Why Richard Mille watches are ‘the billionaire’s handshake’: the Swiss luxury timepiece brand has become a symbol of status and extravagant wealth, sported by Michelle Yeoh, Pharrell and Jeremy Strong

Aug 31 , 2023

Jeremy Strong sports a Richard Mille watch while attending the 2023 Met Gala at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 1, in New York City. Photo: FilmMagic

Founded in 2001, Richard Mille’s first watch – the RM 001 Tourbillon – ‘shook the industry’ with its price point, higher even than Patek Philippe, the ‘Rolls-Royce of watchmaking’

Just over 20 years later, the watch brand sits among top 6 in the world by sales, with revenue rising to US$1.5 billion in 2022, and graces famous wrists from Formula One drivers to Hollywood stars

A Richard Mille Co. watch is a powerful symbol of wealth for anyone who’s in-the-know enough to recognise its familiar contours.

The French company produces only about 5,300 a year, which cost an average of US$250,000. Designed to withstand high gravitational forces, they’re worn by athletes at Formula One races, golf tournaments and yachting regattas. They also grace the wrists of musicians, including Pharrell Williams and Ice-T.

Mountaineer Charles Dubouloz prepares for an ascent with his RM 67-02 Automatic Extra Flat. Photo: Richard Mille

It’s easy to spot a Richard Mille in the wild. Many of them take a tonneau, or rounded rectangle, shape – frequently with transparent dials so the intricate and precisely finished guts are on display. They’re brash, original and made from high-end materials such as titanium and a proprietary version of carbon fibre. In a nod to its ruggedness, a ring of screws is often left visible along the watch’s outer ring, or bezel. “Those screws have been used to hold the case together in the past, but now they are more for aesthetic purposes,” says Craig Karger, founder and owner of Wrist Enthusiast.

In a little more than two decades, Richard Mille has come out of nowhere to crack the top six watch brands by sales, with revenue rising 15 per cent in 2022, to 1.3 billion Swiss francs (US$1.5 billion), according to a 2023 Morgan Stanley report. By comparison, Audemars Piguet – founded in 1875 – makes 50,000 watches per year at an average price of US$51,000 each, with US$2.27 billion in annual sales in 2022, according to the report.

A driver sporting a RM UP-01 Ferrari while at the wheel of a Ferrari vehicle. Photo: Richard Mille

“While the Richard Mille brand, which was founded in 2001, had no legacy, its founders had a very clear vision,” the Morgan Stanley report says. “Its success over the past two decades does not have an equivalent in the Swiss watch industry.”

This summer has been a whirlwind of brand events and promotions, with Richard Mille suddenly everywhere – at least among the rich and conspicuous – despite the relative scarcity of its timepieces.

Now the company is putting the RM UP-01 Ferrari – the thinnest mechanical watch on Earth – officially on sale this month at a price of almost US$2 million. A prototype was already worn by brand spokesman Pharrell in June at his Louis Vuitton fashion show in Paris.

So why are people spending so much on these little timepieces? Here’s a look at how Richard Mille has become more than just another luxury watch.