For those fans, only the true one-off will do, leading them to beat a path to the customizer’s door. Here, there are several highly specialized companies who will take any standard Rolex, or any model from any brand in fact, and modify it to within an inch of its life until a one hundred percent unique watch emerges at the other end.
There is no rule book for these particular pieces, the only limitations being set by the customer’s imagination and the depth of their pockets.
With client lists usually consisting of rappers, hip hop moguls and boxing world champions, among other shy and retiring types, you can bet the only thing these personalized Rolexes will not be is subtle.
Below, we’ve picked out a few very special examples made for some larger than life characters.
Floyd Mayweather’s GMT-Master Twins
Money Mayweather’s most recent timepiece purchase is the so-called Billionaire’s Watch from Jacob & Co., complete with its 260 carats of emerald cut diamonds. Price tag? $18m—for which, as we all know, he could have bought himself a nice Paul Newman Daytona (actually, thePaul Newman Daytona) and still had a couple hundred grand left over to play with.
By comparison, his collection of gem-drenched Rolexes looks like a positive bargain.
The highest earning boxer of all time can certainly afford to treat himself, and among the dozens of the crown’s finest in his possession are two GMT-Master II models which were already plenty extravagant before Mayweather got his deadly hands on them.
Both are from the ref. 1167XX range which was launched in 2007, in this instance the ref. 116759 SARU and SANR.
For most people, that would probably be enough in the ‘look-at-me’ stakes, but when you are the undefeated world title holder across five weight divisions, it obviously calls for even more showmanship. Any bare metal that dared show its face to Mayweather has received a blanketing of customized jewels until the models are more just ornamental bracelets with a clock somewhere underneath.
Mayweather’s watches, and all modified pieces for that matter, actually raise an interesting question about quality over quantity. Rolex employ legions of the world’s best gemologists to work on their relatively small number of enhanced pieces, with each one selecting only the very best stones to add, by hand, into meticulously crafted settings.
Getting a third-party to throw even more gems at it once it has left the factory comes with no real guarantee they will share the same levels of care and attention. A local jeweler could well be using the kind of diamonds only really fit for glass cutting to adorn your watch and, of course, any modification of any kind instantly voids the warranty on a Rolex, and makes it ineligible for maintenance at an official brand servicing center.
Obviously, that last point is probably not keeping Mayweather up at night, but the fact remains that merely adding more and more shiny things to a model doesn’t mean it automatically increases in value. In fact, with Rolex in particular, it is the exact opposite and you could well find yourself taking a financial hit if you decide to sell it on in the future.
Meek Mill and His Rolex Collection
Like Mayweather, Meek Mill is another celebrity not crippled with self-doubt nor hampered by anything as mundane as good taste. An avowed Rolex fan, the rapper and MC refers to the brand more than 50 times throughout his career projects.
His vast collection takes in at least one, and more usually multiple, examples of most of the brand’s biggest hitters; some standard-issue pieces, others so heavily customized as to be virtually unrecognizable.
Followers of his Instagram are treated to photos and videos of some truly astonishing watches, including a bevy of Day-Dates swamped in gems on every surface and with extra wide bezels to accommodate the enormous round cut diamonds. You’ll also see a trio of Datejusts in each flavor of gold given the same treatment, alongside at least one Yacht-Master, a model that already represents something of a flamboyant departure from Rolex’s normally conservative design language, positively buckling under the weight of all the ice.
Being President of the USA has always looked like a pretty lousy job to me. Sure you get to live in big house and all, but does that really compensate for all the stress? Every tiny detail of your life, and every decision you make, is endlessly scrutinized, and you live under constant attack from all sides; from political rivals to late night talk show hosts, it seems like the whole world is queuing up to take pot-shots at you. And then, of course, there are the crazies who take literal pot-shots.
No, leader of the free world is not the gig for me, you’ll be dismayed to hear.
Maybe back in the day it was a more tempting proposition. Before 1966, sitting Presidents were free to accept whatever gifts came their way. The world’s finest luxury brands would be desperate to get their products to the White House to receive the official seal of approval—there were few better ways to elevate their status in front of the general public. But the Foreign Gifts and Declarations Act put a stop to that, and now anything worth more than $375 is either given away or else stored in the National Archives. The President is given the opportunity to look at what he would have received before it gets spirited away (gee, thanks!)
That measly spending limit obviously rules out receiving high end watches, but that hasn’t stopped several incumbents from wearing some fascinating timepieces. And as you would expect, Rolex features heavily on the wrists of a number of commanders-in-chief.
That measly spending limit obviously rules out receiving high end watches, but that hasn’t stopped several incumbents from wearing some fascinating timepieces. And as you would expect, Rolex features heavily on the wrists of a number of commanders-in-chief.
Below, we take a look at the history of U.S. Presidents and the world’s leading watchmaker.
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Rolex wrote the book on marketing. From their earliest days, they recognized the value of aligning their watches with the most important and influential figures of the time.
It started with Mercedes Gleitze and her English Channel swim and is still going strong today, with the numerous brand Ambassadors.
In 1950, the 150,000th model rolled off the Rolex production line, and to commemorate the achievement it was sent to Eisenhower, at that time the NATO Commander in Chief of Europe.
It was a similar situation with their 100,000th piece, which they had gifted to Winston Churchill a few years previously.
Both men received a Datejust; Churchill’s in rose gold and Eisenhower’s in 18k yellow. On the case back of the general’s watch were engraved five stars to denote his military rank, along with his initials and the date—DDE 12-19-1950.
When he took up residence in the White House in 1953, he became the first U.S. President to own a Rolex, and it led to a certain amount of confusion. Appearing on the cover of LIFEmagazine, the watch received a great deal of attention. ‘The President’s Rolex’ became a term bandied around, and ‘The ‘President later became the nickname for the Day-Date model. Over the years, the lines have blurred and Eisenhower has become closely associated with the Day-Date, even though he never wore one.
John F. Kennedy
Taking the prize as the President who owned his Rolex for the briefest amount of time, JFK’s Day-Date was given to him in 1962 when he had barely had time to settle in to the job.
Unlike post-1966, there was no problem with him accepting the watch as a gift; the drawback was all down to just who gave it to him.
Kennedy received the yellow gold piece on May 29th, his 45thbirthday, and on the back an inscription read ‘JACK, with love as always, from MARILYN’.
The Marilyn in question is, of course, Marilyn Monroe, the legendary movie star and Kennedy’s alleged mistress.
As the story goes, Monroe sent the watch to the President’s assistant to give to him. Terrified of the scandal, Kennedy apparently took one look at it and told his aide, Kenneth O’Donnell, to ‘Get rid of it!’
Get rid of it he did, but the watch resurfaced again in 2005 when it sold at auction for $120,000.
Lyndon B. Johnson
Following JFK’s untimely demise, next to take up residence was Johnson and he became the first to wear, if not the first to own (however fleetingly), the Rolex Day-Date.
Photographed with it often, it was LBJ who earned the watch its ‘President’ label, and he wore it on its specially created three-link band which, just to further muddy the waters, is officially called the President bracelet!
However, as a son of the Lone Star State, Johnson also became indirectly responsible for another nickname for the yellow gold version of the model—the Texas Timex.
The 36thPresident was actually something of a watch enthusiast, and was known to give away Rolexes to various dignitaries. In his later years he was plagued by a nearly endless succession of health problems, and one of the last people to receive such a present before he died in 1973 was his cardiologist, J. Willis Hurst, who had been Johnson’s physician since he suffered a heart attack in 1955.
Reagan and the Start of the Modern Era
With the introduction of the strict new rules on the value of gifts, there have been fewer and fewer Rolex watches gracing the corridors of power.
The last one found on a serving President belonged to Reagan, who wore a steel Datejust he bought himself.
With his successors keen to portray an image of ‘all in this together’, the watches of modern day Presidents have been conspicuously unshowy. Clinton wore an actual Timex, rather than a Texan one, and turned down the free Rolex offered to him by the manufacturer.
Obama famously wore a $300 Jorge Gray 6500 presented by his secret service detail, although he has been seen sporting a Cellini model since he left office.
Hillary Clinton, during her unsuccessful campaign, was often seen wearing a Rolesor Lady-Datejust and is known to also own a 36mm Day-Date. What would have happened to those had she made it to the top job I guess we’ll never know.
And as for the Donald? Well 45 certainly doesn’t make it easy to spy what’s on his wrist. His shirts always seem to have extra long sleeves, disguising whatever’s underneath. A couple of paparazzi shots from the golf course reveal what appears to be a yellow gold Datejust or Day-Date but no one seems to be able to pinpoint that with any more detail.
But as we know, Trump certainly has a taste for the finer things in life, and golden things at that. So the President wearing a President would be very much in character.
ROLEX AND THE ROYALS
The British Royal family (gawd bless ‘em!) are no strangers to the finer things in life. From collections of some of the most important works of art, to antiques and jewelry worth millions, to palatial homes (as in, homes that are actually palaces) they have a lifestyle few can imagine.
Of course, that comes as no real surprise, seeing as their accumulated wealth is estimated at around £25 billion. Yet, beyond all the pomp and circumstance, there has always been an underlying reserve to the monarchy. Tradition weighs heavy on the royal head, even today, and it curtails anything in the way of showiness or ostentation. Adornments are chosen for their refinement rather than any display of affluence, and it is the same story with the selection of timepieces they have worn over the years.
The list of royal watches reads like a who’s who of horology’s greatest names—from Cartier to Patek Philippe, and from Omega to, naturally, Rolex.
Fittingly represented by a crown, Rolex watches have long been a favorite amongst Britain’s first family, serving well both on domestic duties as well as on the frontline.
Below, we take a look at two members of the Royal household and the Rolex watches they call their own.
Princess Beatrice and the Rolex Air-King
Princess Beatrice Elizabeth Mary of York, to give her her full title, is the first child of Prince Andrew and his former wife Sarah, Duchess of York (forever known in England as Fergie—but not the Black Eyed Peas one. Or the former Manchester United manager for that matter).
As The Queen’s fifth grandchild, she is ninth in the line of succession, and only the second female, behind Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, the daughter of Prince William.
One of the more minor Royals, Beatrice escapes much of the spotlight focused on others in the family, but still has a well-known public image through her patronage of a number of charities and organizations.
During her outings, she is often seen wearing a classic Rolex Air-King ref. 114200.
A name that dates back to WWII, the Air-King has enjoyed one of the longest unbroken runs of any in the brand’s catalog. Originally part of a series of ‘Air’ watches Rolex founder Hans Wilsdorf created to honor the heroism of Britain’s wartime RAF, it stayed in constant production until a short-lived retirement in 2014. After a brief R&R, it was reissued in 2016 in a much altered guise and continues to be one of the more popular second stringers in the portfolio.
Beatrice’s series started life in 2007, part of the ref. 1142XX range, the last of the Air-Kings to be issued in the time-honored 34mm. It was also the first in the watch’s history to be fitted with a chronometer certified movement, the Cal. 3130. The dateless version of one of Rolex’s most well-respected calibers, the Cal. 3135, it saw service inside the Oyster Perpetual and Submariner models of the same era as well.
Only ever made in 904L steel, the ref. 114200 Air-King came with a choice in dial color, and Beatrice’s is among the most distinctive. Silver, with a striking concentric circular design and fiery orange Arabic numerals, it has an atypical flamboyance, for both Rolex itself and the Air-King in particular.
As the fashion for larger watches continues, especially with a female audience, more and more women look to vintage Rolex for the ideal size—and the princess’s choice is an inspired one.
Prince Harry and the Rolex Explorer II
The second child of Charles, Prince of Wales, and the late Princess Diana, Prince Harry is among the most popular members of the Royal family. His marriage to American actress Megan Markle in 2018 was watched by an estimated 1.9 billion people worldwide, and it was the biggest TV event in the U.K. that year.
After attending the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and enlisting as second lieutenant in the Blues and Royals, part of the Household Cavalry, Harry went on to serve two tours of duty in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, the second time as an Apache helicopter pilot with the Army Air Corps.
While he left the military in 2015, he retains a very energetic lifestyle. He is a keen polo player and patron of the Rugby Football Union (RFU) as well as an advocate for numerous charities, including UNICEF and Help For Heroes, which supports returning veterans from recent conflicts.
For perhaps the most active of the Royals, Harry would seem to have gotten his choice of watch spot on. The Rolex Explorer II ref. 216570 with a Polar (white) dial is just about as tough and no-nonsense as the brand gets.
The high performance model is from the series released in 2011 to mark the 40thanniversary of the watch. Growing in size to 42mm from the 40mm it had been since it debuted in 1971, it is still very noticeably of the same breed as its predecessors. Forged from the strongest steel and with its fixed, engraved bezel, it also saw the welcome return of the ‘Freccione’. From the Italian word for arrow, Freccione refers to the bright orange additional hour hand used to point out the second time zone on the 24-hour scale etched into the surround.
Also new for the series is the caliber, the Cal. 3187. Here, for the first time, the Explorer II was given its own movement rather than having to share one with Rolex’s other dual time zone legend, the GMT-Master.
In reality, there is nothing to choose between the Cal. 3187 and the caliber used in the GMT of the time, the Cal. 3186. Identical in function, the 3187 is simply slightly larger due to the case size.
With a classic aesthetic and built for the world’s adventurers, Prince Harry’s favorite timepiece is a fitting choice for the hardworking Royal.