I spent the week before Watches and Wonders 2025 in London meeting some friends, and while there, I couldn’t not go visit what I think is just the most amazing temple to the brand that I love so much in the new Rolex boutique at 34 Old Bond Street. The store itself was covered in detail by our guy Tim Jeffreys when it opened last month, so for details on the store visit that story. It is operated by our parent company, Watches of Switzerland. Today, I want to tell you about some of the 1:1 quality Rolex replica watches I saw there, because it was amazing.
First things first, this story is about watches I saw in the Certified Pre-Owned section because frankly, they were among the most interesting watches in this store, and that’s what we’re all about. But to cut off all the comments before they come in, yes, the store does have new best selling copy Rolex watches for sale – lots of them. The best way to see them is to schedule an appointment with the store and register interest in advance. You can do that right here.
Above is a quick video from Rolex on what RCPO is to them, but I’d encourage you to check out this detailed page on the certification page to see just how detailed the process is. It’s really quite remarkable. But to many of us, as collectors, buying a watch through RCPO means one thing – the watch is “good”. And that is a term I use in the vintage collector sense – it’s a term that’s used when describing vintage watches that, are times, questionable, or, well “not good”. Saying a watch is “good” in the vintage Rolex sense implies it is correct and authentic, and what’s amazing about buying a properly rare watch from RCPO is that you know it’s good, because it’s straight from Rolex itself.
And to be clear, the vast majority of inventory you’ll see at 34 Old Bond Street or any Rolex AD in the RCPO cases will be, well, just kinda used watches. In the way that at the BMW dealership, you’ll find 2019 330XI’s. Totally good cars, but what you’re really looking for is a low-miles E9 coupe that you know is numbers matching and rust-free. When I walked into Old Bond Street, you must believe they had tons (like over 250!) great replica watches for sale in the case that were available then and there to buy, and certified, but there was a shocking number of genuinely rare and interesting watches too. And that’s what this story is about – watches that I was shocked to see in the RCPO case at the new Old Bond Street Rolex Boutique.
1. A Reference 1016 Explorer Originally Sold At The British Navy, Army, And Armed Forces Institute (NAAFI) In 1968
Show me a watch that is more core Hodinkee than a 1016 Explorer! You just can’t. And this one, sitting in the case at a Rolex boutique in central London, has an amazing story. It comes with original guarantee papers that are stamped “NAAFI”. A quick search will tell you that NAAFI is “The Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes” and was founded over 100 years ago by the British Government to serve its armed forces wherever they needed. NAAFI is still very much around, and its purpose is to provide remote locations support, facilities management, recreation, and yes, retail, to armed services abroad. It would make a lot of sense that a Rolex Explorer could’ve been sold via NAAFI on January 8th, 1968, then. But I’ve never seen another. The hands on this perfect fake Rolex watches were replaced at some point, but a color-match could definitely be possible if they really bothered you. But I think the story here is just so cool.
The review Rolex copy watches itself comes with the original punched papers signed and dated, plus, of course, the RCPO documentation. I hate to use the term that is so often used in this world, but find another. It is being offered for a shade under £23,000.
2. Reference 126719BLRO GMT-Master II In White Gold With Meteorite Dial
So here’s the thing – when I saw this watch in London, I believed that this reference, in white gold with a Pepsi bezel and meteorite dial, was discontinued. That’s how rare the watch is. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one at retail, and I’m frankly not sure I know a single owner of one. So when I saw an RCPO Meteorite GMT in the case, I absolutely lost my mind. I think it is SUCH a cool China Rolex replica watches, and the space connection of GMTs, I’d like to think anyway, is a subtle nod to the fact that so many GMTs were the personal choices of historic spacemen. To be able to buy a meteorite GMT from a Rolex boutique like this is something special. And again, until one week later when I was in Geneva, I thought this watch was no longer in the catalog. Then, in my meeting with Rolex, I mentioned that I’d seen one and was told it was indeed still in production, just in tiny numbers. How could this not be a super collectible watch ten years from now? This one is currently available at the Rolex boutique on Bond Street for around £58,000.
3 – 4. An Olympic Dial Datejust And Pyramid Dial Day-Date With Bark Finish
Chalk these two up as things I just didn’t know existed. The first is a two-tone Datejust from the late 80s (the peak two-tone era), with the Olympic symbol on the dial. If you had shown me this watch anywhere outside of the largest Rolex CPO store in Europe, I probably would’ve assumed it was aftermarket. It is not, however, and it was in fact produced by Rolex, and indeed serviced and verified by Rolex recently as part of the RCPO program. It was given to a member of the IOC in 1987 for service at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. The price is about £19,000. Next to it? A yellow gold Day-Date with an amazing pyramid style dial, and bark finish on the original bezel and bracelet. Just a total oddball of a vintage Day-Date. The price here is also around £19,000.
5. A New Old Stock, Original Owner Khanjar Day-Date With All The Docs
There is a small but extremely passionate group of watch collectors out there that simply love watches with the Omani Khanjar on them. The Khanjar logo itself is a curved dagger on a belt, atop two crossed swords, and its presence denotes the original purchase and gifting of the watch by Qaboos bin Said, the 50-year Sultan of Oman. He was a prolific lover of watches, and this insignia creates not only interest and exponential retail value in the best selling Rolex replica watches, but also, if you look hard enough, some fascinating stories of international intrigue. Seldom, however, do you find one in new old stock condition, and one that is effectively an original owner’s watch, with the actual story of the owner’s relationship with the Sultan intact and verifiable. The London Bond Street store has such a watch.
Brigadier Baldwin Wight OBE MC WO was given this watch personally by Sultan Taboos Bin Said in 2003 after retiring from command of the SSF, or Sultan’s Special Forces. Wight was in full control of the SSF from 1997 to 2002, but before that, he was a highly decorated special forces member of the British military, serving and leading in some remarkable and critical missions over his career. This particular AAA+ Rolex clone watches is amazing because it features the Sultan’s cipher engraved on the rear caseback, but also because it comes with photographs of the original owner, Mr. Wight, with the Sultan, and original box and papers, both of which are signed with the cipher. Beyond that, the watch is unworn and is in superb condition. To find a NOS, original owner Omani Day-Date like this is just amazing – but to find one verified by Rolex is something else entirely. The Bond Street boutique is asking around £50,000 for this Day-Date.
