Audemars Piguet Royal Oak price dropped 3% in week of chaotic Royal Pop launch

Industry commentators have been keen to point out that there is only a tangential connection between Audemars Piguet’s company-defining Royal Oak timepieces and the $400 Swatch-made Royal Pop fob watch.

As well as generating a significant revenue stream for Swatch and its network of stores, the eight-model collection is designed to increase brand recognition for Audemars Piguet among younger consumers who may spend decades dreaming of owning the Gerald Genta-designed wristwatch.

And AP committed to spending all of the revenue it earns from the collaboration on watchmaking scholarships and financial support programmes that support the next generation of horological artisans and preserve the craft.

However, a number of high profile watch collectors and social media influencers suggested that the collaboration was bad for Audemars Piguet, particularly following its chaotic launch, and they would sell their watches.

Luxury lifestyle title Robb Report wrote that traditionalists were dismayed that a brand in the “Holy Trinity” of Swiss watchmaking would make its signature design code accessible to the masses and that the collaboration erodes the prestige, heritage, and exclusivity of the $30,000+ Royal Oak.