Rolex future potential changes...

[thomaswentworth]

Hypothesis 1: If the market for mechanical watches became thin enough, Rolex could possibly choose to only produce watches in precious metals. If Rolex were to find itself in a situation in which sales had significantly dwindled on a majority of stainless steel watches due to disinterest by millennials, Rolex could choose to focus on a core group of very wealthy individuals and only provide very expensive precious metal models. $38,000 for a gold Sub? Nope. More like $100,000 or more. Extreme exclusivity could be cultivated if necessary. Not sure how well that would work out, but it is an option if market conditions get incredibly harsh in the next couple of decades.

Hypothesis 2: Due to current worldwide market conditions for mechanical watches and millennials, Rolex may have already implemented a strategy to make very limited runs of various models with mild changes. These models will only last a few years at most before being changed again. This could have the effect of bringing true lovers of Rolex watches back into the ADs more frequently with their checkbooks open.

I think in the next 10-20 years, we will all observe major changes in the mechanical watch industry. The technological advances and gimmicky watches are all but played out. The super complicated watches have gone just about as far as they can possibly go. The technological advancement age is pretty much finished. Sure there will be some more interesting gimmicky watches with short life spans, but Rolex will stand the test of time.

Rolex is not a fad. It is a staple. It is embedded into our hearts and souls. I will be interested in seeing how they adjust over the coming years/decades. It will be fun to watch and discuss.