Audemars Piguet To Exceed CHF 1 Billion Revenue in 2018 and to Fully Integrate its Retail Network - Monochrome Watches
In an interview to Reuters, CEO Francois-Henry Bennahmias declared that Audemars Piguet will deliver double-digit growth in 2018 and that the brand's turnover will exceed one billion Swiss francs this year. To further boost sales, Audemars Piguet plans to cut-out third-party multi-brand retailers to arrive at a totally integrated retail network within three to five years.The integration of distribution in the watch industry started years ago with the creations of subsidiaries and with the wish to sell more and more in own-name stores. Audemars Piguet aims at pushing this strategy one step further, with a fully integrated network (directly operated or with local partners). Bennhamias added that Audemars Piguet could consider acquiring retailers too. Bringing distribution in-house allows increasing sales and consolidating margins with directly operated stores. It is also the opportunity to get full control of operations at a retail level and to leverage the complementarity of the differe

Hands-On - Chopard Alpine Eagle 41mm Pine Green Dial (Specs & Price)
One of the most buoyant genres in the watchmaking arena is the luxury integrated sports watch, going from strength to strength since the Royal Oak's debut in 1972. Although Chopard appears to have been a latecomer to the scene with its 2019 Alpine Eagle, the roots of this watch can be traced to the late 1970s with a watch created by Karl-Friedrich Scheufele (now Chopard's Co-President) known as the St. Moritz. The latest model to join the Alpine Eagle is this time-and-date model with a pine green dial and Chopard's 01.01-C movement with chronometer certification. Parts of the proceeds from the sales of this watch will be donated to the Alpine Eagle Foundation.From St. Moritz to SustainabilityKarl-Friedrich Scheufele's design for the St. Moritz, a sporty-chic model with a showy baroque bezel, captured the hedonistic flamboyance of the 1980s and borrowed its name from the swank Swiss ski resort. Interestingly, the evolution of the St. Moritz is a three-generation story. The Alpine Eagle

Salon Exceptional Watches 2019, this Weekend in Prague - Monochrome Watches
While the watch industry ticks in time to two massive watch fairs, Baselworld and SIHH, these two events are mostly meant for brands to present their novelties to a public of professionals – retailers and journalists. However, some local events around the globe allow watch collectors and enthusiasts to discover the collections – think SIAR, Dubai WW, Salon QP. Happening this weekend (October 19-20) is the largest watch exhibition in central and eastern Europe. It is named Salon Exceptional Watches 2019, it gathers 44 brands and it takes place in the beautiful city of Prague, Czech Republic. Salon Exceptional Watches 2019, previously taking place in Brno, now in Prague, will be the 6th edition of this event, held in the beautiful premises of the ?of¨ªn Palace, a historic venue in the centre of Prague, close to the National theatre. This event is now central and eastern Europe’s largest watch exhibition, with no fewer than 44 br

Citizen to introduce their first Tourbillon Watch for 300th Anniversary of Daimaru Department Store - Monochrome Watches
Citizen, that other Japanese watch brand, is about the introduce its?very first tourbillon watch. Yes, you read it correctly, this is not a typo. The Citizen Tourbillon Y01 will be launched next month, and will be exclusively available (and made for) the 300th anniversary of department store chain Daimaru. An interesting detail is that the watch, and its tourbillon movement, shows a lot of resemblance to?a tourbillon made by Japanese independent watchmaker?Hajime Asaoka.?Of course we’ll report more when the official news arrives, however we had to share this news with you after we read it on a local watch forum, who got the news from our colleague SJX (see here). The news was originally published by WWD Japan and they state that the new tourbillon from Citizen will be available for approx. $ 90,000 USD. This certainly isn’t a bargain, not even considering the fact that it’s a tourbillon. Montblanc sets the price for their ExoTourbillon Slim at € 35.000 EUR, and earlie

Weekly Watch Photo: Heuer Camaro + Monochrome Rally Strap + Ferrari 599 - Monochrome Watches
Watches and sports cars?are?two universes that match perfectly. Heuer and Ferrari: two iconic brands that dreams are made of. For this Weekly Watch Photo, we put a gorgeous vintage Heuer Camaro on our own exclusive Monochrome Rally Strap, and strapped it on our wrist.?And with the help of one of Monochrome’s?friends, we drove a stunning red Italian car, a Ferrari 599 GTB. Great times call for great photo reporting.?Ready for a ride?We at Monochrome-Watches love the vintage Heuers, especially the Autavia. For this article, we chose another one, a Camaro, one of the most stylish but strangely underrated racing chronographs of the brand. Launched in 1968, the Camaro, named after the famous Chevrolet, shares lots of similarities with the Carrera, in a slightly larger and cushion-shaped case. The dials and hands were very close to the Carrera, and so were the movements. Ad - Scroll to continue with article