Rolex proved itself in the English Channel
A crown, an oyster, and a ten-hour swim.
Hans Wilsdorf founded Rolex in London in 1905. Two decades later he wanted to prove his hermetic case truly worked. He gave one to a young British swimmer, Mercedes Gleitze, before her ten-hour crossing of the Channel. She emerged in Calais with the watch still ticking. Rolex bought the front page of the Daily Mail the next morning — the first great watch advertisement, and arguably the first modern celebrity endorsement.
Editor's Note
Great brands are not built with slogans. They are built with proof.
