- There is a rumor that in order for a Rolex
to actually leave the factory or be a Rolex design
it has be to recognizable from 20 feet away.
Hi, I'm Cara Barrett, editor at Hodinkee,
the leading online watch publication.
Rolex is one of the few brands, if not the only brand
that has a very specific aesthetic.
They are sporty, they are active, they are tool watches
that's kind of their main DNA.
In the 50's they came out with the Submariner,
the Explorer, the Milgauss, the GMT
and they were all watches that were designed
and made to be used as tools.
And so that's their bread and butter and it still is today.
It kind of evolved into a luxury brand later in life
which now is what they're known for.
So that's kind of the interesting thing about them
is they initially were tool watches
which have now become luxury.
Rolex is kind of one of those brands that sits
on the lower end of the spectrum
as far as luxury watches are concerned.
The Submariner's $8,000.
The entry-level watch at Rolex is $5,000
with the Oyster Perpetual.
Their three qualities are self-winding,
waterproof and precision.
And they really focus on quality.
It takes one year to make a Rolex.
They go through extensive testing.
The accuracy, the chronometer, the timing,
it's all about telling the right time,
keeping the right time.
They also have extensive service work after,
so if you ever have a problem with your Rolex,
you can take it to them and they'll fix it.
The clasp is opened and closed a thousand times
before it leaves so you know that when you get it,
it's not gonna break.
The whole point of a Rolex is you buy one now,
it will last you for 20 years if you take care of it.
It will last you for 100 if you really take care of it.
That's ultimately why they're so expensive
because you're buying something
that will last you a lifetime presumably.
And something that you can pass down
to other generations as well.
In the collectors' world, there's the vintage Rolex market.
And there's a whole underground of different nuances
and you know there's a GMT with a matte dial,
a GMT with a gilt dial
and there are all these tiny little details
that change and they make a watch more or less valuable.
There's the Paul Newman Daytona
which sold for $17.8 million last fall
and that's the most expensive Rolex
that's ever sold at auction.
The Paul Newman Daytona is a really good example
where they came out with a Daytona back in the 70s
and they put these exotic dials on them and
they couldn't sell them.
And now they're the most collectible watches
on the vintage market.
No one knows how many Rolexes are produced per year,
no one knows how many Rolexes are produced per model.
But there are specific ones,
like the Rainbow Daytona that came out this year,
rumored to have X amount made, but very small quantities.
You don't ever know exactly what the number is,
but you do know that there aren't that many.
And they're hard to get.
One of the best things about Rolex
is anyone can wear any of them.
They're very unisex and I think that that's refreshing
'cause a lot of times brands put a lot of diamonds
on watches and kind of brand it as a woman's watch.
Whereas Rolex does the same thing, but it's kind of unisex.
I wear a lot of men's Rolex.
But the ladies Datejust is actually, in two-tone,
is actually the most sold Rolex model of all time.
Which is a really fun fact.