The Audemars Piguet boutique in the Moda Mall has been open for nearly a year. This luxury mall is located inside Bahrain’s monumental World Trade Center. The two towers, in the form of 240-meter high sails, are the tallest in the kingdom and the only skyscrapers in the world equipped with windmills.

The Moda Mall is on the ground floor of this impressive edifice. There the boutique joins other prestigious brands, such as Stella McCartney, Armani, and Marc Jacobs. Two friends of the brand, racecar drivers Sébastien Buemi and Jarno Trulli, were on hand to celebrate the store’s opening. And for a good reason: Bahrain has a Formula 1 racetrack, and it was hosting the first race of the season. This synergy provided the perfect occasion for Audemars Piguet to launch its signature watch of the year: the Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix. This sports watch was inspired by the esthetics of car racing, notably in the use of forged carbon and titanium.

The boutique’s design takes its cue from the brand’s distinctive features. In the entrance, a play of lights leads directly to the signature models displayed in streamlined cases. The “lounge” area is a blend of tradition and modernity. In the other rooms, the oval ceiling lights and beige and chocolate colors call to mind the contemporary Millenary collection. The Atelier Oi in the Swiss village of La Neuveville, which designs the AP boutiques, also included elements that evoke Le Brassus. Display cases and windows are decorated with landscapes from the Vallée de Joux, and stone from the Jura is used in the floors and interior walls.

The Bahrain boutique joins its partner in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, strengthening the brand’s presence in the Middle East, according to Philippe Merk, CEO of Audemars Piguet. “Even though our distribution network is particularly well established in this region, we must always work to improve our visibility,” he explains. The boutique attracts a local clientele, as well as visitors from Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Kuwait. Some foreign visitors, particularly English and French, are taken by the Limited Editions, the Royal Oak Offshore Collections and the Royal Oak, which are currently the brand’s top sellers.

Between wooden frames and plant-covered walls, Audemars Piguet is showcasing its latest developments starting this Monday at the SIHH. This year, the company has chosen to pay homage to its Brassus birthplace, and the booth has been designed to evoke the natural environment of the Vallée de Joux.

The Manufacture also wished to honor its Foundation with an interactive exhibit, a large sculpture in the form of a watch face at the booth’s entrance. Here, every visitor has the opportunity to roll a small glass sphere, which then lines up with other spheres – like the diamonds set in a watch – symbolizing the “communal effort” of the brand. “We wanted to represent the commitment of our Foundation, which has been working for environmental protection since 1992, by illustrating the fact that a donation is deducted from every watch that is sold,” explains Jasmine Audemars, President of the of the Board of Directors of the Foundation.

“Tours de competences,” showcasing the eight principal calibres of the brand, and display cases presenting new models – the Royal Oak Offshore 44mm, the Millenary 4101, new Jules Audemars editions, and the limited Royal Offshore Chronograph Arnold Swarzenegger The Legacy – combine to create the setting; a welcoming, modern atmosphere in which visitors can browse at their leisure.

Octavio Garcia, Audemars Piguet’s Chief Artistic Officer, established the guidelines for the project, which was assigned to Creative Circle, a company based in Bern. “This design, more institutional than last year’s, lets us focus on each of our collections, while at the same time confirming the overall coherence with the spirit of the brand,” he notes. A way of expressing the unique savoir-faire that the Brassus Manufacture has built up over the years…

As a tourist destination, the island of Bahrain is still very much a secret. It’s rarely listed in the travel catalogues. Yet this smallest of states on the Arabian Peninsula has plenty to offer, from little-known archeological sites to vast expanses of crystal-clear waters, luxurious resorts, and the Grand Prix of Formula 1 racing. With its 160,000 inhabitants, the capital city of Manama is small enough to be livable yet big enough to be exciting. Clustered side-by-side on the Persian Gulf are futuristic sky-scrapers and traditional houses, palm-tree-lined avenues and narrow lanes crowded with shops, oriental bazaars redolent with spices and modern shopping malls.

Audemars Piguet’s newly opened boutique is located in the heart of one of these commercial complexes: the imposing World Trade Center of Bahrain, majestic 240-meter-high, 50-floor twin towers that bring together the most prestigious luxury brands in the world.

Manama is clearly a shopper’s paradise, but it also has undeniable cultural and tourist attractions, such as the National Museum, the Museum of Pearls, the House of the Koran dedicated to ancient manuscripts, an immense marble mosque — one of the largest in the world — and, last but not least, the Adliya quarter, noted for its animated nightlife.

Cosmopolitan and open to the world, but still free of the exaggerations of its neighbors Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Manama has preserved its authentic and intimate atmosphere. It is a city of charm and contrast that is attracting an ever-increasing number of visitors.

Addresses

Where to stay

The Ritz Carlton, five-star hotel in Manama with sea-front private villas, outdoor and indoor swimming pools, spa, fitness center, tennis courts, five bars and restaurants. www.ritzcarlton.com

When to go

From November to April

What to eat

Machbous, a traditional dish with meat or spiced fish and rice

Where to shop

The Moda Mall
Bahrain World Trade Center
P.O. Box 861 – Manama

Boutique Audemars Piguet, Ground Floor, Shop No. 43
Tel. +973 – 17 13 11 00

On the border of the Andes mountains and the Amazonian rainforest, Machu Picchu, a remote village lost from human memory for centuries, has re-emerged from the past without relinquishing any clues about the mysterious people who abandoned it so long ago. Travelers returning from their journey to the end of the world agree: the site is breathtaking.

Nestled at the foot of the 15th century citadel’s ruins, the Sanctuary Lodge has two suites and 29 rooms, twelve of which boast an uninterrupted view of the surrounding mountains. With its lush gardens, the luxurious, intimate eco-lodge is a peaceful oasis in which visitors can immerse themselves in the sacred and mysterious atmosphere of this UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Lodge, the only hotel on the site, is an exceptional setting for a unique timepiece created by Audemars Piguet in honor of the Incan city. Sold in favor of a charitable organization in Lima dedicated to handicapped children, the only copy of the “Jules Audemars Equation of Time Machu Picchu” was acquired by the international hotel chain Orient-Express expressly for permanent display in the lodge.

Presented in a unique box created by Peruvian sculptor Marcelo Wong, the yellow-gold timepiece containing the emblematic 2120 caliber combines equation of time, indication of sunset and sunrise, perpetual calendar, and phases of the moon (“astronomical moon”). All those functions have been calibrated especially for the coordinates of Machu Picchu. It’s a true jewel inspired by the spectacular beauty of the Peruvian Andes, and could not have found a more exclusive and fitting destination than the Sanctuary Lodge, a unique hotel lost in the clouds at the foot of the majestic city…

Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge, Machu Picchu, Cuzco, Peru.
Reservations : +51 1 610 8300
Email : res-mapi@peruorientexpress.com.pe

The agreement signed in 2009 with the Bolshoi Ballet was a turning point in Audemars Piguet’s sponsorship policy. More traditionally associated with sports, the brand chose in 2009 to increase its activity in favor of the arts. Via the individual initiatives of subsidiaries or partnerships sealed up with the parent company, artistic philanthropy is now a priority for the Swiss watch manufacturer. This is evident from the many projects the brand sponsored around the world in 2009: the “Funeral rites of the Tang Nobility” exhibition in Singapore last April, the participation in Geneva’s Art in the Vielle Ville in May, the Miami Art Basel and the “Dessiner le Design” exhibit at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.

More than just the occasional show of support, these collaborations are, for the most part, long term commitments. “We have signed a five-year partnership with the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris,” explains project initiator Hélène Denaiffe. “We are planning not only to support their exhibitions but also to encourage young artists through the creation of an Audemars Piguet scholarship for students at the Camondo School.” Whether it’s to promote cultural heritage, support contemporary arts or encourage the spread of culture, each of these partnerships echoes the values of excellence and audacity that are intrinsic to the brand. And although Audemars Piguet remains active in promoting sports, the company plans to continue its engagement in favor of the arts and culture in 2010, thus reaffirming the unflagging ties that bind the worlds of art and haute horlogerie.