AUDEMARS PIGUET - New Boutique in the Kingdom of Bahrain

Official launch of the Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix collection at the inauguration of the new Audemars Piguet Boutique in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Press release

Audemars Piguet, the oldest watch manufacturer still in the hands of its founding families, is taking the opportunity of its latest boutique opening to present its new flagship launch for 2010, the Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix chronograph. After Madrid, Kiev and the recent extension of its New York showroom, the 19th Audemars Piguet Boutique has now been opened at the heart of the World Trade Center in Manama, capital of the Kingdom of Bahrain. It joins the “Moda Mall” and the 200 exclusive international brands within this luxury complex.

The Boutique. © Audemars Piguet

The Boutique shop front

The majestic 240-metre high building, composed of two 50-floor twin towers resembling two huge sails, overlooks the magnificent Arabian Gulf and the Manama urban landscape. This skyscraper, the first to integrate wind pumps into its construction, is a modern interpretation of the traditional windmill and successfully associates technological innovations with environmental, design-oriented and functional concerns.

The architectural concept of the Audemars Piguet boutique echoes the brand’s aesthetic identity codes through the use of elegant, natural and understated materials such as wood, glass and leather.

A single look at the boutique store front draws us into the heart of the Royal Oak collection thanks to its chequered aluminium pediment echoing the famous “grande tapisserie” dial motif. The outside windows create an effect of transparency, revealing broad printed hangings in the background and a pure, welcoming interior, while wengé and glass displays highlight the brand’s latest creations.

Upon stepping through the broad glass doors, beams of light mark out the sales area and lead visitors towards the slender elongated showcases adorned with magnificent photos of iconic product visuals.

The Lounge area features a blend of traditional and modern elements, including wengé bookshelves carrying portraits of the company founders Jules-Louis Audemars and Edward-Auguste Piguet, the two family crests, along with high-tech screens showing the brand’s latest 3D animations and thematic films. Within this cosy environment, customers can settle into a comfortable beige sofa and set off to discover the history of Fine Watchmaking by leafing through a number of beautiful Audemars Piguet books.

Lounge area

On either side of the rooms, oval-shaped lamps in warm chocolate and beige colours sutbly evoke the Millenary collection and its off-centred dial. Further enhancing the luminous, airy atmosphere, huge glass walls finely engraved with the tourbillon movement of an Audemars Piguet timepiece diffuse a soft, silvery light.

The Lounge © Audemars Piguet

“Even though our distribution network is particularly well developed in the Middle East, we must constantly improve our visibility. This new point of sale – which reflects our fundamental brand values of Tradition, Daring and Excellence – is the third in this region, and we are planning to open a fourth in Riyadh, in Saudi Arabia. We have the immense privilege of sharing this moment with our three ambassadors, currently engaged in the first race in the 2010 Formula 1 motor-racing championship,” said Mr. Philippe Merk, CEO of Audemars Piguet.

On the eve of the Bahrain season-opener, Rubens Barrichello, Jarno Trulli and Sébastien Buemi all accepted the invitation to attend this event and discover and celebrate the official launch of the Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix collection, a product inspired by the world of competitive motor-racing.

Rubens Barrichello, Jarno Trulli and Sébastien Buemi, Audemars Piguet ambassadors

Rubens Barrichello, Jarno Trulli and Sébastien Buemi, Audemars Piguet ambassadors © Audemars Piguet

The Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix Collection, which received an extremely warm welcome at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie 2010 in Geneva last January, clearly expresses its affinities with the automobile world: the same passion for the design, the same incessant quest for mechanical performance. The dial counters evoke a dashboard instrument panel, the crown shape resembles a gear, and the bezel is reminiscent of a ventilated brake disc. In this collection composed of three timepieces issued in a limited series, each detail is the object of meticulous care and every model embodies an ultra-sophisticated choice of materials. The engines roar to the beat of an in-house manufactured self-winding chronograph. Lovers of high-speed thrills take note!

Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix

The  Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix  Collection © Audemars Piguet

Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix Collection
Technical specifications

References

26290IO.OO.A001VE.01
Forged carbon case, forged carbon and black ceramic bezel, blackened titanium crown, black ceramic and titanium pushpieces, titanium pushpiece guards, titanium exhibition case-back fitted with a sapphire crystal– Limited edition of 1750

26290RO.OO.A001VE.01
18-carat pink gold case, forged carbon and black ceramic bezel, pink gold crown, black ceramic and pink gold pushpieces, carbon pushpiece guards, pink gold exhibition case-back fitted with a sapphire crystal– Limited edition of 650

26290PO.OO.A001VE.01
950 platinum, forged carbon and black ceramic bezel, white gold crown, black ceramic and white gold pushpieces, carbon pushpiece guards, platinum exhibition case-back fitted with a sapphire crystal – Limited edition of 75

Movement
Calibre: 3126/3840 selfwinding
Total diameter: 29.94 mm (131/4 lignes)
Casing diameter: 26 mm
Thickness: 7.16 mm
59 jewels
365 parts
Up to 60-hour power reserve
Cadence of the balance: 21,600 vibrations per hour
Variable-inertia balance with eight inertia-blocks and flat balance-spring
Geneva-type mobile balance-spring stud-holder
Three-position winding crown
Finishing: all parts meticulously decorated; mainplate circular-grained; bridges rhodium-plated, chamfered, snailed and adorned with a Côtes de Genève motif. Diamond-polished jewel sinks; wheels featuring chamfered arms and diamond-polished sinks, chamfered screw slots
22-carat gold oscillating weight partially blackened and decorated with two scoops

Cases
Diameter: 44 mm
Thickness: 15.65 mm
Case-back engraved with the inscription Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix – Limited Edition
Water resistance: 100 m

Dials
Black with central red negative-printed exclusive “Méga Tapisserie” motif in eloxed aluminium, anthracite small seconds counter (at 12 o’clock), silvered and yellow 30-minute counter (at 9 o‘clock), silvered and black 12-hour counter (at 6 o’clock), yellow eloxed aluminium flange
Anthracite with central black negative-printed exclusive “Méga Tapisserie” motif in eloxed aluminium, anthracite small seconds counter (at 12 o’clock), silvered and yellow 30-minute counter (at 9 o‘clock), silvered and black 12-hour counter (at 6 o’clock), black eloxed aluminium flange
Black with central blue negative-printed exclusive “Méga Tapisserie” motif in eloxed aluminium, anthracite small seconds counter (at 12 o’clock), black and red 30-minute counter (at 9 o‘clock), silvered and black 12-hour counter (at 6 o’clock), silvered aluminium flange
White gold hour-markers with luminescent coating
Openworked and luminescent hour and minute hands in white or pink gold

Straps
Black calfskin and alcantara, hand-sewn with alcantara inserts and edges, pin buckle in beadblasted titanium, or 18-carat pink gold or 950 platinum.

Functions
Hours and minutes
Small seconds
Chronograph with central seconds hand, 30-minute and 12-hour counters
Flange with tachometric scale
Date