Details of how Rolex’s certified pre-owned (CPO) program will be rolled out in the United States are still under wraps, but one nugget of information has emerged from an on-the-record interview with an authorized dealer, who tells WATCHPRO that all watches will first be serviced by the retailer, and only then sent to Rolex for certification and the issuance of their new two year warranty.
This is not a surprise. ADs have been investing heavily in workshop space and equipment in preparation for the roll out.
And there has been a frenzy of recruiting and training of Rolex-certified watchmakers.
This makes sense. The volume of watches likely to be feeding into the Rolex CPO pipeline is expected to be enormous.
Authorized dealers are licking their lips at the thought of customers using older watches like cash that can be used to buy new watches.
And there are literally tens of millions of Rolex watches out in the world that could be changing hands through authorized channels in the future.
Until now, all those watches have been handled by secondary market specialists.
But as the CPO Rolex market matures, it is expected to behave much like the new and used car market, where people view their vehicles as a store of value that can be put towards the next shiny model they want to drive off the lot.
A major difference is that a Rolex watch holds its value a great deal better than a used car because they can be brought back to near mint condition with the right refurbishment.
So, while the cost of servicing each watch before it is sent to Rolex for certification will be borne by the authorized dealer, the CPO program presents them with two winning opportunities: first to sell a new watch to somebody using a pre-owned piece as a deposit, and secondly to sell the watches that have been certified and guaranteed by Rolex.
Small wonder they are all giddy with excitement, even though they are still waiting to see how the plan evolves, and are desperate to hear more while at Watches and Wonders next month.