3rd May 2023
It might not have the centuries of history that the grandest Swiss watch brands boast, but in 22 years Richard Mille has shot to the top of the desirability charts for a new generation of young collector. Highly complex, both horologically and visually, strikingly modern in design and reassuringly expensive, these investments are the choice of successful 0.1 percenters in every field.
The brand’s eponymous founder had a very clear vision from which he has never deviated and which current prices, both new and at resale, vindicate. One of the highest at auction so far is over 3.6 million Swiss francs, (over £3.1 m) paid last November at Christie’s in Geneva for a RM 56-01 Tourbillon Sapphire, transparent and skeletonised with a sapphire crystal case.
Mille was no beginner, having had a lifelong career in watchmaking before setting up the brand with Dominique Guenat in 1999, two years before the launch. He has a passionate interest in technology and cutting-edge materials, and also draws on materials used in sports such as motor racing, his own passion, and sailing, that of CEO Peter Harrison.
The aim was to break all watchmaking boundaries in technique and design and not consider price — both research and production costs proved very high, but these pieces weren’t intended for the mass market.
Virtually every model is a rarity and the brand’s success has exceeded all expectations. It has been expertly marketed too. In 2002 it established its first sporting link, with the Le Mans endurance motor race. In 2004 the brand introduced its first sporting ambassador, racing driver Felipe Massa, followed in 2010 by tennis star Rafael Nadal and in 2011 by Oscar winning actress Michelle Yeoh.
Mille wanted all watches, including tourbillons, to be wearable during sport and Nadal is understood to have broken several prototypes, which helped Mille perfect the durable design which became the RM 027.
Mille has continually broken new ground, from using the space-vehicle material Alusic in 2005 to creating dials and movement wheels in precious hardstone from 2008.
He introduced sapphire crystal cases from 2012, with engraved gold miniatures from 2014, as well as cases made from titanium, brightly coloured, layered quartz or carbon TPT — supremely difficult to work yet often gem-set at Mille. Graphene helped make the RM 50-03 McLaren F1 the lightest-ever split seconds tourbillon chronograph in 2017, while the revolutionary design of the RM UP-01 last year, in partnership with Ferrari, makes it, at 1.75mm thick, one of the world’s thinnest watches.
Mille also has a stunning record of technical innovations to improve the accuracy and performance. Perhaps the best known is the declutchable rotor, which comes into effect automatically when the watch reaches a certain level of winding, to prevent significant wear to the barrels. The mechanism reactivates the rotor once the power reserve drops sufficiently.
Today the brand has nearly 50 “friends” across sport and culture, and about the same number of current models, varying from the super-functional high tech to high-craft engraving, enamelling and gem-setting. The past year’s new models include both the best technical horology and extraordinary artistry.
On the technical side, the RM 21-02 Tourbillon Aerodyne is one of Mille’s most complex creations. The case is made of carbon TPT, green quartz TPT and titanium, with a baseplate of a honeycombed, orthorhombic nickel-chromium-aluminium-iron alloy and skeletonised bridges in titanium; the movement includes new micromechanics to improve accuracy.
The RM 07-01 takes the very tough task of setting night sky-inspired diamonds and tiny red-gold prongs — representing faraway constellations — into super-hard, moiré-finish carbon TPT, and making it look effortless, with beautiful symmetrical patterns in four different designs.
The RM 47 Tourbillon, a tribute to the Japanese culture loved by brand partner Fernando Alonso, is a masterpiece of gold carving that was four years in the designing.
The new RM 66, one of the most extreme models, is a horological homage to goth rock. The cage of the flying tourbillon at 12 o’clock has only one fixing point so appears to float, held between the fingers of a finely carved skeletal gold hand making the “horns” gesture — a symbol of protection favoured by heavy-metal musicians. The indexes are shaped like guitar plectrums, the black carbon TPT case has insets of red-gold, punk-style clous de Paris studs, and the crown is embellished with a skull and a synthetic ruby. A maximum of 50 will be made, and the RM 66’s price tag of over 1 million Swiss francs ensures its exclusivity. Don’t be surprised if the resale market soon makes that sum considerably higher.
