Have you ever spotted a Rolex for sale that just doesn’t quite look like a Rolex? Maybe the dial is a unique color or the bezel has big diamonds or is a color combo you’ve never seen on a Rolex before…

Is this a fake Rolex? Or is it an after-market watch?

We break down the crucial difference between these two watch categories and what to look for to ensure you’re getting exactly what you expect.

What are After-Market Watches?
After-market (or custom) watches are, at their core genuine designer watches, but decorated with non-brand approved details. Using a real luxury watch as its base, after-market watches are outfitted with diamond bezels and colorful or printed dials or encrusted (also known as “iced out” or “blinged out”) with pavé diamonds. (Check out our post here to see more examples of after-market alterations.)

Although after-market watches are not illegal, these modifications are not sanctioned by the original brand and therefore nullify the warranty. Moreover, it is important to note that, while the cost of the diamonds used to modify the watch will bring up the overall cost of the after-market watch, after-market watches typically have a lower resale value because brands have not authorized the cosmetic changes.

What are Replica Watches?
While an after-market watch is still fundamentally a genuine designer watch, replica watches are counterfeit or fake watches.

Replica watches are very much illegal—even though some sites will publicize that they carry replica watches and convincing knock-offs of the biggest brand names, particularly Rolex, Breitling, and Audemars Piguet. Even worse, unscrupulous retailers will knowingly sell you a fake designer watch claiming it’s a great deal on an authentic timepiece.

Counterfeit or fake watches can be a tempting way to “get the look,” but there are very serious repercussions to shopping replica watches, from actually having the watch confiscated by the authorities to having your credit card information stolen. Learn more about why you should never buy a phony designer watch here.

How Can I Ensure I’m Not Getting Scammed?
Although after-market watches are legal and there is a large market for them, if you’re not aware that what you’re buying is, in fact, an after-market watch, you can feel duped. Therefore, always read the listing details carefully. All credible retailers will be quick to point out when a dial or bezel is not from the brand and will note that in the product details, connoting that the item you’re browsing is an after-market watch.

As for replica watches, particularly those sold claiming to be authentic, the two immediate red flags are too-good-to-be-true prices and retailers without a return policy. If you’re quoted a price that is significantly lower than its competitors’, it may be because the item is fake and made with cheap materials. In addition, counterfeiters don’t often take the time to make sure their replica is a perfect reproduction of the original. We have some brand- and product-specific guides here that you can use to spot fake designer watches.

If you have further questions about after-market watches, please call our concierge associates at 1-800-690-3736 for help!

The Rolex brand is arguably one of the most well-recognized watch brands in the world, and their models are just as iconic. The Rolex Daytona, Submariner, GMT-Master, and Day-Date are just some of the brand’s most distinguished models. However, a big part of their fame is their distinct and familiar design. As such, to put a personal touch on their Rolexes, or even just to update a vintage model, collectors will sometimes modify the watches’ designs. Once those modifications are made, the watch then becomes known as an after-market Rolex.

Defining After-Market

The line between after-market and genuine Rolexes is incredibly well defined in the watch collecting community: any alterations to a Rolex that have not been made by an authorized Rolex dealer will make that specific piece an after-market Rolex.

For example, if your watch’s dial gets damaged because you went swimming with the crown left open and it sustained water, it would still be considered a genuine Rolex if you brought the dial to an authorized dealer to be replaced. However, if you brought the watch to any old watch repair shop, the new dial would not be Rolex certified, and the watch as a whole would be considered after-market.

Aesthetic customizations, like the ones we outlined in this post, are almost always after-market because authorized Rolex dealers will not make alterations to watches that are not part of their original design. For that reason, collectors will take their timepieces to outside sources to have them customized with parts that are not Rolex-certified, rendering their watches after-market.

Is After-Market For You?

If you’re considering customizing your Rolex or purchasing a pre-owned model with after-market parts, you should know that there are caveats to consider. While watch customization can have its advantages, it also most certainly has its disadvantages.

The biggest advantage to customizing your own Rolex is that you get to make the watch suit your style perfectly. If you’re the type to prefer black watches or to show off a completely iced-out, diamond-studded timepiece, then these customizations make it so the watch expresses your taste perfectly and makes an extra-personal addition to your collection.

In addition to that, you could end up saving money by choosing to customize a watch rather than buy a more expensive version of it. For example, Rolex makes watches with diamond dials that are still considered genuine Rolexes because the dials are Rolex-certified and come from the brand’s factories. However, genuine Rolexes with diamond-studded dials cost significantly more than Rolexes with regular dials. Those who like the diamond-studded look can choose to customize a regular Rolex with a non-Rolex diamond dial and achieve a very similar look for less.

There are several problems with Rolex customization, however. If you customize a Rolex you bought from a dealer yourself, you end up voiding the watch’s warranty if you alter it soon enough after purchasing it. If you insist upon owning a custom watch, however, and are concerned about the warranty, you are far better off buying a pre-owned model that has already been customized. You may not get exactly the customization you want, but pre-owned watch and jewelry marketplaces often offer short warranties on products that are outside of their original manufacturer warranties, so you would at least have some protection for your custom timepiece.

If you intend to resell the watch, whether you bought it new and customized it yourself or bought it pre-owned, the value of the watch will generally decline because of the watch’s customizations. Considering the sunk cost of those customizations, this decline just puts you out of even more money than it would have if you were reselling a genuine Rolex.

When buying a watch pre-owned, be extremely wary of the vendor you’re purchasing from. The shadier vendors can sometimes charge much more for the watch than it’s really worth by marketing an after-market watch as a genuine Rolex, or even by switching cheaper, non-Rolex parts in for genuine Rolex parts and presenting the altered piece as authentic. To avoid scams like this, only shop at marketplaces that authenticate their watches and specifically mark every after-market part used in their timepieces.

TrueFacet’s team of experts authenticates every watch and piece of jewelry made available on our marketplace. If you would like to know more about our selection of after-market Rolexes, feel free to contact our concierge service for help here.