How to Collect Richard Mille Watches

Richard Mille founded his eponymous watch brand in 1999 with his business partner and longtime colleague, Dominique Guenat. Mille had a background in luxury marketing after 25 years of watch-industry experience with various brands, including Mauboussin, French conglomerate Matra and Audemars Piguet. The two had a vision for a new kind of watch brand that took inspiration from the high-tech worlds of Formula 1 racing and aerospace engineering, reimagining what a luxury watch could be. Ultimately, they partnered with Audemars Piguet (which still owns a minority stake in Rihcard Mille and assists in some manufacturing) to bring their idea to life.

The first Richard Mille watch, the RM 001 was unveiled a few years later at the 2001 Baselworld watch fair, where it created quite a stir. The tourbillon movement has an unusual, partly open-worked architecture, and it was housed in a curved, tonneau-shaped case. It also had an eye-watering $135,000 price tag (almost $250,000 today), which helped it make a big splash, attracting attention from media and collectors alike. The foundations for what the brand would become were all there in that original watch and the brand’s meteoric rise began soon after its release.

From the beginning, a huge part of Richard Mille’s proposition was that a watch didn’t need to look like it was from the 19th century or be made of precious metals to be luxurious. Richard Mille’s watches are instantly recognizable by their oversized tonneau shape, which provides ample internal volume for its movements and lots of surface area for showing off its advanced materials. These materials, and the technical innovations that go along with them, are the tentpoles of what makes Richard Mille’s watches different and special.

Some of these materials will already be familiar to most watch collectors. Things like titanium, sapphire and ceramic are all widely used across the industry today. Richard Mille often uses them in ways others haven’t – think: entire cases made of sapphire, for example.

Other materials are either proprietary or borrowed from other industries altogether, such as various forms of carbon fibers and nanotubes taken from automotive racing and Quartz TPT, a layered composite used in high-speed sailboats. These materials have their own distinctive aesthetics while also offering the kind of performance Richard Mille is looking for: a combination of strength, lightness and resistance to stresses like heat and corrosion.

The emphasis on performance doesn’t stop at the cases, either. The RM 001 movement had a baseplate made of titanium to further reduce weight and increase durability, and this has continued to be the roadmap for Richard Mille’s in-house calibers. Sometimes this takes the form of shock resistance, such as in the RM 027, made for tennis legend Rafael Nadal to wear while winning Grand Slam tournaments around the world, and the RM 50-27, which features a tourbillon movement suspended inside the case via a system of tiny, high-tension metal cables.

The company has also made all manner of ultra-thin movements, not–so-delicate tourbillon calibers and even movements that allow the wearer to dial in their performance on the go. The brand’s no-compromises approach continues to set it apart today, both technically and aesthetically.

Another of Richard Mille’s key innovations in the watch industry was realizing early on the true power of celebrity ambassadors and communicating their authentic connections to the brand and its watches. Given his marketing background, this won’t come entirely as a surprise, but it is difficult to overstate the impact that this has had on the wider industry. Richard Mille didn’t just make watches and then place them on wrists for red carpets and trophy ceremonies – instead, they worked directly with athletes and celebrities to create watches that suited their lives and personalities, creating a much more authentic final product.

The first of these was the RM 006 Tourbillon Felipe Massa, released in 2004 with the famous Brazilian F1 driver. The challenge was to create a watch that could withstand the G-forces sustained on the track while still being comfortable enough to wear throughout race day. The watch was a huge success, and Mille continued to partner with Masa over the years, as well as working with tennis player Rafael Nada, golfer Bubba Watson and sprinter Yohan Blake, among others.

Though less talked about, the brand also collaborates with people outside the world of sports. Oscar-winning actress Michelle Yeoh has her own gem-set Richard Mille models and artist Cyril Kongo worked with the brand on a watch whose movement is adorned with his signature mix of bright colors and patterns. Each of these collaboration watches is tailored to look and perform to the collaborator’s standards – and made in small quantities – making them some of the most highly collectable and highly covetable watches Richard Mille makes.

Richard Mille doesn’t have standard product families the way many more traditional brands do, with collections that feature similar watches at varying levels of complication and price. That’s not to say every watch is its own self-contained world, but rather that it’s up to the collector to decide what he or she is most interested in and to pursue those interests across the catalogue, past and present.

However, it can be helpful to break these watches down into some more digestible categories to at least offer a starting point for someone looking to learn more.

This is where it all started with the RM 001. For a brand to launch a tourbillon – a highly complicated gravity-controlled addition to the escapement – from the get-go would be unusual today. Back in 2001, it was unheard of.

Importantly, the RM 001 wasn’t a flash in the pan – these watches have continued to be a cornerstone of the Richard Mille offering ever since, combining the signature tonneau case shape with high-performance tourbillon movements that offer high-level watchmaking without the fragility that typically accompanies these kinds of calibers.

Sometimes Richard Mille tourbillons are accompanied by other complications, sometimes they stand on their own and other times they are combined with lightweight cases, open-worked movements and shock-absorption systems. Not that any tourbillon wristwatch is ordinary, but those from Richard Mille are truly unlike anything else.

Foundations: The first three watches Richard Mille made were all tourbillons and they are about as collectable as RMs get. The RM 001 and RM 002 were essentially variations on the same watch, with the former made of white gold and the latter rose gold. The RM 003 looked mostly the same but added a second timezone to the mix.

Holy Grails: The RM 006 Tourbillon Felipe Massa is a classic, but the RM 009 Felipe Masa has the distinction of being the first RM tourbillon to utilize a composite case, made of an aluminum alloy called ALUSIC typically used on commercial jets. Likewise, the original Rafael Nadal tourbillon RM 027 and Bubba Watson tourbillon RM 038 set the template for RM’s high-performance tourbillons tied to world-class athletes. It’s hard to imagine the brand today without them and the impact they made.

Cutting-Edge: There are literally dozens of RM tourbillons, each pushing the technology a bit further, but the RM 27-04 (the latest in the Nadal line, from 2020) uses a tennis-racket-inspired system of high-tension cables and shock absorbers to make the tourbillon itself game-ready. That it looks every bit as innovative as it is only adds to the allure. The RM 38-02 Bubba Watson model is a close second, with its asymmetrical two-tone white-and-pink case made of Quartz TPT and Carbon TPT.

To call any Richard Mille “basic” does it a disservice, but for all intents and purposes these are the most basic watches the brand offers. Often, they are modified versions of references that house tourbillon movements with simplified movement architecture, although that is not always the case. While Richard Mille came out of the gate with a tourbillon movement, Mille and Guenat realized early on that having non-tourbillon movements would open the brand up to a wider audience and allow them to produce in larger (but still not massive) quantities.

The Foundations: The first non-tourbillon Richard Mille was the RM 005, released just a few years after the brand got off the ground, in 2004. The watch’s movement has a vertically stacked date function at 7-o’clock (something that would become a quiet signature for the brand) and was innovative in two major ways. It utilized titanium plates and bridges for lightness and strength, and the winding rotor is what they call a “variable inertia” rotor, meaning it has moving parts that can be adjusted by a watchmaker to wind more or less efficiently, depending on how active the watch’s wearer is.

Holy Grails: The RM 035 Baby Nadal and RM 055 Baby Bubba are essentially pared-down versions of the RM 027 and RM 038, with hand-wound, non-tourbillon movements. What makes these watches special in their own right is how lightweight they are. The RM 035 uses a skeletonized movement and a case made of an alloy called alumagnesium with a special matte-black coating taken from the world of medical technology. RM has continued to develop this line over the years, with the RM 35-01 moving to a Carbon TPT case and the RM 35-02 adding colored TPT cases to the mix.

Cutting Edge: One of the more unusual watches in the Richard Mille back catalogue is the RM 031, which is a round watch dedicated to extremely precise chronometry above all else. It utilizes a caliber equipped with the proprietary Audemars Piguet direct-impulse escapement and is accurate to +/- 30 seconds per month. It still utilizes innovative materials, which provide protection from magnetism and corrosion, and it shows a different side of the brand’s personality. Only 10 were made and they are about as rare as non-unique Richard Mille watches get.

Chronographs have been part of the Richard Mille story since almost the very beginning. Just as the brand started its collection with a tourbillon, the brand’s first chronograph was a tourbillon split-seconds chrono, again showing its refusal to do things the traditionally slow-and-steady way. Over the years, chronographs have continued to be part of the offering, with flyback chronographs, split-seconds chronographs and various tourbillon chronographs often making appearances paired with other innovations, such as new case materials and shapes.

While chronographs have never been Richard Mille’s primary focus, nor the most talked-about pieces in the brand’s collection, they’ve often been a way for the brand to flex its muscles. Whether it’s the RM 056 Tourbillon Chronograph with its full sapphire case or the RM 50-02 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph made in partnership with Airbus Corporate Jets, these watches are designed to make bold statements about what Richard Mille can do at the most extreme end of the watchmaking spectrum.

The Foundations: The earliest Richard Mille chronos are the RM 008 Tourbillon Split-Seconds Chronograph and the scaled-down RM 004 split-seconds chronograph (sans tourbillon), released in 2003 and 2004, respectively. Both continued to evolve along with the rest of the collection, getting composite cases in V2 and V3 versions over the following years. These early generation chronos culminated in the RM 011 Automatic Flyback Chronograph Felipe Massa, the brand’s first chronograph created in partnership with a celebrity ambassador.

Holy Grails: Given the brand’s deep connection to Formula 1 racing – both spiritually and practically – the chronographs created in partnership with F1 drivers and teams often generate the most buzz for Richard Mille. Felipe Massa was the first of these ambassadors, and he continued to create watches with the brand for nearly a decade, including the much-loved RM 050 Tourbillon Chronograph Felipe Massa in 2012. A series of McLaren chronographs, including the RM 50-03, RM 11-03, RM 65-01 and RM 50-04 Kimi Raikkonen are some of the more contemporary examples of this, with more advanced movements and complex cases made of multiple composite materials.

Cutting Edge: The RM 50-02 made serious waves when it was introduced in 2016 as part of a partnership with Airbus Corporate Jets. The watch looks like the window of a private jet, and at first glance seems like you might need a pilot’s license to read the various indicators on the transparent dial. Less extreme, the RM 72-01 is the brand’s most of-the-moment chronograph, with an in-house movement and a unique layout that makes it instantly recognizable on the wrists of F1 drivers and NBA players alike.

The slightly bulbous tonneau-shaped case is Richard Mille’s calling card, but it’s not the only case shape the brand has in its stable. In fact, the brand is one of the most widely respected makers of ultra-thin watches, which Richard Mille chooses to call extra flat, using the more literal translation from the French extra-plat. Creating thin watches presents an entirely different set of design and engineering challenges to making lightweight or complicated watches, showing that Richard Mille is far from a one-trick pony.

The Foundations: The first extra-flat Richard Mille was the RM 016, which not only did away with the tonneau shape that the brand had established, but also introduced an entirely new shape in the process. The rectangular watch isn’t flat, but rather curved at the ends to better hug the wrist, channeling the ergonomics found in its predecessors. In 2011, this case would eventually get a tourbillon movement too, in the RM 017, with RM also adding a round extra-flat case to the collection that year in the RM 033.

Holy Grails: The RM 67-01 brought the extra-flat idea and RM’s tonneau case together, setting the stage for things to come. Most significantly are the various incarnations of the RM 67-02, which Richard Mille markets as the sportier version of the 67-01, with lightweight composite cases and skeletonized movements to further cut down on mass. RM has released versions in different composites and color configurations in partnership with various international athletes, including track stars Wayde van Neikerk and Mutaz Barsham and skier Alexis Pinturault.

Cutting Edge: The RM UP-01 Ferrari is the logical conclusion of RM’s approach to ultra-thin watchmaking. Looking at it, you might not immediately realize its a wristwatch, with its wafer-thin, credit-card-like profile. It is just 1.75mm thick and uses a new escapement developed in partnership with Audemars Piguet to keep its titanium movement ticking away. That it was launched as a collaboration with Ferrari only ups the RM stakes on this 150-piece limited edition.

Too many watch brands subscribe to the “shrink it and pink it” school of women’s watch design. Take a familiar men’s model, make it smaller and add some diamonds or a flower motif, and call it a day. That doesn’t cut it in today’s market for many reasons, and Richard Mille has been ahead of that curve for quite some time. Yes, many of their foundational women’s watches still have tonneau-shaped cases, but they also have their own proportions and aesthetic. In fact, many of the models have become crossover hits, with men wearing them as well – a reversal of the usual dynamic.

The Foundations: Introduced in 2005, the RM 007 was Richard Mille’s first watch marketed specifically to women, and it remains a mainstay of the collection in the form of the updated RM 07-01. In addition to having a smaller case with an elongated profile, the watch also utilized a new automatic movement with an unusual technical innovation: the movement’s winding rotor has a small sapphire-covered compartment containing tiny gold spheres that help prevent it from spinning too hard in the event of a shock, protecting the caliber. This is no longer in use today, but it’s one of the great bits of Richard Mille ephemera.

Holy Grails: Michelle Yeoh was the first female celebrity to work with Richard Mille, and she has collaborated with the brand on a number of ornate special editions over the years, often combining RM’s familiar shapes with gem setting, hand engraving and other traditional crafts. A Memphis-inspired collection of colorful ceramic RM 07-01 references released in 2023 are probably the most desirable variants today, worn by men and women alike.

Cutting Edge: Designed by Cécile Guenat, who is both the brand’s Creative and Development Director and the wife of co-founder Dominique Guenat, the RM 71-01 and 71-02 Talisman pieces were marketed as being designed by a woman for other women, and they combine highly technical skeletonized movements with gem-setting and elaborate designs. The flip side of this approach is the RM 07-04, which is the brand’s first sports watch designed for women. It uses the familiar, elongated case shape but made of lightweight, colorful composites and pairs it with open-worked movements for a watch that is a truly modern RM down to every last screw.

The watches present above barely scratch the surface of what Richard Mille has done in its relatively short life thus far. Because the identity of the brand is wrapped up in playing counter to the traditional ways of doing things, RM experiments more than most and isn’t afraid to create small collections and unique pieces that express different ideas and technologies. Over the years, this has manifested in everything from an armor-plated watch designed for the polo pitch to a space-inspired tourbillon created with Pharell Williams – and everywhere in between.

The Foundations: When you think of Richard Mille, a pocket watch is probably the last thing that comes to mind, But in 2008 the brand decided to subvert expectations with the RM 020, a tourbillon pocket watch with a square shape and a companion dock for turning it into a desk clock. This is one of the first truly unusual RMs, followed in 2012 by the RM 053 Tourbillon Pablo Mac Donough, which uses a titled time display protected by a metal hood to make the watch polo-ready without having to compromise on the mechanics inside.

Holy Grails: There are a number of asymmetrical Richard Mille watches produced over the years, which have become their own collecting niche. Whether it’s the bright green-and-yellow RM 59-01 Tourbillon produced for Olympic sprinter Yohan Blake or the RM 70-01 made for F1 driver Alain Prost, these watches bring bold looks to the table along with the technical prowess. There is also a whole category of RMs that employ classic rock ’n’ roll iconography, from the RM 052’s skull-adorned movement to the RM 66 and its rose-gold skeleton hand shooting up out of the case. The RM 69 Tourbillon is probably the biggest outlier here, with an unusual complication that plays a sort of erotic word game on the dial, but the watch received a boost in popularity after it was spotted on the the wrists of Drake and Travis Scott over the last few years.

Cutting Edge: When Richard Mille wants to push the envelope, Richard Mille can push the envelope. And this can come in all different forms. The RM 25-01 Adventure is a massive tourbillon chronograph that incorporates a spirit level into the case and has a hidden compartment for water disinfecting tablets, taking its “adventure” moniker quite literally. But on the more whimsical side of things, RM doesn’t shy away from blending its technical perspective with more artistic elements. The RM 52-05 was created with Pharell Williams and pairs a tourbillon with a sculpted and hand-painted astronaut looking back at Earth from the surface of Mars, and the RM 88 pairs a classic smiley face with tiny sculptures of a cactus, a flamingo and a pineapple, with a rainbow and a mai tai floating off to one side.