Richard Mille: Revving her engines

Richard Mille pushes the limits of performance and materials with its racing-inspired timepieces for women

When Richard Mille decided to turn his fascination with technology, expertise in business and personal passion for racing cars into his eponymous brand, he ended up creating a new, ultra-high-end luxury segment within the high-end watch business. Ever since, the company known for inventing “a racing machine on the wrist” has produced an innovative and wholly original range of timepieces that combine unique functions, groundbreaking materials and unparalleled racing-inspired elements.

Take the recently launched RM 07-04 Automatic Winding Sport, for example. The first Richard Mille sports watch dedicated to women combines exceptional ergonomics, feather-lightness, world-class performance and shock resistance, extreme skeletonisation and architectural aesthetics all in one timepiece. Not only does the RM 07-04 make Richard Mille one of only a few brands that has a ladies sports watch collection but it also serves as a rare example of a ladies watch that offers the same functions as those for men.

One such function, which is representative of Richard Mille’s passion for mechanical innovation and exclusive to the brand, is the Function Selector. Closely related to an automobile gearbox, the push-button concept makes it possible to select the winding, neutral and hand-setting functions with a simple push.

This minimises stressful forces placed upon the crown and renders impossible any interference of the crown’s functions. The Function Selector, which can be found in many of the brand’s ladies models, also prevents the watch from any accidental over winding that may damage the spring or apply extremely high pressure on the barrel.

 In addition to innovative functions, Richard Mille draws inspiration from materials used in the development of Formula 1 racing cars, aeronautics and the aerospace industry. In 2014, it introduced the brand-new material Carbon TPT, originally developed for the sails of racing yachts before being used for Formula 1 car chassis and the fuselage of the future Solar Impulse 2 aircraft.

The remarkably strong and light material – which prevents breaking strains by 25 percent and the occurrence of micro-cracks by 200 percent when compared to composite materials – was first used for the case of the RM 011.

While Carbon TPT soon became a signature feature of the Richard Mille men’s collection thanks to its unique and powerful appearance, as usual the ladies were not left out. Perhaps the most striking example of the brand’s dedication to both unique functions and groundbreaking materials when it comes to racing and women’s timepieces is the RM 037 Carbon TPT.

This sophisticated timepiece boasts a Function Selector and case made of Carbon TPT, the latter of which is also available fully or partially adorned in dazzling white diamonds.

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