We’re passionate about everything watch, everything New York City, and everything Rolex. We have to be because Rolex is the flagship brand for luxury watches, New York is the flagship city for the United States (sorry Los Angeles), and everyone needs to keep time. So let’s mix and match and discuss some of the reasons why we love Rolex, we love New York City, and we love being one of the best – if not the best – Rolex watch repair shop in New York.
#1 – Fame! Rolex watches are all about the fame. Rolex is probably the most recognized luxury watch brand on the planet. Sure watch lovers will know brands like Omega, Hamilton, or Tag Heuer – all great watch brands. And sure everyone knows Timex, but Timex of course is hardly a luxury brand. But EVERYONE knows Rolex and EVERYONE knows that Rolex stands for luxury watches. Indeed, even if the person you are speaking to knows nothing about Swiss watches, he’ll surely know Rolex and he’ll surely know that Rolex is one of the best watch brands. Why, Rolex watches are no doubt the most highly pirated brands. The question “How to detect a fake Rolex” is a common one, again showing that everyone knows the brand.
#2 – Fame! Everyone knows New York City. You can be in Paris, Moscow, Tokyo… and people will “know” New York City. They know it as America’s city of skyscrapers and as the immigrant port of entry with the Statue of Liberty. Sure there are other wonderful American cities – from Miami in Florida to Dallas in Texas to Anchorage in Alaska, but there’s only one “Big Apple” and everyone around the world knows NEW YORK CITY. A famous city and a famous city for Rolex watches (and Rolex watch repair).
#3 – Everything a Watch Needs. Rolex has everything “you” need in a watch. Sure, it keeps time. But it’s a beautiful creation, and keeps time impeccably, and it just looks good. Rolex after all is the brand which put BLING in watches in the first place. To combine accuracy with bling with a brand – now, that’s another reason to love the Rolex brand. And it’s to Rolex’s advantage to omit unusual complications. It has no tourbillons, perpetual calendars or minute repeaters – not even movements with a large date display, power reserve indicator or alarm function. The company concentrates on what it does best, and improves the detail ongoing. This is true for the movements as well as for the case. You won’t find a rotating bezel that ratchets so cleanly and smoothly like the one on the Submariner or GMT-Master II from any of its competitors – even other high-end manufacturers with much more expensive products.
#4 – Everything a Man or a Woman Needs in a City. Like Rolex, New York City has everything a person could want. Museums? Got those in spades. Nightlife? Well, we’re the city that never sleeps. People? Diversity? Millions of them. Beaches – we even have those. Public transit? Yep, got the New York City Subway. Airports? Have more than one, with non stop flights to nearly everywhere in the USA and the world. Great restaurants? You betcha. New York has everything that every other city has and more. The only city that might have something we don’t have is Los Angeles with its movie stars and weather. But we have movie stars, too. Weather? Well we have weather – all types of it. Just wait a moment and it’ll change.
#5 – Watch Design and Recognition. The everyday wearability of a watch is a function of its design. The round shape of a Rolex contributes to its water-resistance and its superior legibility. Add to this a central sweep seconds hand and Cyclops date magnifier (another Hans Wilsdorf invention). Existing collections are maintained and continuously improved over the years. This is supported by Rolex expert Percy Christian Schoeler, founder of the German-language internet portals Luxify and R-L-X-Forum: “Only very careful modifications to the iconic design of individual model collections over the decades have resulted in a high degree of recognition.” There are no sudden design shifts or leaps, and even case sizes are altered only very gradually. Typical design features like the grooved bezel, “Mercedes” hands, Cyclops magnifier and the Oyster bracelet are part of several different models and have rarely undergone change so a Datejust or a Submariner today looks very much like earlier models. It’s why it is always easy to recognize a Rolex from a distance. Watch expert Gisbert L. Brunner calls this the “10-meter rule” – and it’s not just the specialists who recognize them. Rolex watches have design and Rolex watches get the recognition for that design.
#6 – Design and Recognition. Come to Manhattan. Look up at the Freedom Tower or Empire State. Look at a literal sea of skyscrapers. It’s an architect’s paradise. Recognition? Everyone recognizes New York as THE city for fashion and design. The Devil Wears Prada and he lives in New York, NY.
#7 – Value! Rolexes hold their value. We repair many Rolex watches here in our Midtown watch repair shop, and many of these are literally family heirlooms. So if you have an “old” Rolex realize that it has held and will hold its value. These watches are “works of art.”
#8 – Value! Just ask anyone who has invested in New York City real estate over the last decades. Boy does it hold its value and boy, does it go up in value. Like Rolex, there aren’t two New York Cities – there’s one and only one original. So it holds its value.
#9 – Classic and Subdued Style. Like New York City, Rolex always makes a solid and composed impression. The company stays true to its proven methods and chooses to make continuous improvements instead of pursuing the new and different. Part of the brand’s mythology rests on the fact that Rolex did not jump on the quartz-watch bandwagon in the 1970s (even though there were some quartz Rolex watches). The company does not produce complicated watches such as tourbillons or repeaters, only very rarely launches new collections, and stays away from online sales. New technologies such as silicone parts in its movements are developed very slowly and used very conservatively – smartwatches or “smart” features are unthinkable. This makes the brand predictable for the customer and also protects the brand from missteps. The company does not make a big deal when introducing new products at Baselworld each spring. While other manufacturers boldly announce world records, hold press conferences featuring celebrities, or present 70 brand-new products, Rolex quietly works on detailed improvements. Larger cases, improved movements, ceramic bezels and now and again a new color – even innovations such as these are discussed among Rolex fans hotly and not without controversy. And regarding personal contact, Rolex often comes across as inscrutable and “oyster-like”– beginning with its production facilities for watches in Geneva and for movements in Biel, which customers and journalists rarely get to see from the inside, and ending with the CEO who, as a rule, gives no interviews.
Those are 9 good reasons for why we love Rolex and we love our city. We also love being the best place in New York City to get a Rolex inspected or repaired. If you’re looking for Rolex repair in New York City, reach out to us today for an inspection. We can share our twin passions for NYC and Rolex with you when you come into our shop.