Cast your mind back to last year and the wilder pieces that polarized opinion, starting with a Day-Date emblazoned with cloisonné enamel jigsaw pieces, inspirational messages and emojis. Or the Oyster Celebration Dial with its cork-popping explosion of festive bubbles. Not forgetting the launch of the Perpetual 1908 collection and the introduction of (a sparse few) exhibition backs. All these novelties showed the fun side of a generally more conservative, dare we say Calvinist brand (albeit one with a crown) that matched the upbeat market mood.
Since then, economic indicators and the deteriorating global political climate have dampened consumer ardour, inviting greater moderation. It's no coincidence that so many brands, including Rolex, are embracing the quiet luxury trend that echoes the minimalist tailoring seen on couture runways. How does this translate for the watch industry? Timepieces remain high-quality objects, with gold (perhaps because of its reputation as a safe haven) still the metal of choice, but brands are foregoing the buzz that comes with the more out-there designs and reconnecting with luxury at its most essential and enduring.
Dial excellence
This spring's crop of new releases is just as surprising as last year's novelties… for different reasons. No more bubbles and emoticons, simply old favourites, perfectly executed of course, that are quintessentially Rolex.
Quality is evident throughout, not least in the dials. Guilloché, ombré, peacock blue lacquer, pearlized white mother-of-pearl or Tahitian black mother-of-pearl: the faces of these new models explore the full spectrum of the dialmaker's expertise. "While we master all these skills in-house, we continue to work with external suppliers, such as for guillochage, as a way to support them," noted a brand spokesperson when presenting these new releases to the press.
The Perpetual 1908 in platinum with a guilloché dial is a tribute to one of the most emblematic examples of horological tradition. Since the discontinuation of the Cellini, guilloché dials had all but disappeared from Rolex's catalogue. No longer. For this classically elegant watch, the brand has chosen an equally classic "rice grain" motif whose geometry sculpts the ice-blue dial – a shade the Geneva firm reserves for its platinum watches.
Material excellence
One of the standouts this spring is the new GMT-Master II sporting a black and grey Cerachrom bezel (first seen last year on the yellow gold and yellow Rolesor versions). Paired with a steel case and bracelet, it retails at CHF 10,200 (compared with CHF 37,300 for gold). The subdued colour scheme lends a certain pensive elegance to Rolex's most travelled watch.
While Oystersteel – the most affordable metal on offer – features prominently among the new releases, Rolex makes ample use of gold – Everose, yellow and white – and occasionally platinum, underscoring the value of its watches in terms of quality but also material. Freshly introduced at end 2022, RLX titanium is absent from this year's lineup. All that glitters is very likely gold. The Rolex Deepsea, for one, tips the scales at 322g of yellow gold, while all the new Day-Date are (unsurprisingly?) in precious metal, whether that's yellow gold, Everose, white gold or platinum.
There is more gold, yellow or rose, for the Sky-Dweller, now with a Jubilee bracelet. The Cosmograph Daytona appears in all three gold colours with diamonds on the bezel and, for some, case. Dials that mix white and black mother-of-pearl are probably the boldest aesthetic of any of the new models from Rolex this year.
Still with the Daytona, gem-setting keeps it simple with not a rainbow in sight. Instead, brilliant and trapeze white diamonds illuminate bezels but nothing resembling a fully paved dial or bracelet. Quiet luxury, we said!
