Why Anthony Alan?

When you sell your watch to professional watch buyers that specialise in buying fine Swiss watches, you don’t need to deal with the headaches of finding a buyer online.

You’ve probably heard of the many scam artists on the web waiting to rip you off. Well, it’s true, they’ll set up a meeting and potentially rob you of your possessions.

Why take the chance?

Wouldn’t you prefer a clean transaction in safe, professional surroundings?

At Anthony Alan the entire process from start to finish is seamless.

We take pride in our reputation as Cape Town’s premier watch buyers, and always go the extra mile to offer you the service you deserve.

Contact Us Today for your free quote and see why selling your watch to Anthony Alan is the best decision you can make.

How do I sell a watch?

The best way to sell your luxury Swiss watch is to take it to a reputable watch buyer that trades in previously owned timepieces. 

If you use a long-established buyer like Anthony Alan, you’re able to get the best price for your watch as we have a large base of buyers interested in luxury watches, allowing us to sell watches faster and offer better prices. 

Where can I sell my watch in Cape Town?

You can sell your watch in Cape Town to the premier buyer of fine watches, namely Anthony Alan, who boasts a five-star reputation, secure offices, and instant best-in-market payments for your high-end watch. 

Which watches are most collectible?

Rare luxury Swiss-made watches are the most collectible and the brand that consistently holds its value better than all the others is Rolex. To learn more visit our page on selling Rolex watches. 

How do I find the value of my watch?

The value of your watch relies on multiple factors: 

• Brand and Model of the watch
• Scarcity of the watch
• Precious metal content
• Condition of the watch
• Supporting paperwork
• Original Box and receipts

You can start by searching Google for previously owned versions of your watch that are currently for sale on the market, and then factor in the above criteria to get an idea. 

The best way of course is to simply contact us and let an expert watch buyer give you a free quote. 

Should you buy a luxury watch?

It depends on which luxury watch you are considering buying and the reasons behind it. 

If you want an asset that can hold its value and even appreciate over time, it is best you do your homework on brands and model value before making an emotional decision. 

You can visit a site like WatchPriceTrend to get a third-party idea of current market prices for the watch you have in mind. 

Behind The Scenes: Where Rolex Watches Are Made

Rolex watches are the number one preferred luxury wristwatch brand in the world. However, it is not a watch for every Tom, Dick, and Harry. Owning a Rolex is a symbol of success.

No doubt, the brand has come a long way and has remained strong throughout all these years. Now, for a brand to be that strong, they must be doing something right. In other words, it can only mean that the brand delivers on what it says it will.

Today, the brand name of Rolex has become a legend of sorts.

Have you ever wondered how a single Rolex is made?

To satisfy your curiosity, we’re here to run you through the process from start to finish. We’re here to discuss where and how Rolex watches are made and take you through a simple tour of the four manufacturing facilities of Rolex in Switzerland.

Now, before we go-ahead to talk about these, let us correct any wrong opinion you might have.

First, understand that a real Rolex timepiece is not made in China.

If you find any Rolex box that states it’s made in China, you should know that it is not an original.

All Rolex wristwatches are made in Switzerland.

With this factoid cleared, let us go-ahead to explore the facilities where the most expensive Rolex watches are being produced.

Bienne – The Home of Rolex Movements

One feature that makes any Rolex watch sought after is its impressive caliber.

One of the company’s suppliers, the Aegler company of Bienne, provided Rolex its precise movements when it first started.

This continued until Rolex bought the company in 2004.

In 2004, the Borel family sold off the company to Rolex Geneva for more than 1 billion CHF.

The facility is spread over 92,000 square meters, and it contains some of the most priced pieces of Rolex.

Before we go ahead with the tour, we need to highlight some important points again. First, Rolex produces each of its calibers in-house.

Additionally, each of the movements is assembled by hand.

This does not imply that the company designs all parts of the wristwatch by hand.

Most noteworthy is that Rolex uses state-of-the-art machinery to couple its components. But, as mentioned, they fix the movements together by hand.

Also, we need to mention here that Rolex doesn’t allow visitors into the Bienne facility. This is for obvious reasons.

The company has built an exceptional manufacturing system and machines to manufacture exclusive components for Rolex.

Of course, they wouldn’t want anyone to view their trade secret.

The brand has the best of steel, copper, and brass and they craft all these with proprietary equipment that you can’t find anywhere else.

Thus, it is little wonder that Rolex is as expensive as it is.

Furthermore, the facility also produces the exclusive components of Rolex that you can’t find on any other watch.

These components include the Paraflex shock absorber and the Parachrom balance spring.

Let’s talk about calibres.

When talking about calibres, the high-end Rolex productions are Yacht Master, Daytona, and Sky Dweller.

It may shock you to know that there are more than 120 people working on only these three Rolex watches.

Plan-Les-Ouates – The Central Laboratory of the Watchmaker

This is the central laboratory of Rolex. In fact, it is the destination where the inborn creativity of Rolex takes full shape.

The laboratory comes with robotic inventory machines, iris scanners, and a private gold foundry. It is important to mention that Rolex built its Plan-Les-Ouates facility in 2006.

What’s even more impressive is the fact that this is the biggest of all the facilities of Rolex. It features six wings that are about 30 meters high, 30 meters wide, and 65 meters long.

Also, there is a central axis that links all the different wings together.

When you see a Rolex Air King, always think of the exceptional work they have done on it at the Plans-les-Ouates.

This facility is eleven stories high but you can only see five of them if you are looking at it from the outside. The remaining six of the stories are underground and hidden from prying eyes.

No doubt, this location is the center of the competitive edge of Rolex.

Rolex Private Foundry

Another fascinating part of this facility is the private foundry.

This is the facility where the company develops its personal formula for three types of gold.

It is also the location where it manufactures its own 904L stainless steel. Furthermore, you should know that Rolex crafts each of the alloys that it uses for its watches from the scratch in-house.

The reason for this is because the configuration of the metal is the most important factor. It determines the mechanical, dimensional and aesthetic properties of the watch.

In addition, the company has invested in a central laboratory where world-class experts are employed.

These seasoned experts work on the materials and the tribology of the design.

This includes the science of lubrication, wear, and friction.

Also, Rolex has a machine that opens and closes the Oyster bracelet clasp in this laboratory.

This machine repeats this action for about 1,000 times within minutes.

In addition to the impressive machine in the laboratory, Rolex has also invested in the people who work at this facility.

These are top-rated scientists who are not from the watch business.

There is also the ceramic department of Rolex which is an industry-leading unit.

Les Acacias – The International Headquarters of Rolex

This is the facility that many people know as the center of Rolex manufacturing.

This is because it serves as the international headquarters of the company. Also, it is the office of the entire senior executives and the heritage department of Rolex.

In fact, if there is any facility that the company guards with all discretion and privacy, the Les Acacias is the place.

The Les Acacias facility is the final stage of the production line of Rolex watches for men and women. As a matter of fact, it is the hub of all Rolex activities.

The facility is home to all the design, development, research, marketing, and communications of the company. Furthermore, the headquarters consists of two different ten-floor production sections.

Now, this is the only facility that has a façade in Rolex’s trademark colour — green.

In relation to manufacturing, the Les Acacias is the final assembly plant for all Rolex watches.

Also, it features many stages of the final quality control for the brand.

This is where they fix the hands and dials into the Rolex watches.

Additionally, movements, serial numbers, and every tiny detail of the watch development are being carried out here.

More importantly, each of the groups in this final assembly facility is independent. They work in about two to three months shifts. This final assembly completes the production of a Rolex timepiece.

At this stage, a Rolex watch has taken shape.

Although it is the final assembly, they don’t take watches from here straight to the shelves.

From this stage, they send the watches to the final control stage.

This is where they take the pieces through a rigorous test.

The level of tests they take these Rolex watches through will amaze you. Whether it is a gold Rolex or a diamond Rolex, they all go through the same rigorous test.

Interestingly, even the Rolex Oyster Perpetual, which is the entry level of Rolex watches goes through the same rigorous testing as expensive watches.

This means there isn’t one Rolex watch that doesn’t go through the meticulous test at the control stage.

Suffice to mention that it is not only the movement and cases that go through the final control stage. The complete watch goes through this process.

Now, you may ask, what do they test in the watch?

Well, the core focus of the tests centers on the three goals of the watchmaker.

The test checks:

• the self-winding
• waterproofness
• precision of the watch.

For the Oyster test, they submerge each watch into real-life water scenarios.

Also, they use a simulated environment like pressurised tanks that guarantees the level of depth for each model. Moreover, they include an extra 10% margin in depth.

For the dive wristwatches, they test them with an extra 25% margin with a specialised machine. It is crucial to mention that COMEX designed the specialised machine.

It is also important to mention that less than 0.1% of the watches they test reveal any issue. This explains the depth of work that has gone into the production of a single Rolex wristwatch.

Chêne-Bourg – The Home of Rolex Dial and Gem Setting

Rolex Chêne-Bourg is the destination for the production of dial and gem setting.

This facility is located in the northeast of Plan-Les-Ouates.

It is amazing to know that Rolex produces every component of its watch in-house.

This is one of the major reasons why the brand has remained formidable for years.

The company produces its dial at Chêne-Bourg. Additionally, they print and set it with indexes as well as other components.

The facility is a ten-story building, with five hidden underground.

Note that they produce the dial in the underground part of the facility. But they do the gem setting and numeral application in bright-lit white rooms with sunlight aboveground.

There are about a hundred people that work on the dial setting at every specific time. In total, the facility houses about 800 people working on dials and gem setting on Rolex watches.

Let us mention here that the company produces its dial markers with solid gold and the dials with brass. Additionally, there are more than 60 operations that work on a dial until it gets to its completion stage.

Now, the high quality of the setting and gemstone that Rolex uses is exceptional.

The attention to details on all the dials is unbelievable. Let us point out that Rolex only uses flawless gemstones.

This is a major reason why the company doesn’t produce many watches with stones and diamonds. You will find only a few diamond Rolex watches in the world.

Another intriguing thing about the Chêne-Bourg facility is the presence of a specialized machine.

This machine filters stones that the company receives. The job of the machine is to discover any fake stones and diamonds in the supply.

This is to guide against any inferior material for the production of its watches. Of course, you may wonder how often they discover fake stones from the lots they receive on a regular basis.

According to Rolex, they see about only one out of ten million stones.

Yet, they keep checking the stones day in and day out.

No doubt, this is what makes Rolex what it is today.

Rolex Finishing

Yes, you heard right. Rolex definitely has a finishing unit in its facility.

This might sound outrageous but the company finishes each of its watches to perfection. Here, the company holds each of its cases against a polish wheel for perfect finishing.

Essentially, humans do this job.

At each point, there are about fifty to sixty people who polish the cases. It is quite interesting that Rolex assembles its Jubilee and Oyster bracelets by hand, using some well-designed guide templates. These are also designed in-house.

Conclusion

A Rolex is, no doubt, a masterpiece.

A lot has gone into the production and craft of the watches and only the best brand could have done that.

If you have ever thought that a Rolex watch is expensive, the production and facilities details highlighted above should convince you of its worth.

It’s little wonder that Rolex is the leading wristwatch brand in the world.

The attention to detail on each of the watches is unbelievable.

There have been different stories about where Rolex watches are made.

The truth is that there is no other place where they produce original Rolex watches outside Switzerland.

Any Rolex that has another country of origin is no doubt a fake.

Therefore, you should check the origin of the Rolex you want to buy before you pay for it.

Make your investment a worthy one!

The Production of a Watch

When you look at your precious timepiece – or perhaps its price tag – it’s easy to recognize that it must have taken quite a bit of effort to produce. In this article, we will explain what in-house manufacturing actually means and how watch brands work together with suppliers when they are not capable of producing everything themselves.When all the parts are produced, finished, and assembled, it doesn’t actually stop there for the manufacturer. A lot of brands have strict test and quality control processes in place to ensure that every watch is perfect when it arrives at the retailer and is guaranteed to last a long time.

Concept and Design

Before a company can start producing a watch, they need to come up with an idea; a concept that can be turned into an actual design. Today, most watch manufacturers use advanced CAD systems to design watches and all of their components. A couple of brands use 3D printing techniques to look at prototypes based on these computer designs. Others use real stainless steel for prototypes, sometimes with dummy movements or just basic calibers that fit. Do not underestimate the role of research and development at this stage either. In some companies it is all under one roof to make sure that a watch or movement design is feasible. Everything must perfectly correspond together, especially since the room for error in watch manufacturing is tiny. Once a company is certain about how a watch should look and which specifications it should have, the production can begin. The production process consists of several parallel processes. The case making department or third party, for example, does not have to wait until the movement is finished or the dial receives its final color or finish.

Production

Cases and Bracelets

Many watch brands work together with suppliers to have their cases created. Only a few watch brands do this in-house (Rolex and IWC Schaffhausen for example). Suppliers for cases are often very discrete, as brands are protective of their name and image. The same goes for bracelets. Bracelets are seldom produced in-house. Specialized companies make sure that the case and bracelet parts meet the exact specified requirements set forth by the watch manufacturer. 

Movements

Without getting into the debate of in-house versus third party movement suppliers, the movement makes quite a difference in the production process. True manufacturers start their journey with raw pieces of brass, stainless steel, and other alloys used for the movement. CNC machines do the initial cutting, drilling, and milling of all the parts. Once this is finished, the parts pass through a chain of small steps, to either (hand-) finish certain parts or to add gears and trains until there is a working movement. Many manufacturers that produce their movements in-house still need to source small parts and components from third parties (balance springs, for example, or rubies). Step-by-step, the movement gets finished and assembled by watchmakers. The manufacturers that are considered ‘haute horlogerie’ are the ones that spend a lot of time and effort (hand-) finishing their movements, including hand-engraving balance wheel bridges, perlage, polishing, and beveling edges of bridges. These techniques are painstakingly time consuming. When the movement is finished and ready to be cased, it is often checked for accuracy. If a movement needs to be chronometer certified, it is shipped to the COSC organization who subjects it to a series of tests. The certified movements come back at a later stage. 

Dial and Hands

The dial and hands, or face of the watch, are very important. This is what you will look at many times each day. These features need to be beautiful and flawless. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but perfectionism leaves little room for interpretation. Similar to (hand-) finishing movements, finishing is important for the dial and hands of a watch. Blued hands and lacquered dials, for example, require a specific skill set and a lot of time. Dials are often ordered from suppliers, but a couple of companies produce and finish their own dial components.

Assembly

Before the movement is cased and the dials and hands are added to it, a lot of visual checks take place. When one of the quality control staff notices a tiny scratch or deviation in tolerances, measures are taken. Sometimes, pieces have to go all the way back to the production process to be fixed. Hands are sometimes automatically applied to the dial, but in many cases this is still done by hand. Afterwards, more visual checks take place to see whether the hands are perfectly aligned. The crown is of course also added and tested to see if all the hands move correctly and whether the winding system works.

Once the movement is cased, the dial is added, and everything is fully functional, the watch often goes into an array of more severe testing procedures; think water resistance tests, shock tests, etc. In some cases, the accuracy of the watch is tested one more time, seeing as the movement is now in a case. Some brands offer a 4-year warranty or more, so you can be sure that their testing procedures are very strict.

When this is complete and a watch has passed all tests, it goes into the final stage of the assembly and production process. Some watches (case backs) are (laser) engraved in this stage, while other manufacturers do this a bit earlier during case production. If so, the strap or bracelet is added and the watch is ready for shipment. In addition to the watch, there is documentation and the box(es), of course. The watch is often shipped separately from the box.

Your Watch

So, there’s your watch on your wrist. It most likely underwent several of the aforementioned steps, depending on the type of movement, material, and level of (hand) finishing it has.