The Complication: Thoughts on Watches, the Watch Industry and Watch Culture

  • The Rolex Certified Pre-Owned Program – Will it help?

    Later this year, Rolex will be rolling out a new CPO program allowing specific authorized dealers (currently limited to Bucherer), the ability to sell certified, preowned Rolexes that are at least three years old. The watches will most likely be inspected by the AD, boxed either in a Rolex original box or an AD-issued box, and given new papers and a warranty from Rolex. A US Bucherer employee I know indicated that questions are swirling around: (a) how Bucherer will actually obtain the watches they will sell under the CPO program; (b) what will happen to Bucherer’s existing inventory of non-certified Rolex watches (i.e., whether they will be sold alongside the CPO watches as non-CPO watches); and (c) what the price points will be for the CPO watches. Based on my first impressions of the program, the following are my short list of anticipated pros and cons.

    Pros –

    1. More availability of Rolex watches – this lessens the chance of showing up to an AD and seeing nothing but empty shelves;

    2. Some pressure on gray market dealers to keep the prices of non-CPO Rolex watches in check, given the lack of warranty;

    3. Certainty for customers who lack confidence that gray market Rolexes are genuine.

    Cons –

    1. Higher prices – we’ve already seen evidence in the EU that CPO Rolex watches come at a premium of thousands of dollars;

    2. Lifting the prices of gray market dealers – if CPO Rolex are more expensive, that gives license to grays to charge more;

    3. Confronting customers with the reality of seeing used Rolex watches right next to new watches, but at a much higher price.

    Closing thoughts: The Rolex CPO program will definitely help Rolex prop up its prices and capture more revenue that was previously going to gray market dealers and to keep interest very high in the brand. It will also help customers with deep pockets get the watches they’ve been hunting without waiting on an imaginary waiting list for years. The Program, however, won’t help those who genuinely appreciate Rolex watches but don’t want to pay inflated prices for what amounts to a basic stainless steel sports watch. Instead, it will subject them to price gouging for flex and hype watches.

    Silver Lining: There is a silver lining to all of this, and that’s the space it creates for those who previously only had eyes for Rolex to look at other brands. JLC, Glashutte, Cartier, Blancpain, Panerai, Moser, Anordain and many other brands offer truly incredible watches, but attention focused on them is drowned out by infatuation with Rolex. I hope to see former Rolex customers turned off by the high entry price caused by CPO to focus on these other brands. If they do so, they will find a new world of fascinating, elegant and excellent timepieces.