Rolex. The brand’s name has grown to become synonymous with quality, prestige, and luxury over the years. While we’re certainly all familiar with the dark green color and the iconic crown that sits atop its logo, how much do you actually know about the famous watch company? If you’re curious about the history of the Rolex brand, we’ll walk you through the company from its founding to its present-day prosperity.

Check out the history of legendary Rolex watches, from TrueFacet!

Founders Alfred Davis & Hans Wilsdorf

Rolex was initially founded in 1905 in London by Alfred David and his brother-in-law Hans Wilsdorf. Wilsdorf was just 24 at the time, but he was driven to design a wearable wristwatch that was more precise and elegant than the existing models of the time. Wilsdorf chose the name Rolex because it was easy to pronounce, easy to remember, and which would look elegant on the watch face detailing. After trying out countless iterations and combinations, Wilsdorf claimed that “a genie whispered Rolex in my ear” while he was riding in a horse-drawn carriage along Cheapside in London.

Rolex Innovation and Developments

Rolex always kept the mission in mind to create a higher quality watch with more chronometric precision. Realizing their efforts in 1910, the Official Watch Rating Centre in Bienne awarded Rolex the first-ever Swiss Certificate of Chronometric Precision to a wristwatch, the first of many record-breaking firsts that the company garnered. By 1920, the company had moved its headquarters to the international watchmaking hub of Geneva, where it developed the first waterproof and dustproof watch thanks to a hermetically sealed case.

In the early 30’s, the company patented the first self-winding mechanism and rotor, which still drives modern automated watches to this day. Rolex continued its string of innovations with the development of the first Datejust in 1945, giving wearers a date indication in a window on their watch face.

The company began developing watch models that were suited to professional use as well as more rugged excursions, equipping climbers who summited the heights of Mount Everest and gracing the wrists of deep sea divers and submariners.

Moving on to the mid-eighties, Rolex pioneered the use of 904L steel in the use of all of its watch cases. While the steel had been primarily in use for aerospace, chemical, and high-tech industries, Rolex adopted its highly anti-corrosive qualities to deliver an exceptional polish and shine to its watches that would last over the years.

Rolex Today

Today, Rolex is the world’s largest luxury watch brand, making around 2,000 watches per day. The company is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and is owned by the Wilsdorf Foundation. In 2014, Forbes ranked Rolex as one of the world’s most powerful global brands, at number 72.

Photo Credit: rolex.com