Rolex is The World’s Most Secretive Watch Brand

Rolex is The World’s Most Secretive Watch Brand

The Rolex brand has become so ingrained in worldwide society that it now stands for much more than the things it labels. It stands for riches, success, style, and quality. Thanks to their cultural popularity, these businesses have become unstoppable rulers of their respective sectors.

Introduction

Rolex is the most recognized watch manufacturer in the world. When he passed away in 1960, Rolex’s creator, German-born Hans Wilsdorf, put the company in the custody of a trust. Profits are split between the founding families and the company; there are no stockholders, and the remaining funds are donated to charity organizations that support high school education and the education of watchmakers.

There is a CEO, yet no one person owns the company. Few people outside of top executive insiders are aware of how management communicates with the Trust. Those in charge of Rolex’s renowned watch company constantly promote its covert, discrete nature.

All Rolex buildings understandably prohibit photography, and every employee must carry an ID card that is thoroughly and frequently examined. Because a Rolex is considered as valuable as gold worldwide, shipping these watches is done with military-grade security.

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Rolex Origin And History

Geneva, Switzerland-based Rolex SA is a Swiss watch designer and manufacturer established in Britain. Wilsdorf and Davis were established in 1905 in London, England, by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis. The company registered the word Rolex as a trademark in 1908, and in 1915 it changed its name to Rolex Watch Co. Ltd.

The company moved its corporate headquarters to Geneva as a result of the weak economy in the United Kingdom following World War I. The new business name was Montres Rolex SA, which Hans Wilsdorf registered in Geneva in 1920 (montre is French for “watch” or “timepiece”). Rolex SA was afterward added. A private family trust known as the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation has controlled the business since 1960.

Being A Secret To The World Is The Rolex Strategy

Rolex takes the phrase “private company” very seriously. As a result, unlike most watch companies that like to enlist the help of bloggers and watch journalists promote their new models, Rolex only works with a small group of carefully chosen journalists to spread the word about upcoming models and events.

It is likely that if one applies to Rolex to be included in their email list in some instances, even for simple press releases, they will respectfully decline. Rolex has been hesitant to embrace the direct communication that social media has made possible between businesses and consumers.

Even though Rolex has a Facebook profile, people shouldn’t anticipate being able to engage in a two-way conversation with the business there. They only want to share their experience in their way and prevent Facebook from turning into a comment war zone. They seem not to want to talk to people but want users to lust over their timepieces.

While that wasn’t always the case, nowadays, Rolex promotes itself without anybody else’s aid. It is the only watchmaker to be listed among Business Week’s top 100 worldwide brands. It is unknown how much money the firm or the Trust makes because of the cult of secrecy and the shroud of confidentiality, but it is said that they could carry on as usual with a total workforce even if they stopped selling watches for years.

Upholding Reputation With Consumers

Rolex’s reputation for high-end watchmaking quality and accuracy is unmatched worldwide. That is an exact statement all by itself. However, the information wasn’t only scribbled on an envelope’s back. To arrive at this statement, possibly several draughts and board approvals were required.

When asked, the corporation will frequently cite its goods’ exceptional quality and technological capabilities as the cause of its widespread reputation, but this doesn’t help us comprehend Rolex, the company anymore.

According to a long-gone commercial, one Rolex watch takes a year to build. This was a small secret in and of itself that Rolex chose to reveal for its PR. Although between 800,000 and one million Rolex watches are produced annually, it appears to be true that it takes about a year for a Rolex to finally leave the production line fully signed, sealed, tested, and approved due to the incredibly rigorous tests and the high level of handcrafting that goes into making each watch.

No other timepiece brand comes close to our extensive, cutting-edge facilities, people, R&D resources, and total internal capabilities. Rolex’s concern with enhancing quality, honing procedures, and creating better materials to boost output is only surpassed by its enthusiasm for watches.

Marketing Innovations From Rolex

One of the first companies to launch ambitious advertising efforts that emphasized the person wearing the watch more than the watch itself was Rolex. This established a strong relationship between the brand and rigid, adventurous people. Even if you spend your days at a desk or are a commuter whose day is dictated by the train schedule, wearing a Rolex gives you an air of borrowed success.

Rolex made sure that a succession of American presidents, including Eisenhower, Johnson, and Nixon, as well as a succession of other world leaders, including German chancellors Adenauer and Kiesinger, British prime ministers Churchill, Eden, and Heath, and French president Charles de Gaulle, all wore Rolex during the early post-World War II decades. Even the Emperor of Japan wore a Rolex.

When the quartz crisis hit in the late 1970s to early 1980s, several watchmakers went out of business, but Rolex was unscathed. In actuality, the business received more and more COSC-certified chronometers until, by 1990, Rolex was the recipient of over 90% of all such awards.

Conclusion

Although spectacular, it just makes up a portion of Rolex’s achievement narrative. A bit of good fortune and marketing expertise might occasionally assist in boosting a brand above its competitors. Rolex was lucky enough to be at the right place at the right time during the post-World War II consumer boom, which was the largest in a century.

As the American economy became more vigorous, middle-class customers wanted the affordable luxury Rolex was marketing. Rolex adhered to producing the highest-quality watches they could and did not diversify; this was the ideal course of action. They continue to take the same position today.