Rolex is the world?s most widely recognized luxury watch brand. That global recognition is the product of decades of success in a range of fields, from early timekeeping records to a string of important firsts, not to mention film appearances and associations with James Bond, Paul Newman, and other notables. Here are 10 key things you should know about Rolex.
1. Early Days
Above, a young Hans Wilsdorf. Below, an early company sign.
In 1905, Hans Wilsdorf and his business partner and brother-in-law, Alfred Davis, founded Wilsdorf & Davis Ltd. in London. In 1908, Wilsdorf registered the trademark “Rolex” and opened an office in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland. The company officially changed its name to Rolex in 1915. There are various stories about the origin of the Rolex name, none apparently confirmed by Wilsdorf himself. One is that Wilsdorf followed the lead of George Eastman, who invented the ?Kodak? name for his own company. Eastman?s success started a trend of short, invented brand names. Another story is that Rolex is a sort of portmanteau of the French phrase horlogerie exquise. Regardless of the inspiration, the name certainly caught on. 2. Patents and Firsts
The first Rolex Submariner went into production in 1953.
Rolex claims, or has been credited with, a wide range of watchmaking patents and firsts. Here is a sampling:
In 1910, a Rolex was the first wristwatch in the world to receive the Swiss Certificate of Chronometric Precision, granted by the O...