Audemars Piguet: The Manufacture, the Market, and the Full Collection

How Has Audemars Piguet Stayed in the Hands of Its Founding Families Since 1875?

Jules Louis Audemars and Edward Auguste Piguet registered Audemars Piguet as a business in Le Brassus in 1875, working from a building constructed in 1868 in the same village. The manufacture built its first dedicated production facility in Le Brassus in 1907, and that building remains part of the company’s headquarters today. Le Brassus sits in the Vallée de Joux, in the Jura mountains north of Geneva, where harsh winters and iron ore deposits pushed farming families toward watchmaking in the late eighteenth century. That shift produced the établissage system, a network of family workshops each specialised in one component, which became the operating model of the Swiss watch industry.

The founding families still control the company in the fourth generation, with Jasmine Audemars as President of the Audemars Piguet Foundation and Olivier Audemars as Vice Chairman of the Board. Production has grown site by site: the Manufacture des Forges in Le Brassus in 2008, the Musée Atelier Audemars Piguet in 2020, the Manufacture des Saignoles in Le Locle in 2021, the Manufacture du Brassus in 2025 and the Manufacture de Meyrin, scheduled for 2026.

Gérald Genta designed the Royal Oak in 1972, with an octagonal bezel secured by eight visible screws. Genta also conceived the Nautilus in the mid-1970s, according to a 2009 interview cited by Christie’s, and the two steel sports watches are still compared at the top of the market in our Patek Philippe guide. At Phillips’ Royal Oak 50th Sale in Geneva, the ref. 5402ST A2, the second Royal Oak ever produced, sold for CHF 1,058,500, a record for the model, as listed in our auction records.

Can You Buy an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak at Retail in Dubai or Riyadh in 2026?

New Audemars Piguet watches are sold in the Gulf through the brand’s boutiques and partner retailers, listed in the next section. The manufacture publishes no waitlist figures for any market, and availability of the steel Royal Oak depends on the boutique, the client’s purchase history and the current allotment.

For buyers without a boutique allocation, the secondary market is the practical route to most steel Royal Oak references. Current index values by collection and by reference are in the market table below.

Saudi Arabia levies 5 percent customs duty plus 15 percent import VAT on the duty-inclusive value, about 20.75 percent of the CIF value, while the UAE charges 5 percent duty plus 5 percent VAT, about 10.25 percent, before shipping and clearance fees. On a watch with a CIF value of $100,000, that means about $20,750 in additional costs in Saudi Arabia and $10,250 in the UAE.

Where Are the Audemars Piguet Boutiques in Dubai, Riyadh and Doha?

Audemars Piguet’s own list of subsidiaries and boutiques, last updated on 15 June 2026, shows one Gulf entity, AP EAU L.L.C in Dubai. Retail in the region runs through boutiques operated with partners, documented in the sources below.

• Dubai: Audemars Piguet boutique in The Dubai Mall, opened in 2016 in partnership with Ahmed Seddiqi, which lists itself as an official Audemars Piguet retailer in the UAE. The Mall of the Emirates directory lists a second Audemars Piguet boutique on Level 1.
• Riyadh: Audemars Piguet boutique in C-Center, Tahlia Street, operated with Ali Bin Ali and redesigned in 2017.
• Doha: Audemars Piguet boutique in Place Vendôme Mall, operated with Ali Bin Ali since its relocation in September 2022.

We found no published source for an Audemars Piguet boutique in Jeddah as of November 2026, so collectors in the Western Province should confirm the nearest point of sale on the brand’s store locator before travelling. In Dubai in November 2025, Audemars Piguet marked its 150th anniversary with “The House of Wonders”, an exhibition at Burj Park during Dubai Watch Week.

Collectors who buy on the secondary market should check the serial number, papers and finishing details listed in our authentication guide before any payment. The same checks apply to a dealer in Dubai, a platform or a private seller in Riyadh.

What Are Audemars Piguet References Worth on the Secondary Market in 2026?

The WatchCharts Audemars Piguet Market Index stood at $80,273 on October 24, 2026, up 8.8 percent over twelve months. The tables below give index values in USD by collection and by reference from the same update; all figures are secondary market averages and change over time. The one, three and five-year changes for Audemars Piguet and six other maisons are tracked every quarter in our value retention data.

Which Pre-Owned Audemars Piguet Watches Are Listed in the Gulf Right Now?

Every Audemars Piguet reference currently listed by The Luxury Closet in Dubai, with duties and taxes included for GCC delivery. The list is refreshed weekly from the platform’s product feed, and pre-owned pieces sell individually, so availability can change between updates.

What Defines the Royal Oak Fifty Years After Genta’s Design?

Audemars Piguet describes the Royal Oak of 1972 as the watch that disrupted the codes of its time: a steel case, an octagonal bezel, a “tapisserie” dial and an integrated bracelet. The story of the original 39mm model is told in our Icons series under Royal Oak Jumbo, and every current reference is compared in our Royal Oak reference guide.

Buyers looking for a Royal Oak on the GCC secondary market should understand each platform’s authentication standards, condition grading and return policies, covered in the pre-owned guide. The same checks matter for discontinued references, such as the “Jumbo” ref. 15202, and for current production.

How Does the Royal Oak Offshore Differ From the Royal Oak?

Audemars Piguet launched the Royal Oak Offshore in 1993 as a sportier and more powerful take on the Royal Oak, with a thicker case, rubber or ceramic-coated pushers and a Méga Tapisserie dial. Its WatchCharts collection index appears in the market table above, and each current reference is compared in our Royal Oak Offshore reference guide.

What Is CODE 11.59 and Where Does It Sit in the Catalogue?

CODE 11.59, presented at SIHH 2019, is built around a round case that conceals an octagonal middle section, with open lugs and a double-curved sapphire crystal, in 41mm and 38mm. It houses the manufacture’s most complex watches, including the Ultra-Complication Universelle RD#4 and the Grande Sonnerie Supersonnerie. Every reference is compared in our CODE 11.59 reference guide.

Which Audemars Piguet Is Right for a GCC Collector Entering the Brand?

Audemars Piguet’s entry references are steel and time-only or chronograph watches in three collections, each covered in its own guide: the Royal Oak reference guide, the Royal Oak Offshore reference guide and the CODE 11.59 reference guide. The Neo Frame adds a dress option in pink gold.

The table below matches each collector profile to an entry reference, with the US suggested retail price from Audemars Piguet’s February 2026 tariff and the Saudi riyal equivalent. Prices at Gulf boutiques can differ.

What Does Audemars Piguet Make Beyond the Royal Oak Family?

Four smaller collections cover the manufacture’s experimental, dress, craft and anniversary work: the Royal Oak Concept, the Neo Frame, Établisseurs and 150 Heritage. They are covered in our Royal Oak Concept reference guide, Neo Frame reference guide, Établisseurs reference guide and 150 Heritage reference guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you buy an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak at retail in Dubai in 2026?

Audemars Piguet sells new watches in Dubai through its boutique in The Dubai Mall, opened with Ahmed Seddiqi in 2016, and a boutique in Mall of the Emirates. The manufacture publishes no waitlist figures, and allocation of the steel Royal Oak depends on the boutique, the client’s purchase history and the current allotment. The “Jumbo” ref. 15202 was replaced by the ref. 16202 in 2022 and is available only on the secondary market.

What does it cost to import an Audemars Piguet into Saudi Arabia or the UAE?

Saudi Arabia levies 5 percent customs duty plus 15 percent import VAT on the duty-inclusive value, about 20.75 percent of the CIF value. The UAE charges 5 percent duty plus 5 percent VAT, about 10.25 percent. On a watch with a CIF value of $100,000, that adds about $20,750 in Saudi Arabia and $10,250 in the UAE, before shipping and clearance fees. The Luxury Closet in Dubai includes duties and taxes in the price for GCC delivery.

What is the difference between the Royal Oak and the Royal Oak Offshore?

The Royal Oak of 1972 has an octagonal bezel with eight visible screws, a Grande or Petite Tapisserie dial and an integrated bracelet, in cases from 23mm to 42mm in the current catalogue. The Royal Oak Offshore, launched in 1993, is thicker and more robust, sized mainly at 42mm and 43mm, with a Méga Tapisserie dial and rubber or ceramic-coated pushers. The Offshore Diver adds 300m water resistance and an inner rotating ring.

Which Audemars Piguet should a first-time Gulf buyer choose?

The entry references are steel watches in the Royal Oak, Royal Oak Offshore and CODE 11.59 collections, matched to collector profiles with retail prices in the table above. The Royal Oak Selfwinding 15510ST, with calibre 4302 and a 70-hour power reserve, is the classic choice, and the CODE 11.59 Selfwinding 15210ST uses the same movement in a round case. Buyers who want a watch now can turn to the pre-owned market, where The Luxury Closet includes duties and taxes in the price for GCC delivery.

What is the auction record for an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak?

At Phillips’ Royal Oak 50th Sale in Geneva, the Royal Oak ref. 5402ST A2 sold for CHF 1,058,500, a record for the model. It was the second Royal Oak ever produced and one of the four watches used to reveal the design at Baselworld 1972. The sale set four world records in total across 87 lots.

Where can you buy an Audemars Piguet in Saudi Arabia?

Audemars Piguet’s boutique in Riyadh is in C-Center on Tahlia Street, operated with Ali Bin Ali. We found no published source for a boutique in Jeddah as of November 2026, so the brand’s store locator is the place to confirm current points of sale. Pre-owned references are also available through GCC-based platforms such as The Luxury Closet in Dubai, which includes duties and taxes in the price for GCC delivery.

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