The luxury goods group Richemont recently released its year-end results showing that overall sales were up 12 per cent to €4,827m, a healthy proportion of which was accounted for by timepieces from its “specialist watchmakers” division, which includes leading brands such as A. Lange and Sohne, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Panerai. Sales in the division grew by 13 per cent last year to €274m, returning a 21 per cent increase in profit.

Yes, the market for high-end watches is certainly booming – but a voracious appetite needs feeding, and in order to keep wealthy buyers coming back for more, the brands are having to work ever harder to create new and interesting pieces with which to tempt them.