I just wanted to back track a bit and give credit where credit is due. I wanted to thank Audemars Piguet for stepping out of the usual stuffy Swiss ambassador area they were stuck in and somehow on a Monday morning meeting they embraced greatness.
The collaborative efforts of AP and JZ simply changed an industry. Before Jay Z it was the usual stuffy concert violinist or a “safe” actor to represent a brand. A fan myself of Audemars Piguet ( I have owned quite a few ROO’s) I must say this opened many doors for many people in Hip Hop who did not understand what a quality top of the line watch was.
A watch encrusted with diamonds with a $20 quartz movement inside does not make it a watch!
Jay Z is someone who certainly understands mechanical precision (I’ve seen his cars). It sure sems he is wanting to own and understand technical achievements that us Watchmakers strive to achieve. You know the inside micro mechanical’s of the worlds most intricate pieces of machinery. Of course he takes all these desires and follows through with a lightning strike by partnering with one of the best Swiss companies on planet earth to produce his needs.
I have serviced many Audemars Piguet watches on my bench with the same movements as his model (JLC, Dubois Depraz). I can honestly let you know the chronograph mechanism inside is even more beautifully achieved in finishing, and German tank like construction, than the outside.
You know I must say there is a plethora of information the watch enthusiast should know about Watchmaking. I’ll fill you in a bit (that’s what I’m here for you know). Did you know that a company so incredibly targeted at precision in execution (AP) excites me as I take apart a watch for service? A model exactly like a Jay Z model? Here is how.
As I take off the top plates so elegantly decorated, and then piece by piece so gently I remove some more only to find that they are decorated so incredibly breath taking… I lift up another bridge and then… I look under the piece I’m disassembling and holding in my Swiss tweezers and then “BAM!” they decorated underneath that piece just for us Watchmakers to see. Yes sir. You as a consumer will never see that. It’s for us.
Now that’s a Luxury Watch Company I love. AP my hats off to you.
Thank you Jay Z for starting this revolution.