The independent watchmaker Richard Mille is known for his avant-garde high-tech watches, which he calls “racing machines on the wrist”. The close relationship with the world of motorsport now also includes collaboration with Ferrari’s racing and road car departments. Talks began last summer, and this year it is partnering two Formula 1 teams – Scuderia Ferrari and McLaren – and has close relationships with F1 drivers Fernando Alonso and Mick Schumacher. The multi-year partnership with Ferrari includes Formula 1, WEC long-distance programs, Competizioni GT, the prestigious Ferrari Challenge single model championship for gentlemen drivers around the world, the Ferrari Driver Academy in search of young talent and the rapidly developing e-sport -Category. From 2022, a range of watches with the famous Prancing Horse logo will be launched by Richard Milles’ team in Switzerland and Ferrari’s designers and engineers, thanks to the exchange of know-how in product development, research and development and material innovation. I sit down with Tim Malachard, Marketing Director at Richard Mille, to find out more about the watch brand’s collaboration with Ferrari.
Tim Malachard, Richard Mille’s director of marketing
Photo courtesy Richard Mille
Why did the Richard Mille brand choose to partner with Ferrari, what values do you share and how does this latest addition fit into Richard Mille’s current partnerships between car brands and motorsport?
Ferrari is an iconic brand, probably the strongest in the automotive sector, and despite its glamorous history, it is constantly reinventing itself with the latest technological developments. Ferrari and Richard Mille share a lot of common values and many of our customers own both brands, so another good reason to work together for the next few years. The partnership with Ferrari will naturally focus our presence in Formula 1 alongside the McLaren F1 team, so we have two Formula 1 teams this year. However, our personal relationships with F1 drivers like Fernando Alonso and Mick Schumacher (a rookie in F1 who won the F2 championship last year) continue.
Scuderia Ferrari F1 driver Charles Leclerc wears his Richard Mille watch
Photo courtesy Richard Mille
Why is there such a long-term partnership between watch brands and motorsport, and what significance do cooperations have for the brand image?
Richard Mille has always been considered the Formula 1 of watchmaking since its inception, using the inspiration of materials and technology from Formula 1 to create extremely technical, ergonomic and lightweight timepieces. It’s also no secret that those who like cars and racing are watch fans too. However, we see our collaboration as a real partnership that has been developed over many years to fully develop watches with engineers from both companies. This creates fascinating products with the best resources and the technical know-how of two brands that thrive on technology and excellence.
Scuderia Ferrari racing car with Richard Mille branding
Photo courtesy of the Scuderia Ferrari press office
What kind of Richard Mille x Ferrari watches can we expect now and in the future?
We are only at the beginning of our cooperation and can only say that there will be some exciting models with the famous prancing horse from next year. It’s too early to say anything at the moment, but we’re very happy with the collaboration between Ferrari in Maranello and everyone involved at Richard Mille.
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