It’s no doubt that Rolex is one of the most popular watch brands all over the world. But even if the brand is so well-known, it has so much more to it that many of us don’t know. It has a lot of secrets that will forever be kept safe. These company secrets may even be kept forever, but knowing just a bit of this brand is good because this brand is truly worthy of “the only watch that matters” tagline.
In this article, we’ll share with you five Rolex facts that aren’t exactly secrets but may not be obvious to you or anyone else. Interested? Well, keep on reading!
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The brand didn’t start in Switzerland
Rolex is a Swiss-made brand, and although all the watch’s operations are now done in Switzerland, this wasn’t always the case. In 1905, the brand was originally established as Wilsdorf and Davis. This was a London-based partnership established by its founders, Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred David. The two are brothers-in-law, and they imported the Swiss watches to be cased and branded by jewellers locally. The two founders made pocket watches for men and wristwatches (or so-called “wristlets”) for women. At that time, wristwatches for men were deemed “unfashionable,” but then Alberto Santos-Dumont, a celebrity and entrepreneur, had a wristwatch that was custom made for him by Louis Cartier. When this happened, Wilsdorf saw an opportunity to create wristwatches for men and also considered the fact that owning multiple wristwatches to match different outfits could be a “thing.” By 1908, the brothers-in-law created the Rolex brand in England, not in Switzerland.
They had certificates for their timepieces’ precision
In 1910, the brand made a timepiece that was awarded a Swiss Certificate of Chronometric Precision from the Official Watch Rating Center in Bienne. It was the first time that this certificate was issued to a wristwatch. Then 1915, Rolex made the first wristwatch to ever achieve an accolade for being awarded a class precision certificate. So, it’s safe to say that Rolex makes only the best watches that are always accurate or precise.
The Aegler-Rolex relationship
In 1903, Wilsdorf moved to London and worked in the watch industry in Switzerland. By this time, Wilsdorf became familiar with the works of Aegler. The Aegler brand was established way back in 1878 in Switzerland. This was decades before Rolex was even founded. Aegler specialized in small, accurate movements which appealed to Wilsdorf since he was attempting to create wristwatches that would appeal to men.
Ever since Aegler exclusively produced movements for Rolex, but it wasn’t until 2004 when Rolex finally bought the movement manufacturer and completely absorbed it.
The Chromalight luminous paint
Many timepieces from the Rolex brand have a beautiful glow-in-the-dark effect. Luminous paint is used to create this effect. But before the brand had its in-house luminous paint, it first used a radium-based material that was radioactive! This posed a significant health hazard for its wearers when this material was phased out in 1960 because of medical concerns, Rolex shifted to tritium. This material was also radioactive, but less harmful. In 1998, tritium paint was banned and replaced by Luminova. This paint was Japanese-made and non-radioactive.
A decade after Luminova’s introduction, Rolex then switched to its luminous paint, which was made in-house. This was the Chromalight paint which came in a distinctive blue glow and was proven to last twice as long! The blue glow is beautiful and much more aesthetically-pleasing compared to the usual green glow.
The watch that went to the moon
Edgar Mitchell was an astronaut that wore a Rolex GMT-Master 1675 on board the Apollo 14 mission going to the moon. On January 31, 1971, NASA photographed Mitchell preparing the watch for the mission. He also wore both the standard-issue Speedmaster and the GMT-Master 1675 before his return to the command module.
The more you know!
So there you have it, five cool facts about the ever-so-coveted timepiece brand. With its superior quality and aesthetics, it’s no wonder everyone wants to get a Rolex for themselves. It’s truly worth the investment and the best choice if you’re looking for your first luxury watch to own. A timepiece from this brand can last you for years to come and can even make a great heirloom someday. It deserves being “the only watch that matters” with its accomplishments that sets it apart from other luxury watches.
Each watch from the brand is timeless, so you’ll never look outdated when you get one for yourself. If you want to see some of the best watches from Rolex available today, then check out WatchShopping.com to see a variety of their products. You’ll surely find a watch that will suit your style and personality. We hope you enjoyed this fact list on Rolex.