After a remarkable 45-year tenure, Rolex will no longer be sold at Wempe’s flagship store on 700 Fifth Avenue, marking the end of a longstanding retail partnership. This development follows Wempe’s closure of its Rolex-centered multi-brand boutique on London’s Bond Street in 2023, shortly after Watches of Switzerland, owner of Hodinkee, unveiled plans for a dedicated Rolex flagship on the same prestigious street, which officially opened in 2025.
Industry insiders have long speculated that Rolex’s strategic repositioning played a critical role in these closures. The luxury watchmaker has been actively streamlining its retail network, a move further underscored by the impending reopening of Rolex’s monumental 25-story, 165,000-square-foot headquarters on Fifth Avenue, just two blocks from Wempe’s former site, slated for 2026. This new facility is expected to house the largest Rolex retail space worldwide at its ground level.
Although Wempe historically managed Rolex’s Fifth Avenue boutique and maintained Rolex inventory at its expansive multi-brand location near the Peninsula Hotel for over four decades, Rolex’s recent actions signal a decisive shift. Despite Rolex’s previous assurances that its 2023 acquisition of Bucherer would not impact relationships with other competing retailers, the practical outcomes suggest otherwise.
In response to the loss of Rolex, Wempe is expanding its Patek Philippe offerings, doubling its retail footprint for the brand in an effort to offset anticipated revenue declines. However, given that Rolex typically generates about half the sales volume in multi-brand settings compared to dedicated outlets, Wempe faces a significant and irreplaceable financial impact.
Rolex has yet to disclose which retailer will operate its flagship store at the forthcoming 665 Fifth Avenue headquarters, but industry consensus strongly favors Bucherer, the brand’s own subsidiary, as the likely tenant—cementing Rolex’s increasingly consolidated retail strategy moving forward.
