Where can I buy Rolex Watches (including vintage Rolex Watches)

Rolex is synonymous with quality and elegance. If you buy a Rolex watch you know you are getting a unique piece of artistry that will last you a lifetime; in fact it will last several lifetime. It is an investment in quality that you will never regret.

Rolex are probably the most famous watch makers in the world and they gained their reputation by creating and producing some of the most accurate and elegant watches in the world.

A brief history of Rolex

Hans Wilsdorg and his brother-in-law Alfred Davis found Wildsdorf and Davis in 1905. They imported Swiss movements from Hermann Aegler and put these movements in cases mad by Dennison and other quality case manufacturers. They chose Swiss movements as they have always been renowned for their accuracy and quality and this skill had been forged over hundreds of years. They sold these watches on to Jewelers who then places their own name on the face of the watch,

In 1908 Wilsdorf opened up an office in Switzerland and registered the trademark ‘Rolex’ – this eventually became the registered company name in 1915. There are no ‘meanings’ to the name, it simply was a name chosen for its sound and its shortness.

Between 1908 and 1915 the Rolex grew in stature and fame and was awarded a Class A precision certificate in 1914 by the Kew Observatory – this was a high honor as normally only marine chronometers gained this award.

Rolex moved to Geneva in 1919 and formed the Rolex Watch Company.

Rolex has always been innovative and really changed the way watches worked introducing such concepts as a multiple time zone wath, or a watch that changed the day and date on the dial automatically.  

Some of the key changes made by Rolex:

Automatic movements

Rolex introduced its first self-winding watch in 1931 – it was powered by an internal mechanism that used the movement of the arm to wind the watch.

Quartz movements

Rolex helped develop the quartz watch movement although they really didn’t start implementing the design until the late 60s. The design of quartz watches was a collaboration between sixteen Swiss watch manufacturers.

Water Resistant Cases

Rolex produced the first watch that was resistant to water at a depth of 100m. More importantly the watch kept perfect time at these depths, making this a huge selling point for the watch. This led to a line of extreme Rolex models that were ideal for deep-sea diving, mounting climbing and aviation. The most famous of these is perhaps the Rolex GMT Master, developed for Pan am airways as they crossed multiple time zones.

Certified Chronomoters

Rolex watches are among the most accurate watches in the world with almost 50% of the watches certified by COSC being Rolex watches.

So what makes a Rolex watch so desirable?

For me there are many elements that make the Rolex watch the best watch in the world. First and perhaps most importantly is functionality – what’s the point of having a watch that does not do its job well. Rolex watches are amazingly accurate, and have innovative and intuitive features that make them extremely useful and very easy to use.

Secondly, they are time-less (no pun intended) – their sheer elegance and beauty never fades and they are as desirable today as they were 50 years ago – they will never go out of fashion, and they are the ideal watch for every occasion.

Finally, they are an amazing investment – most vintage Rolex watches grow in value over time!