Just a few weeks ago I was in New York City for the release of Norqain’s Independence Skeleton Chrono, and I had pre-booked a visit to the AP House located on the border of the Meatpacking District and West Village. We don’t actually have any Audemars Piguet boutiques in Canada, so this was my one chance to finally visit a boutique and check out some of their watches in person, and get a sense of what this world renowned brand is all about. I also managed to open what they call a “client profile” with them – which traditionally can only be done during an in person meeting.
While I have extensive experience sourcing Rolex sports watches from Authorized Dealers, as well as the grey market, I’ve hardly dabbled with acquiring an in-demand high horology sports watch like the Royal Oak from a boutique or AD. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect in this case, but I was assuming the process would be at least somewhat similar to that of Rolex. It turns out, after some chatting with multiple AP sales reps, and even boutique managers, that the process is indeed wholeheartedly different.
The general concept of a high demand watch with low production is nearly identical, but how the boutique goes about processing allocations is very different, and to be direct with our readers I can say it at times felt humiliating and belittling, rather than exciting, positive and uplifting – something that I think should be first and foremost for any watch brand whether affordable or unobtainable.
Making the Boutique Appointment
Scheduling an appointment with the AP House boutique is rather straight forward and anyone can do it. Simply visit the official AP website here and choose the date, time and location that suits you best. I’d presume that you could probably email them directly or call in if you prefer. After your booking is made you’ll receive a confirmation email, and in my case for some reason I also received a confirmation phone call from the AP House with the lady asking a series of questions regarding my association to watch industry journalism.
She also explained how to find the boutique, and where the entrance door is located since it’s actually quite hidden with no markings on it.
Visiting the Boutique
When the time comes to actually attend your appointment make sure to arrive a little early just so they’re prepared to greet you, and to allow them any additional time to finish up with a previous customer. The entrance door specifically at the AP House boutique is a little tucked away in-between a few other shops and restaurants but it’s easy to find. A lady greeted me at the door and immediately contacted the sales rep who was expecting me, and he came to the entrance and guided me into the elevator to access the main section of the AP House.
The setting is dark and elegant inside, it felt on-brand for Audemars Piguet, with accents of rich black marble and brass/gold hues around it. The sales rep walked me through what seemed like a “mini” museum experience, with some vintage AP watches on display in glass boxes. One of the watches was upside down inside the display, which I pointed out to the sales rep and I’m assuming he promptly fixed it after the meeting.
After the historical introduction of the brand we then walked into the main boutique area, which was a very large and luxurious open space layout, again continuing with the theme of high end materials like marble, mahogany wood around the bar area, and a large full circle sofa seating section in the middle of the room where we eventually sat down. There were AP books and magazines strewn around that you could browse while you waited to view some of the watches that you’ve requested to try on.
The sales rep also kindly asked me if I’d like a beverage from the bar, being mid day I was brought a sparkling water, although I could see they did have a nice selection of liquor and various other drinks available.
Once we sat down I requested to try on the Royal Oak 37mm, which I’ve been itching to try for years. They had a silver dial variant available to try which he brought out for me, and he also brought out a Royal Oak Chronograph 38mm to compare. Both watches wore fantastically on wrist, and were everything I was hoping to feel when placed on wrist. The 38mm chronograph fit better than expected, but it was still a fraction thicker than the classic 37mm time and date, of course due to the chronograph movement. The 37mm Royal Oak was absolute perfection on wrist, and everything I had hoped for in terms of design flare, fun visible partial in-house movement (outsourced to Vaucher) through the exhibition caseback, and the stunning integrated bracelet did not disappoint. There is indeed a reason why it’s so in-demand, the same reason the steel Daytona is so sought after as well – it truly aces all categories for watch enthusiast perfection.
The Daytona may be the epitome of an everyday sports watch that can be dressed up or down, and has one of the most interesting backstories for a watch. The Royal Oak 37 is a completely different watch entirely but is also the supreme choice for a sporty watch with a dressy flair, something that takes the flash to the next level but also retains its timeless appeal and only seems to look better with age. We could dive into the specifics, but I’ll hopefully leave that for a full hands-on review at some point. What I will conclude on is that the Royal Oak lives up to its name and is worthy of the hype as many of us collectors already know.
Requesting a Watch to Purchase
Understandably the Royal Oak 37mm, as well as some of its other variants, are just too sought after to purchase on the spot from a boutique, so there’s no point in asking if you can buy one, or if they have one available to purchase sometime soon. Asking that question on your first appointment would surely lead to disappointment, and so I ended the meeting thanking the sales rep for his time and allowing me to get a real feel for the watches on wrist.
The sales rep opened an AP profile for me at the AP House, and he provided his business card and advised me to contact him by mobile for best communication. This left open the door for following up, and to express my desire for the 37mm Royal Oak if the opportunity were to somehow present itself in the coming years.
About 1 week later I indeed did send the sales rep a text message, thanking him again and prodding a little further into the acquisition process for the Royal Oak. The reply I received was a little jarring, and slightly off kilter compared to our in person meeting.
“Your profile is with me but I don’t think a Royal Oak would be possible for a first piece”
Followed by:
“Check out the Code 11:59 and offshore collection”
My first thoughts were that this sounded like a “canned reply”, does he copy and paste this to every single prospective customer? And secondly, he knows I have zero interest in these watches since we chatted in person about my watch interests, wrist size, etc.
I’ve never received such a curt and disappointing message from any sales rep, manager, or store owner from Rolex. I thought to myself; at least with Rolex they will lead you on and give you some hope that if you wait long enough you can acquire that special stainless steel sports model. The AP reply I received really felt like a door slammed on the face. The sales rep also knows that I’m very familiar with all of the Audemars Piguet collections, having reported on many of the models through my own blog, my column on Forbes, and many other wrist watch focused publications.
On the other hand, I’m now assuming the AP acquisition style is more direct. In a way, the sales rep was more forthcoming with me, not leaving any hints of possibility, instead shutting down any possible dreams of acquiring the watch. This is good, and bad – but knowing myself it just makes me want to chase the watch more, even if it means buying it on the grey market down the road. To conclude on my AP acquisition story, I’d say it’s just getting started but so far there’s no hints of any success on my end. I did research online before hand, and virtually all purchasers of the Royal Oak had to buy a different watch they didn’t want before they were given the chance to wait for the Royal Oak. Time will tell once again, but I will keep trying and I will update this article with any new happenings.
Disclaimer: This article is based on my personal experience from visiting the AP House Audemars Piguet boutique in NYC, and communication with them in various ways such as email and by phone. No official statements were given by any of the above mentioned stores.
Why do you not spare yourself all that BS? There should be no pain but joy in finding what you want.
This was a first time visit for me, as a watch reviewer I felt the need to test the waters myself. Really neat boutique, but as you can see the client process is still quite clunky.
The 37mm movement is not in house. It’s made by Vaucher. Based on VMF 3002.
You’re absolutely right it’s outsourced to Vaucher. It’s a confusing piece of info though with some reputable sources still labelling it as in-house for some reason, and the sales rep at the boutique must have repeated to me at least three times that it’s an in-house movement.
I think you walking into a high end watch companies boutique and thinking you should be able to buy their most desirable watch is arrogant. Audemars is a low production watch company, they don’t mass produce watches. That is called true luxury, just ask Hermes (who are thriving due to exclusivity). Anyone not liking it can move on to other brands. I seriously doubt that will hurt AP. Demand greatly exceed supply.
I didn’t walk into the store expecting to buy the watch though. I was expecting to be treated decently, as a customer, with a positive attitude towards a possible future acquisition. Rolex is the king of this game, and they treat you well and lead you down a path of a future purchase for some of their sought after models, at least this has been my experience. Merry Christmas!
I have dealt with AP for a while. And it’s a lot like Patek. They will tell you which pieces you have a chance of buying first before you can even try to buy the others. I think this is for a number of reasons. One they don’t want people just coming in to buy a piece right away to resell and make money on it. They want to know they have a customer. I actually appreciate the honesty. It took me a long time to deal with Rolex and I now am getting offers to buy from Rolex almost every week. But you have to build that relationship with them even if they tell everyone there is a chance most likely those people won’t ever get anything if they ask for a Daytona first. AP and Patek are atleast direct and truthful
My experience with AP is identical to yours: plenty of courtesy up front, but zero follow up and rude/arrogant subsequent conversations. Like you, I was steered toward a Code 11:59 and Offshore that I had no interest in. I had an hour-long conversation with Natalie, the manager of the flagship AP boutique in New York in March 2024 regarding new client allocations. She had no idea what she’d have to sell at any given time and no foresight into what she’d be getting. Apparently LeBrassus doesn’t tell her anything. As for allocations, new clients might as well forget about anything with a blue or green dial or a precious metal piece. The list of restrictions on new clients was mind numbingly convoluted. What really irks me is the volume of personal information this brand collects on you despite knowing full well it has no intention on selling you what you want to buy. I gave up on purchasing directly from the brand and will source directly from secondary market when the time comes. I’ll happily pay the premium to skip the games.
It is quite a perplexing process, if not pretentious in a way – especially when considering they really only have one model that collectors are after. After playing the Rolex game for many years I’m also not in the mood to learn the ropes with AP, and will probably lean towards a grey market purchase at some point. Mind you, their retail process does leave a sour taste that has kind of pushed me away from the brand entirely even if contemplating grey.
What they also don’t tell you is that they expect you to keep all the watches they sell you, for at least two years. If you happen to sell a piece, let’s say within the same calendar year, then you get flagged and they won’t offer you any new pieces for 1-2 years. This is their unwritten rule. I found out the hard way. Was trying to make my way to a 37mm RO after buying a 38mm chrono and two offshore models (one of which I actually really like now). After having had this conversation, I no longer bother playing their game. Going straight to the grey market so I can continue to enjoy this hobby and not let it become a source of stress.
Hi Matthew, it’s great to see a fellow Canadian who has a passion for Horology. It has been over a year ago that I visited AP in Lennox Mall in Atlanta. I went through this process which quite frankly felt like a job interview. My interest at the time was a steel Royal Oak 41 chronograph. I was asked a bunch of questions why I wanted that specific watch and my response was “cause that’s the model I want to wear on my wrist” I received a text message about a week later to thank me for my visit and I am in the queue which is up to 5 years?? I have since purchased a gold Royal Oak 41 and surprisingly a rose gold 11:59 from Happy Jewelers in California. There seems to be some negativity with the code 11:59 models which has lowered its resale value however this is a stunning watch to me and wears nicely on the wrist. HJ was a very fun, exciting and happy experience, brand new in the box! I can attest that I have purchased from Rolex AD with ease and last year visited a Patek Philippe Maison with a very warm and welcoming experience. With Patek, although it’s not the watch you may desire, they offered me about 5 beautiful choices to purchase on the spot. To get into their complication pieces, you do have start from their offerings and work your way up to a purchase invitation.
My son and I had a very different experience. We were greeted by the staff downstairs who were extremely polite. The entrance was beautiful and smelled amazing. Low lit candles did the trick. We were then greeted by Jonas and he was just a pleasure to speak with. Had such a passion and love for the watch making process and brand. Felt like we learned a lot which made me want an AP even more. The history itself was impressive. The space itself is beautiful btw and the curation of clients and appointments is well done. Felt like we had 100% of his attention and we weren’t rushed at all.
He then brought us a few models to try on. I loved the offshore with the tinted face. Realistically while I own some amazing pieces I have no history with AP or this location which is blocks away from where I live. I’ll check in from time to time and hopefully get “the call” or “the text”. Experience was 10 of 10.
Sounds like they pegged you for a flipper. What’s the profile of a real RO purchaser? Probably not you.
If a renowned brand like AP is pegging buyers incorrectly that would be quite worrisome. Are they really screening people for the “proper” profile? Could be, but also quite concerning again. Cheers
I had a similar experience today in Frankfurt am Main – Germany. The store manager was very arrogant and told me and my brother that we have to built a history and buy several watches before we can buy the Royal Oak Jumbo with a blue dial and the Royal Oak Chronograph with a blue dial. He gave us the impression that he has no interest in selling us a watch despite the fact that we were allowed to set up a profile. I know for a fact from other buyers that this entire profiling of buyers is BS. Good friend of mine bought a rose gold Royal Oak Offshore and after leaving a €1.000 voucher for a Louis Viuiton store he was able to purchase a Royal Oak offshore with a blue dial. Two other buyers are proper white Germans and one of them got a carbon AP and after that immediately a skeleton. This is very surprising as they said to me you need to buy minimum 8 watches before your can get a skeleton and that the store in Frankfurt only receives two a year. Pretty sure I will never receive a call in my life despite explaining that me and my brother are working in financial services for the largest asset management firm and my brother for a top tier investment bank. We even left our business cards, but I have to say from what I am hearing from buyers in Germany you have to leave some gifts for the sales rep and the sale rep are definitely looking more for personal benefits and connections than finding the right customer for AP.