Artisans De Genève Unveils Stunning Custom UK Luxury Replica Rolex Daytona “Ventura” Watches

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Artisans de Genève, renowned for transforming high-end timepieces into one-of-a-kind creations, has done it again—this time reimagining perfect UK replica Rolex Daytona ref. 116500 watches into a celestial masterpiece called “Ventura.” Following its magic touch on the Patek Philippe Aquanaut, the watchmaking artisans have crafted yet another bespoke marvel, combining art, precision, and timeless elegance.

True to its name, “Ventura” features a dial made of aventurine, a material that fuses rose gold, copper, and glass to create a shimmering surface that’s utterly unique. The aventurine’s glassy finish gives the AAA online Rolex fake watches a cosmic allure, with a sparkle that changes subtly depending on how light hits it, making each viewing experience a new journey into the stars. This poetic, starry design makes the “Ventura” a true work of art on your wrist.

Adding to its sophistication, both the top Rolex replica watches face and the bezel are adorned with mirror-polished aventurine, which contrasts beautifully with the solid rose gold hands and dial markings. The skeletonized subdials bring another layer of intrigue, offering a peek into the intricate workings of the best Rolex copy watches without needing to flip over to the caseback. This delicate interplay between transparency and craftsmanship elevates the Daytona to an entirely new level of refinement.

Underneath the artistry, the “Ventura” is powered by the iconic Rolex 4130 caliber, reengineered by Artisans de Genève’s independent workshop. The movement, known for its durability and precision, is enhanced with an openworked rose gold oscillating weight, ensuring the high quality Rolex replica watches UK runs continuously for 32 hours. It’s this combination of technical excellence and aesthetic beauty that makes the “Ventura” a collector’s dream.

The process behind creating such a masterpiece comes with a price—34,520 CHF (approx. $40,216 USD) for the customization alone. As with all Artisans de Genève projects, the cost varies based on the complexity and individual nature of each piece, but one thing remains consistent: every Swiss made super clone Rolex watches is a true reflection of its owner’s personal taste and style.

For those intrigued by the story and craftsmanship behind the “Ventura,” more details about the project are available on Artisans de Genève’s official website. This customized Rolex Daytona is more than just cheap UK Rolex fake watches—it’s a wearable piece of art, designed to stand the test of time.

A Collector’s Guide To The Best Quality Rolex Air-King Fake Watches UK, From 1945 To Present

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Collecting AAA UK Rolex replica watches is, for many, their sole horological pursuit. Few watch companies provide such a satisfyingly complete and ample array of compelling and iconic watches scattered across the planet, from weird little design-forward dress watches like the Rolex King Midas to icons of world-record-setting derring-do like the Explorer, GMT Master, Daytona, and Submariner. But the Air-King is humbler, usually smaller, and far less complicated (mechanically and culturally)—which is exactly why the Air-King is so well suited to the quiet luxury of this post-pandemic moment when even modern Rolex is chilling out and acting like Rolex again.

Rolex launched the Air collection in 1945 as a tribute to the pilots of World War II, and as a prescient offering to the soon-emerging jet-set. The Air collection included the Air-King, Air-Giant, Air-Lion and Air-Tiger, but only the Air-King survived this initial launch. Excluding a short interruption in 2014, the Air-King has been continuously produced since 1945, such that there is a seemingly endless supply of vintage, neo-vintage and pre-owned Air-Kings available at any time. It can be a lot to sort through.

Like many Rolex models of the mid-20th century, the Air-King was part sports watch and part dress watch. The sports watch characteristics originally included the waterproof stainless steel Oyster case and robust shock resistance, both of which were improved incrementally over the decades. In 1953, the Air-King got an automatic winding movement and at the surprisingly late date of 2007 it acquired chronometer-grade precision. The dress high quality Rolex fake watches characteristics originally included a relatively small, lugged case, a plain stainless-steel bezel, a simple dial, and time-only functionality. Compared to the venerable Datejust (1945) and Day-Date, the Air-King was a modest proposal.

Rolex has always been an industrial watchmaker, meaning that the company makes as few interchangeable parts as possible and builds multiple products from them. The Air-King, therefore, was a close cousin to the Oyster Perpetual and Milgauss (at times identical other than dial designations), as well as the Rolex Explorer I (which was originally just 2 mm larger than the Air-King and later the same size). These similarities have remained relatively stable throughout the years, as Rolex hasn’t altered its modular production schemes.

When collecting any Rolex model, it is always helpful to understand what differentiates four-digit, five-digit and six-digit reference numbers. If you’re not familiar with the “digits,” here is the basic scheme (though not every model conforms to these dates exactly).

Four-digit serial numbers: ~1945 to 1978
Five-digit: 1979 to 2000
Six-digit: 2000 to present

Most of the significant changes from the different digit eras have affected cheap 1:1 replica Rolex watches more complicated than the Air-King, like the Datejust, as well as dive watches, like the Submariner and Sea-Dweller. The Air-King did, however, see changes in case-size and in the movement over the years, and of course the dials varied quite a lot. Though the Air-King changed less than other models, the digit designations still delineate meaningful eras among collectors, especially the jump from five- to six-digit with the Air-King.

This guide aims to be as exhaustive as possible, but we humbly submit that there is always something new to learn. The Air-King’s history is rife with rumors, misinformation, and weird exceptions to most of the rules one might try to establish. This is largely true of any Rolex model, and the confusion is largely the result of Rolex being an industrial juggernaut that used interchangeable parts willy-nilly without keeping records. Where there’s a rule about a Rolex, there’s an exception.

The confusion is especially rife during “transition years” when Rolex upgraded components, but not until the old supply was depleted, with the result being some odd concoctions with old and new parts together in one watch. Transitional years usually follow a digit change, four to five, and five to six. Another confusing issue is that the Air-King sometimes shared reference numbers with other models that featured different dials. We will do our best to flag these topics when possible.

As always, you can learn more about the basics of collecting vintage top Rolex copy watches in our video tutorial, and for guidance buying your first Rolex, please see our guide.

Below is everything we can share about the Air-King to get you started—or, perhaps, just better sorted—on your journey into one of the most iconic Rolex models.

Replica Rolex Air-King Reference 4925 Watches, Manual-Wind, Center-Seconds (1945-1953)

The 4925 is the one that started it all. It was a simple, stylish, sporty Swiss made fake Rolex watches that was ready for the burgeoning jet-set lifestyle of the post-war era. The 4925 is a must-have for any Air-King enthusiast. Here are the core features.

34mm Stainless Steel Oyster case with 50 meters water resistance, screw-down crown and drilled lugs set 19mm apart
Leaf hands in gold, blued second hand
Acrylic crystal
Caliber 10.5 movement with 15 jewels, frequency of 18,000vph, manually wound, time-only with central seconds
Dial – white eggshell with gold applied Arabic numerals, italicized printed font reading ‘ROLEX’ under that ‘OYSTER AIR-KING’ and a printed Rolex logo.

Fake Rolex Air-King Reference 4499 Watches (1946-1953)

The 4499 is almost identical to the 4925, except it utilizes an upgraded 17 jewel 10.5 caliber and “PRECISION” printed on the dial.

Note: It is possible to find other Rolex Oyster models with this reference number, something we will see happen at various points in the history of the Air-King.

Rolex Air-King Reference 4365 Replica Watches, Manual-Wind, Sub-Seconds (1945-1953)

This reference can be found as an Air-Lion, Air-Giant and as an Air-King. This differs from the above 4925 for having its seconds on a sub-dial at six o’clock and the word “PRECISION” above that sub-dial.

Other than the movement configuration and variance on the dial printing, the 4365 is identical to the reference 4925 above.

Rolex Air-King Reference 6552 Fake Watches (1953-1957)

The 6552 Rolex Air-King replica watches for sale set the template for the next five decades. The venerable caliber 1030 was more accurate and durable than its predecessors and was used in Explores and no-date Submariners throughout the four-digit era.

34mm Stainless Steel Oyster case. 50m water resistance, screw-down crown and drilled lugs with 19mm spacing
Acrylic crystal
Automatic caliber 1030 with 25 jewels, frequency of 18,000vph, time-only with central seconds.
Alpha hands (a kind of long leaf-shape common on Rolexes of the 1950s)
Dial includes white eggshell paint, script-style Air-King logo and “Super Precision,” both an applied ROLEX and coronet (crown) logo, and either stick markers or 3 , 6 , and 9 in Arabic with supporting arrow markers.
3-link Oyster bracelet (a history of which you can find here)

Ryan Gosling has often been seen wearing a reference 6552 like the one pictured above.

The Replica Rolex Elusive 6652 Watches

We have seen mention of luxury fake Rolex Air-King 6652 watches in various articles and forums, but we can’t find anything to confirm these claims. As far as we know the 6652 was never produced as an Air-King. Rolex expert Eric Wind told Robb Report, “I don’t remember seeing a 6652 ever and have never had one, so I don’t have much to contribute. Perhaps it was a myth or urban legend that just kept repeating over the years.”

Fake Rolex Air-King Reference 5500 Watches (1957-1989)

The perfect replica Rolex Air-King reference 5500 watches defies the four-digit limits, extending its run for an impressive 32 years, and overlapping with many other models that had already transitioned into five-digit reference numbers (such as the Submariner and GMT Master). This reference sees a few stylistic tweaks over the 1960s, and collectors will be careful to mind those changes and try to make sure they’re getting an all-original model that wasn’t given service parts (especially hands). However, as we see often with transitional Rolex models, the occasional anomalous example might just be like that from the factory—but remain leery of anyone assuring you of such a claim.

Here are the specifications of the 5500, with as many updates features as we could find.

34mm Stainless Steel Oyster case. 100m water resistance, screw-down crown and drilled lugs with 19mm lug spacing
Acrylic crystal
Alpha hands from 1950s – into the late ‘60s, and baton hands with pointed ends starting in the late ‘60s.
Two movements ran concurrently: The 1520 used 26 jewels and operated at a frequency of 19,800vph, offering time-only with a center seconds. It includes flat hairspring and a stick regulator, and was not chronometer-graded. Caliber 1530 used either 25 or 26 jewels, beat at a frequency of 18,000vph, and was also time-only with center seconds, and included a Breguet over-coil hairspring and Microstella regulator, making it suited for the chronometer-grading it received.
Dials: “PRECISION” indicates the Cal. 1520. “SUPER PRECISION” indicates the Cal. 1530. Applied stick hour indicators and coronet. White, black gilt, salmon, blue, gray, silver (the most common), 3,6,9 dials. Co-branded dials include Tiffany & Co., Domino’s Pizza, Intairdril, Winn-Dixie ‘Safe Driver’ dial, given to truck drivers with a great safety record.
Bracelets – Oyster 3-link: 7205 – up until 1967, 7835 – 1967 to 1975, 78350 – 1975 to end of run. Please note that transition years can find watches with either bracelet, and that many watches will have replacement bracelets that won’t appear to match the year of production.

36 mm Rolex Air-King Reference 5504 Replica Watches (1958-1964)

The 36mm Air-King 5504 was basically an Explorer I with a different dial and hands. Concurrently, Rolex also produced the 5504 36mm Oyster Perpetual. All three are essentially the same Swiss made Rolex super clone watches, with different dials. The Air-King versions are the least common of the three, but by no means uncommon. Here are the specifications of the 5504.

36mm Stainless Steel Oyster case. 100m water resistance, screw-down crown and drilled lugs with 20mm lug spacing
Acrylic crystal
Alpha hands
Automatic caliber 1530, 25 jewel frequency 18,000, time-only, center seconds.
Dial: white egg-shell or black-gilt, both with applied stick markers and “SUPER PRECISION” to indicate the COSC-certified 1530 movement.
Reference 78360 3-link Oyster bracelet.

Rolex Air-King Reference 5501 Fake Watches (1959-1978)

The Air-King gets a bit of Datejust magic in 1960 with the introduction of the reference 5501. Gone is the smooth stainless-steel bezel, upgraded to a fluted gold one that resembles the Datejust. The 5501 shares most other characteristics with the 5500, however. Here are the main characteristics.

34 mm Stainless Steel Oyster case, gold fluted bezel. 100m water resistance, screw-down crown and drilled 19mm lugs.
Acrylic crystal
Automatic cal. 1520, 26 jewels (Note, US 17 Jewels, because import regulations) frequency 19,800, time only
Alpha, then moving to baton/pencil hands.
Dial will read “Swiss” and then moving to “T Swiss T” (along the same timeline as the 5500). Dials were silver, champagne, and sometimes slate. There is a lot of variation with dials on the 5501, as we would expect with such a long run. Most marked ‘OYSTER PERPETUAL AIR-KING’ ‘PRECISION’ (hand-written script AIR-KING) but we will see Tiffany signed, ‘EXPLORER’ marked (with Alpha hands) and even some only ‘OYSTER PERPETUAL AIR-KING’
Over its 19 years, the 5501 can be seen with two tone oyster bracelets reference 6635 and 7205 and later the two-tone 62523 Jubilee.

40-Micron Gold-Capped Replica Rolex Air-King Watches

These Rolex replica watches wholesale UK come to us in a number of overlapping references, but are essentially the same watch with differences in the movements. The references of gold-capped Air-Kings are:

5506 (1960 – 1964)
5516 (1960 – 1965)
5502 (1960 – 1965)
5520 (1960 – 1970)
Gold-capping is a method in which gold is rolled onto the stainless-steel case to form a thick covering. For Rolex, gold-capped watches are something of an outlier, only appearing on Air-Kings and Oyster Perpetuals during the 1960s.

34 mm stainless-steel Oyster case, gold-capped at 40 microns with 100m water resistance, screw-down crown and drilled 19mm lugs
Acrylic crystal
Reference 5506, 5516, 5502 use caliber 1530 with 25 jewels, a frequency of 18,000vph. Reference 5520 uses caliber 1520 with 26 jewels and a frequency of 19,800vph. Bot offer time-only with central seconds. As always, Swiss online fake Rolex caliber 1530 watches are marked “SUPER PRECISION” and caliber 1520 “PRECISION.”
All use Alpha hands except the reference 5520, which sports baton hands. All hands are and markers are gold.
Dials are most commonly silver, but you will find champagne and black examples.
The gold capped Air-Kings used the capped 78351 Oyster bracelet.

Fake Rolex Air-King Date Reference 5700 and 5701 Watches (1959-1988)

There was a time when Rolex produced 34 mm models with date complications. Sadly that time has passed, but if these little gems interest you, the 5700 and 5701 are something to look at, and they represent a somewhat uncommon—if not entirely rare—niche of Rolex where good value is still possible.

34mm Stainless Steel case (5701 used a gold-fluted bezel and crown) with 100m water resistance, screw-down crown and drilled 19mm lugs.
Acrylic crystal
Automatic caliber 1525 (based on 1520) with a frequency 19,800, with time and date, (not quick-set)
Like the 5500 the 5700 started with Alpha hands and moved over to the baton/pencil hands in the mid sixties.
Both the 5700 and 5701 came with white, silver, black and champagne dials. Both marked “PRECISION” and they continued with the hand-written script, this time “AIR-KING-DATE” The hands and markers on the 5700 are stainless steel and on the 5701 are gold.
6636 Oyster bracelets, replaced in the nineteen seventies with the 78350. The 5701 also came in a 5701/3 model, this time with a smooth bezel.

Rolex Air-King Reference 14000 (1989-1999) and 14000M Replica Watches (2000-2006)

We are deep in neo-vintage territory with the 14000. The 1:1 UK Rolex Air-King replica watches is beginning to look like something we would recognize today. In are sapphire crystals, hacking movements and a new hand-set, one in which the pencil tips are gone, as are the drilled lugs. The Air-King now has the same baton hands as the Datejust or Oyster Perpetual, making it both more modern and more like its cousins.

The “M” designation indicates a “modified” version that has an upgraded movement that includes a Parachrom hairspring and COSC chronometer certification. The higher quality movement still gets the dial designation “PRECISION.”

The Air-King gets a little more playful with the dials now in white, black, silver, salmon, blue and with some 3-6-9 versions and even Roman numeralsThe 14000 (M) is found on the 78350 3-link Oyster bracelet.

34mm Stainless Steel case 100m water resistance, screw-down crown and non drilled 19mm lugs
Sapphire crystal
14000 Automatic cal. 3000, 27 jewel, frequency 28,800, hacking. 14000M cal. 3130, 31 jewels, frequency 28,800, hacking (M for modified, referring to the upgrade in movement, including the new Parachrom hairspring) both time only
Early models marked “T Swiss T” used Tritium luminescence, while we see “Swiss Made” with the change to Luminova in 1998.

Rolex Air-King Reference 14010 (1991–2001) and 14010M Fake Watches (2000–2006)

These references are essentially the same as the 14000 references above, but with an engine-turned (that is, machine-engraved) steel bezel.

Replica Rolex Air-King Reference 114234 (2007 – 2012) and 114200 Watches (2007–2014)

The Air-King only had two models as a 6-digit reference before it took a two-year hiatus between 2014 and 2016. It would be hard to overstate the difference between the earlier Air-Kings and the six-digit references.

All dials are marked “SWISS MADE” and used Rolex’s Chromalight lume. A wide variety of colors were on offer: green, blue, salmon, champagne, white, black and also with roman numerals and exotic dials, including a two-tone version with applied Arabic numerals. There are even some gem-set dials out there (which may be aftermarket, and we can’t confirm that just yet). Hands are the baton type we first saw in the 14000 and are in white gold. The 114234 has an added white gold fluted bezel, giving it an even fancier visage.

34mm Stainless Steel case 100m water resistance, screw-down crown and non-drilled 19 mm lugs. The 114234 includes white gold fluted bezel.
Sapphire crystal
Automatic caliber 3130 with 31 jewels, a frequency of 28,800vph, hacking, and chronometer certification

Replica Rolex Air-King Reference 116900 Watches (2016–2022)

After two years without an Air-King Rolex came back with something so different that one might wonder why it is named Air-King. Gone was an easy-wearing 34 mm everyday watch, and in was a 40 mm sports China replica Rolex watches.

It all started in twenty fourteen when Rolex produced two “dashboard dials” for the Bloodhound SSC supersonic car. It was these dash instruments that inspired the Air-King reference 116900, using the same design language and colorway. The 116900 was much more like the Milgauss (they share the same movement, case, antimagnetic inner case). And the new Air-King was less like the Datejust or Oyster Perpetual in purpose and function.

The Air-King now comes with a single matte black dial, still with the hand-script “AIR-KING” and “OYSTER PERPETUAL SUPERLATIVE CHRONOMETER OFFICIALLY CERTIFIED” stacked like a modern Rollie. The controversial dial mixes hour markers with a seconds/minute timing scale, which many people denigrate as “un-Rolex.” The 116900 came with the Rolex Mercedes hands in white gold and a Rolex-green second hand, complete with a sporty luminescent pip.

This Air-King is probably as far from what we had come to know as an Air-King as we could imagine, but it reinvented and revived a model that had been around in basically one form since the 6552 in 1953.

40mm Stainless Steel case 100m water resistance, screw-down crown, non drilled 20mm lugs and antimagnetic inner case
Sapphire crystal • Automatic cal. 3131, 31 jewels, frequency 28,800, hacking, chronometer certified, time only

Fake Rolex Air-King Reference 126900 Watches (2022–Present)

The 126900 is the current Air-King model. With this release Rolex leaned more into the tool watch space. The Milgauss-style case was replaced by one more akin to the GMT II (indicating Rolex’s modular production approach, as the Milgauss itself was also cancelled). This new case is a little less rounded and now includes crown guards.

The movement has been upgraded, now with the Chronergy escarpment, giving less wear, hence more reliability. Rolex has rolled out this technology into its various Rolex copy watches shop over the last few years. One other difference, one you may not even notice at first glance, is that the the “5” on the dial is now an “05.” The 3-6-9 and inverted triangle at 12 are filled with Chromalight, much like the contemporary Explorer I.

40mm Stainless Steel case 100m water resistance, screw-down crown, non drilled 20mm lugs and antimagnetic inner case
Sapphire crystal
Automatic cal. 3230, 31 jewels, frequency 28,800, hacking, chronometer certified, time only

Is Rolex Shorting The Market Of New Perfect Swiss Rolex Replica Watches UK To Drive Its Certified Pre-Owned Program?

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In our recent article about the near impossibility of purchasing a new Rolex Daytona, we concluded with this question: Is Rolex shorting the new market to compel customers to buy from its new Certified Pre-Owned program? This seemed a fair, if somewhat cynical, question to ask after multiple authorized Rolex dealerships offered us little hope for a new Daytona while simultaneously directing us to pre-owned AAA UK Rolex Daytona replica watches at twice the retail price.

However, the cheap 1:1 fake Rolex Daytona watches is uniquely hard to get, and for that reason it is also uniquely expensive on the pre-owned market. An expert watch collector and watch industry veteran (who prefers anonymity) didn’t mince words: “Daytona production is artificially reduced. Rolex wants that one hard-to-get watch, and they’ve done that with the Daytona since 1988.” (In 1988, Rolex released the first auto-winding Daytona reference 16520.) They add, “A brand has to have that one watch that’s hard to get.” As such, seeking out a new Daytona is an especially disheartening experience.

And yet, it is also nearly impossible to get any Swiss made Rolex replica watches new at retail any time soon. The ubiquitous scarcity makes shopping at a Rolex boutique (if we can call even it shopping) both frustrating and surreal. They offer you a sparkling water with a smile knowing full well they’re going to deny your wishes, and this disingenuousness can make the Rolex retail experience quite tense. According to one source with first-hand experience selling Rolex, denying customers access takes a toll: “It’s cringe and uptight. Most people go a little insane. Customers get edgy, and [salespeople] grow cringy.” Granted, some pre-owned Rolex models have come down toward retail prices, but there’s still a denial at the core of the pre-owned offering. The question as to whether Rolex has shorted the new market to bump up Certified Pre-Owned sales just seems to hang in the air at the brand’s boutiques.

When we asked experts whether Rolex was shorting the supply of new high quality Rolex copy watches to sell used, each notably took a moment to consider it and then said no. However, our experts were mostly only able to speculate when offering alternative explanations for Rolex’s retail strategies. Rolex’s lack of transparency only confirms its reputation as a cloistered corporate entity. Where most watch brands offer up their CEOs for candid interviews with journalists, Rolex rarely speaks beyond formal press releases. Factory tours are nearly non-existent, and photos aren’t allowed. Rolex operates as a Swiss not-for-profit, and likely discloses no financial records to the Swiss government. I’ve long referred to Rolex as Willy Wonka’s Watch Factory.

Despite this dearth of both definitive information from, or even about, Rolex, the experts we spoke with offered up some interesting and wide-ranging speculations.

The Global Rolex Shortage Is Not Intentional

The first thing that experts told us was that top replica Rolex watches is not intentionally shorting the new market, but has run up against an unexpectedly high global demand.

One source told us that the idea that Rolex intentionally shorts supply, “is all bullshit, just rumors. If you talk for 10 minutes with [Rolex CEO Jean-Frédéric] Dufour, you’ll learn he’s not happy and his retailers aren’t happy,” about the lack of new product. Paul Altieri of the (non-certified) pre-owned dealership Bob’s Watches told Robb Report that, “My gut reaction is no [they’re not intentionally shorting supply], because global demand is so high they can hardly handle it.” Watch expert Eric Wind said he, “wouldn’t use the word shorted.”

Another watch-world insider told us that, “Rolex doesn’t intentionally short supply…[but]…during Covid, Rolex got caught with its pants down.” Indeed, all watch market data indicates that during the pandemic, demand for best China Rolex super clone watches went through the roof, with Rolex, as always, especially in demand. This same source told us that Rolex has been using temporary factories to help fill the supply gap while the company builds its new factory. Altieri also mentioned the new factory, stating “global demand for luxury goods is so high these days, maybe [Rolex] just can’t meet global demand until the new factory is up and running.”

And Yet, Shorting Supply Is a Known Luxury Strategy

Shorting supply is a standard luxury strategy. Not only does shorting supply allow a brand to drive prices skyward, but it creates the air of exclusivity—as well as actual exclusion. Altieri mentioned that, “Louis Vuitton and Hermès always produce 20 percent less than demand, because exclusion drives luxury. It’s good to be scarce.” But Altieri goes on to question the premise for Rolex because, “the global economy is flourishing, and Rolex is relatively affordable.”

Altieri’s point is well taken, because Rolex replica watches wholesale aren’t especially expensive when compared to other Swiss watch brands offering comparable quality and style. Some watch brands, like F. P. Journe, have adjusted their pricing to match skyrocketing pre-owned prices, while others, like Rexhep Rexhepi refuse to do so. Rolex has raised its retail prices recently, but only incrementally, and nowhere close to approaching the inflated pre-owned prices for hard-to-get watches like the Daytona.

And yet, however unintentionally, on the ground floor of their retail stores, Rolex appears to have executed the luxury strategy of excluding almost everyone except elite clients. Much like Ferrari, the aforementioned Louis Vuitton and Hermès, and any number of watch brands these days, Rolex now behaves according to the text-book luxury brand protocol of keeping supply way below demand.

If we believe the experts who agree that Rolex is not shorting supply intentionally, then it is an odd—even ironic—situation for a globally recognized premium brand to find itself acting as if it were an exclusive luxury brand. That indicates a lack of control, and perhaps Rolex has genuinely been caught with its pants down.

Whatever the case may be, some people are growing annoyed with Rolex’s retail practices. Another source with extensive Rolex retail experience told Robb Report that, “People get cynical about Rolex because they’re like the super cool, popular kid in high school who you can’t image is a nice guy. Rolex is just so corporate.” Some of this impression may come down to Rolex’s business and manufacturing practices having long been shrouded in mystery, its opacity in communication, and its impersonal tone. While many people around the world unquestionably admire Rolex and its watches, this is a brand only very few will ever feel very close to (e.g., compare Rolex to Omega, which once made a Speedmaster to honor a popular Instagram hashtag). The more Rolex excludes customers from purchasing its fake Rolex watches for sale at retail, the more likely it seems that some people will wonder if Rolex is intentionally making itself into an ultra-exclusive luxury brand.

One collector who has registered his interest but has yet to get “the call” for a new Rolex told Robb Report, “I feel disgusted. It’s not a large amount of money out of my portfolio, and they’re putting it on a pedestal as if it’s out of my reach. They’re not even that expensive. You finally put away all that money for retirement, the kids college tuition, your mortgage, and you want to treat yourself and you can’t.” Another collector, who finally got the call for his first new Rolex earlier this year, told us that, “It’s like getting that big promotion. It’s an incredibly good feeling. Like when the girl says ‘yes.’ I’d been worried the appeal was having been excluded…but when they opened that box I didn’t feel that way for a fucking heartbeat.”

Enter the Certified Pre-Owned Program

On May 3, 2023, Rolex announced its Certified Pre-Owned program. The official press release—the only statement on the topic we could secure from the brand—reads: “The Rolex Certified Pre-Owned program is designed to offer customers a service that stands out in terms of the quality delivered by Rolex, in keeping with its values of excellence. It provides the assurance of buying certified Rolex products and enables the end customer to benefit from the full know-how and professionalism of the brand’s worldwide network of experts.” While the message is positive, it’s an opaque and impersonal statement. The release is devoid of first-person subjects (“we” appears nowhere) and employs passive voice (e.g., “is designed to” rather than “Rolex designed”), both known strategies for creating narrative distance. Where many other watch brands might openly explain their business strategy, Rolex is silent.

Rolex CEO Jean-Frédéric Dufour gave a rare interview to the Swiss newspaper NZZ in April of this year, and in it he mostly speaks of the global watch market downturn, currency exchange, and international interest rates. He says nothing about Swiss movements Rolex replica watches‘ retail strategies, or how it interfaces with customers. Dufour does mention that, “We produce everything here at Swiss costs. So the Swiss franc is a challenge.” This statement goes no distance in helping us understand the Certified Pre-Owned program, but perhaps begs speculation as to whether Rolex sees the fast-growing pre-owned market as a way to mitigate the high costs of domestic labor.

One Rolex-affiliated source told Robb Report that Rolex operates its Certified Pre-Owned program as if it were a separate brand, and that it is, “on the same level as Tudor. There is no tray for CPO [Certified Pre-Owned] watches, and they’re not allowed to be displayed in the same room as the new watches.” When asked if Rolex trained its salespeople to leverage scarcity of new models toward the Certified Pre-Owned offerings, they said, “If the customer says they want to buy something today, then we mention CPO,” but that generally Rolex offers no incentive or instruction for salespeople to pivot from inquiries for new models to the Certified Pre-Owned offerings.

Is Rolex Making ‘Generational Moves’?

Another source with knowledge of the brand’s retail practices told Robb Report that Rolex is making “generational moves,” and that “Rolex has been exploring this [CPO] program for over a decade.” Another expert echoed this, saying, “Rolex operates like a Soviet country. It plans far ahead and is rigid in its execution.” They also said, “Rolex moves really slowly, [because] it has a huge board that makes enormous decisions.”

When pressed to answer what those generational moves were meant to accomplish, the source told us, “The CPO program is about control. Rolex doesn’t care about money. It cares about control…of its brand, its service centers,” and that Rolex has been, “weeding out mom-and-pop stores. It’s possible that the pre-Covid shorting was a way to weed out those [dealerships] they didn’t want in their network.” Another source pointed out that the Certified Pre-Owned program might be helpful to some dealerships because, “If I dedicated half of my store to your brand, and you’ve got no new product to fill it, then there’s a problem.” Apparently Certified Pre-Owned watches could give a dealership something to sell, but Eric Wind suggested that authorized dealers, “are being made to take on CPO to keep their account, and they had to buy a lot of pre-owned models.”

A Healthy Mystique

The lack of consensus around Rolex’s strategies—or whether the company is even acting strategically—is perhaps the prime takeaway from this discussion. Because Rolex remains an opaque communicator on its business strategies, even industry insiders can’t agree on what really goes on inside the most compelling watch brand in the world. Perhaps Rolex fake watches site UK maintaining its, stoic, confident, strong-but-silent personality is the brand’s best strategy. Certainly the brand’s mystique is as healthy as it’s ever been, and it does seem as if its founder Hans Wilsdorf, who passed in 1960, is managing from the otherworld. As one Rolex employee once told me, “Uncle Hans is still at the helm.”