Rolex
Swiss watchmaker founded by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis in 1905 (London), incorporated as Montres Rolex SA in Geneva in 1920. The largest single-brand Swiss luxury watch manufacturer by production, and the most-traded brand on the secondary market.
Rolex is a Swiss watch manufacturer founded by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis in London in 1905 and incorporated as Montres Rolex SA in Geneva in 1920. It is the largest single-brand Swiss luxury watch manufacturer by production, with annual output estimated at over a million pieces, and the most-traded brand on the secondary market.
Foundational inventions
Two patents define the modern Rolex range. The Oyster case (1926) was the first commercially successful waterproof wristwatch case. The Perpetual rotor (1931) was the first reliably efficient self-winding mechanism. Together they form the Oyster Perpetual architecture that underlies almost every modern Rolex.
Current model families
- Submariner: divers' watch, 41 mm. The most-recognised tool watch in the world.
- GMT-Master II: pilots' and travel watch with second-time-zone hand and rotating bezel.
- Daytona: chronograph with tachymetre scale.
- Datejust: dress watch with date function, available in many sizes and metals.
- Day-Date: premium dress watch with day of week and date, only in precious metals.
- Explorer and Explorer II: adventure watches.
- Sea-Dweller and Deepsea: deep-water divers.
- Sky-Dweller: annual calendar with second time zone.
- Oyster Perpetual: entry-level no-date.
- Yacht-Master and Yacht-Master II: sailing watches.
- Air-King: pilot heritage.
Reference numbering
Five-digit references (older, until early 2000s) and six-digit references (current). Reference suffixes (LN, LV, BLNR, BLRO, etc.) encode bezel and material variants. For full conventions see our journal article on how to read a watch reference number.
Market position
Rolex is the most-traded brand on the secondary market. Submariner, Daytona, and GMT-Master II references move daily in volume across Chrono24, eBay, and dealer-to-dealer trade. Pricing data is robust, demand patterns are well-understood, and authentication is straightforward through reference-and-serial cross-checking.
For dealers, Rolex inventory is the most liquid in the trade with the most stable pricing references.
Related: oyster-perpetual, submariner, daytona, gmt-bezel.