Making Money, Not Watches

Rolex’s new designs show how the company is more interested in creating online clout and scarcity than watches.

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(Oyster Perpetual Day-Date, 36mm, Everose gold ©Rolex/Ulysse Fréchelin.)

Every year, watch nerds—and there are dozens of us—wait with bated breath for Watches & Wonders, the big industry trade show which kicked off in Switzerland this week. 

Announcements of new releases, upgrades to existing models, and discontinued lines from the major companies are obsessively seeded, bracketed, scored, and ranked in an annual horological March Madness. And the perennial tournament favorite is Rolex.

And this year, the most recognizable brand in the world seemed to have lost its mind—or at least that’s what it looked like.

Rolex, famous for its understatement and conservative design, is now featuring watch faces in candy colors and playroom patterns which, instead of the date and day, display emojis and “inspirational” words like gratitude, eternity, and peace. At first glance it seemed like reputational suicide: an Eat, Pray, Love watch for the kind of cultural Californian who shells out for crystal therapy and thousand-dollar reiki sessions.

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  1. Avatar photo
    Ben Connelly

    I know nothing about watches and have never had interest in them. However, this was an utterly fascinating article that I read with some delight. I wonder whether the bubble will burst. It seems to me that the market is pretty good at crashing inflated stocks eventually (unless we bail them out). Either way, this is all incredibly interesting and I will be thinking about watches as an alternative to gold in the apocalypse for a long time.

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  2. Gaveis85

    Rolex is a fantastic marketer of their watches, the best out there. They're watches though, handsomely made, but I don't feel that the value for price is necessarily there. Independents and some other Giants are in some ways as good or superior. Looking a Nomos, or a Grand Seiko perhaps. Even someone like Bremont is out innovating them.

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  3. Brocka121

    Homosexual couples have some of the highest amounts of disposable income since the bulk of these pairings don’t have kids. Everybody’s money is green and companies/brands know this

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  4. James Morphew

    I must applaud Rolex for its ability to make money. But I chuckle. The Rolex market has always been brand and image, conspicuous consumption. People showing off to others just like them. If Rolex would like to leave the fine jewelry watch market for even more brassy designs, there awaits a ready market for classy watches from some future supplier. An easy one.

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    1. RBStoddard

      There is no shortage of suppliers of classy watches aiming for the same price-point as Rolex -- Patek Philippe comes to mind. Any objective measure would put these brands as Rolex's peers, but Rolex has been second to none in controlling the top-of-mind prestige position.

      This reminds me of the piano market, swapping in Steinway for Rolex. Judged solely by musical quality, there are several other brands that rival Steinway, e.g. Yamaha. But take a look at resale value: only Steinway holds value, or even appreciates over time. And, just like Rolex, supply of Steinways is very limited; Steinway has a "certified used" program (and monetizes the refurbishment market, too); and is coming out with a stream of glitzy, high-margin models in exotic woods that would never appear on a concert hall stage, but would look great on Instagram.

      Luxury goods are weird.

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      1. CatoTheElder

        The Rolex-Steinway comparison does fall flat in one key measure, however: Back-alley Steinway peddlers find it hard to open up their overcoats to show a bunch of Steinway Classic Grands hanging from the lining.

        I cannot help but also share this laughable tidbit: to download the official Steinway Brochure or Buyer’s Guide, one must give Steinway one’s name, email address, and, if I recall correctly, the last three years’ tax returns. Rolex doesn’t bother with this sort of thing, I’m told, because if they don’t already have your name in their Rolodex, they don’t really care to add it.

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  5. Avatar photo
    I Am the Eggman

    Rolex is probably like most companies; they care most about making money. Watches are merely a means to that end. If making watches with candy-colored faces increases their profit margins, they're happy.

    I'm probably like most people in that my main requirement for a watch, when I choose to wear one (and I'm not even sure why I do anymore, since my smartphone can tell me the time and does a lot of other things too), is accuracy. I have a Citizen EcoDrive watch that I bought at least 15 years ago. It's attractive, accurate, and solar-powered, too, so I never need to worry about winding it or changing batteries. I don't remember what I paid for it, but it was probably less than $200. Paying the price of a Rolex strikes me as evidence of an obsession with status symbols, which is not characteristic of the kind of people I would want to be friends with. I mean, sure, it's your money, spend it on whatever you like. If you're rich enough, the distinction between $200 and $20,000 probably isn't significant anyway. Most people, though, aren't that rich.

    I actually considered buying a fully mechanical watch a couple of years ago, just because I like things that don't rely on electronics. Archimede has some nice models that appealed to me, and they aren't crazy-expensive (less than $1000), but I gave up the idea because it's silly to spend more for something that doesn't work as well, and no mechanical watch keeps time as accurately as a quartz watch.

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    1. Ben.Bobbitt

      "...since my smartphone can tell me the time..." yes, but in a way, we've regressed to pocket watches. I hate digging out my phone to just to see the time.

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      1. Avatar photo
        Kurt

        According to those that document such things...the average person touches their phone >2000 a day. There's no "digging out". It's already out, all the time. (I do understand your point, though.)

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      2. RBStoddard

        And that's why the Apple Watch is popular -- you get much of the benefits of your iPhone, but conveniently parked on your wrist.

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        1. Just this guy

          Ah, but you have to replace an Apple ‘Watch’ in a few years. A decent mechanical watch should last decades (with maintenance, of course).

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  6. Houseofchaos

    I thought this was an April’s Fools Joke.

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  7. Avatar photo
    Mccune.Kipling

    As someone who has followed watches for well over a decade, the Rolex secondary market has been one of the wildest things I've seen. My dad purchased a Rolex Seadweller (the old 40mm model) in 2012, used, for $5.5-6K, somewhere in there. He takes very good care of it, services it regularly, and generally doesn't beat up on it even tho it's the only watch he wears. About a month or so ago, he checked a few internet retailers to see what he could sell it for, more out of curiosity than anything else. His watch, which he bought used, could be sold for double what he paid for it. Absolutely insane. I casually joke w/ him that he's not allowed to sell it bc I'm his oldest child and I want that watch one day but when you could get $12K for it, it's hard not to consider a sale.

    I have a few Omegas and a random assortment of other nicer watches but I've basically starting sticking to various Seiko models bc they're basically all that's affordable, especially if you want the cache of having an in-house movement and general overall quality that comes along w/ a recognized watch brand.

    It's frustrating what Rolex has done w/ their production bc it puts even basic models like the Oyster Perpetual, the Datejust, or even an Explorer completely out of reach of most normal buyers. I'm crossing my fingers for some sort of coming market correction to their watches, prices, and availability. Until then, I'll save my money and stick to Seiko and maybe a Tudor if I'm feeling splashy.

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  8. Bobby D

    I’ve Negev understood why anyone cares about watches. My parents got me an Omega Speedmaster when I graduated from law school 17 years ago. I’ve work it about 15-20 times. A few years ago I started wearing an Apple Watch, but mainly for its fitness tracking features. I see no reason to spend thousands of dollars on something that tells me no more that what my cell phone can tell me.

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  9. Lee2253

    so what ?

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  10. Avatar photo
    Johntadian

    As someone who wears a three year old Fitbit, this all just seems like Beanie Babies for billionaires.

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