Richard Mille

Richard Mille was founded in 2001 by French businessman Richard Mille (born 1951) and Swiss watchmaker Dominique Guenat. Mille had previously worked at Finhor, then managed Matra's watchmaking business including Yema, and later created a watch division for jeweller Mauboussin. In 1998, after leaving Mauboussin, he approached his friend Guenat, owner of Montres Valgine in Les Breuleux, to develop a revolutionary watch brand. They founded Horométrie SA as equal partners in 2001, with Audemars Piguet joining as a minority shareholder. Their first timepiece, the manually-wound RM 001 Tourbillon, debuted at Baselworld 2001 and immediately established the brand's signature aesthetic: a tonneau-shaped case with visible mechanics, torque indicator, and power reserve display. The brand grew rapidly through high-profile sports partnerships, beginning with F1 driver Felipe Massa in 2004 and tennis champion Rafael Nadal in 2010. In 2013, Richard Mille acquired ProArt to produce cases in-house and declined a 51% acquisition offer from Kering. The company operates through the Richard Mille Group comprising Horométrie SA (distribution), Guenat SA Montres Valgine (design and assembly), ProArt (components), and VMDH (decoration). Dominique Guenat passed away in 2018, and Richard Mille continues as Chairman and CEO.