding," Resta said. "If you do not understand watchmaking, you will never appreciate a mechanical watch. You will always default to the easiest and cheapest way to tell the time. Telling time is the last reason you buy a mechanical watch. You buy it because you understand the mechanical invention behind it, you appreciate the movement, you appreciate the aesthetics and the meaning of an object that is meant to last forever."

As one of the few remaining luxury watchmakers that's still private and family-owned, Audemars Piguet doesn't report revenue or profits. Resta said the company recorded organic sales growth of 10% in 2025, mainly driven by more-complicated, higher-priced watches. She said 2026 "will beat that record even further." Audemars Piguet is donating all of its proceeds from the Royal Pop collaboration to fund a dedicated initiative to train and educate watchmakers. Along with its successes, however, Audemars Piguet also faces new industry pressures. The U.S. has imposed a series of tariffs on Swiss goods over the past year, leading to the current tariff rate of up to 12.5%. Expensive Swiss watches have been hit especially hard. Exports of Swiss watches to the U.S. fell 19% in August, despite growing 9% worldwide, according to the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry.

While wealthy watch buyers can easily afford the extra tax, some are preferring to hold off on purchases or deliveries until the tariff is lifted or lowered, industry analysts say. Prices for luxury watch materials, especially gold, have also skyrocketed, adding to production costs. The Swiss franc has strengthened against many currencies over the past year, especially the U.S. dollar, reducing revenue for Swiss companies that sell abroad. The combination of tariffs, material prices and currencies have squeezed margins for Swiss watchmakers. Some companies are passing along the higher costs to customers through double-digit price increases. Resta said AP has chosen not to pass along the tariff costs and only impose small price increases to partially offset higher material prices.

"All of these headwinds I manage in a way that is not punishing to our clients," Resta said. "What I'm after is not the yearly profit results. I am lucky enough to be at the helm of a privately owned company that has a very long time horizon. You want to preserve the relationship with the client, but you also want to preserve the right value of the product you offer." Resta said challenging times are exactly when companies need to innovate most. AP is creating a new state-of-the-art service center in Raleigh, North Carolina, to repair and service watches, even as other watchmakers reduce their footprints.

"All of these headwinds I manage in a way that is not punishing to our clients," Resta said. "What I'm after is not the yearly profit results. I am lucky enough to be at the helm of a privately owned company that has a very long time horizon. You want to preserve the relationship with the client, but you also want to preserve the right value of the product you offer." Resta said challenging times are exactly when companies need to innovate most. AP is creating a new state-of-the-art service center in Raleigh, North Carolina, to repair and service watches, even as other watchmakers reduce their footprints.

"I always say, if you change your strategy because you are going through a crisis, it meant you did a lazy job working on your strategy," Resta said. "Strategies should be bulletproof in any crisis." A bright spot for demand is tech wealth, with many of the new AI millionaires and billionaires starting to collect luxury watches. Executives and founders in Silicon Valley are searching for hobbies and experiences that are decidedly anti-tech, whether it's wilderness hikes and remote flyfishing, or buying classic cars and mechanical watches.

"These are two worlds that theoretically should be opposed," Resta said. "The worlds of analog and digital, the hyperconnected and the disconnected, are blending together." Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.