Saturday 05 / July / 2025
Muscat: Two of luxury watchmaker Frederique Constant’s sister brands have been brought to Oman, courtesy of Khimji’s Watches. Alpina and Ateliers deMonaco were launched in the Sultanate during a special event in Shatti Al Qurum.
Speaking to Times of Oman, Nailesh Khimji, Director-Khimji Ramdas, said, “We are very proud to be associated with them (Frederique Constant) for the last 10 years. We have managed to put Frederique Constant on the wrists of many people in Oman.”
He added, “Institutional buyers really like the brand and I can say that we are proud to know that in the last two years, with Frederique Constant, we have broken world sales records in Oman. We have sold more Frederique Constant watches in Oman than any other retailer in the world. That includes large markets such as the United States.”
Williams Besse, International Director of Sales at Frederique Constant, highlighted the history and prestige of the two brands, saying, “These two brands have different stories.”
“The high-end Ateliers deMonaco was created 10 years ago by the founders of Frederique Con stant, Peter Stas, and our master watchmaker, Pim,” he said.
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“They decided to create a new brand, a high-end brand. They decided to create Ateliers deMonaco, to make it very unique and very prestigious. So we started with a workshop in Monaco.”
“After a few years, we wanted it to have the Swiss-made stamp. We decided to move the workshop and to really get credibility we worked very hard to get the Geneva Seal. Today, we are the fifth brand to have the Geneva Seal, which speaks for itself, because you cannot have something higher or more prestigious than that in our industry,” Besse explained.
Authorised since 1886, the Geneva Seal is one of the highest marks a luxury mechanical watch can receive, as well as one of the world’s oldest production marks. The seal is considered a sign of exquisite movement and finest quality finishing. To date, only six brands have received the Geneva Seal, a prestigious list that includes Ateliers deMonaco.
The Alpina brand, on the other hand, is well over 100 years old.
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“(It’s) a very old brand, created in 1883,” he said. “Alpina in the 20s had around 2,000 points of sale around the world. That really shows how strong the brand was, because at that time, you could not fly easily.”
“Alpina was the first brand to introduce what is today a sports watch,” Besse highlighted.
“That means a watch that is anti-shock, anti-magnetic, water resistant, and all in stainless steel, which is normal today, but at that time, it was a big innovation. And its newest innovation was launched this year, the AlpinerX, which is a Swiss-made, outdoor-connected watch, and also very unique in the market.”
Khimji added, “I think the Alpina brand is a fantastic fit for millennials.”
“Frederique Constant fits in the middle and then there comes Atelier deMonaco, which I feel is the very high-end mechanical watch that is a fantastic fit for collectors,” he continued. “What’s important to know is that the Geneva seal is such an important certification that only a few watch manufacturers in the world make an effort to get it because it costs a lot of money for them to develop the kind of specifications that they need to have on those watches in order to get that seal.”
“Being on the high-end watchmaking committee, the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, I’ve seen very few brands even try to get the Geneva seal because it’s so expensive and because it’s so much work to get it. I think Ateliers deMonaco fits that collector point very well.” Two timepieces were showcased on the occasion: the AlpinerX from Alpina and the Admiral Chronographe Flyback Prato from Ateliers deMonaco.
The AlpinerX is the product of a project that collected over 1.5 million Swiss francs. The hybrid smartwatch has the ability to read atmospheric pressure, a built-in compass, connected GPS, and an embedded digital sensor,
Ateliers deMonaco’s Admiral Chronographe Flyback Prato is part of the brand’s collaboration with Prato Automobiles. Manufacturers Frederique Constant use 18-carat gold to develop the dial of the watch. Using a technique whereby a mixture of carbon fibre, gold, and resin are heated and pressed, each dial is unique.
