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seabreeze60 · 7 December 2018, 07:16 AM

Rolex sales are now in the $6 billion range. Since they don’t pay corporate taxes and dividends like their competitors, Rolex has a cost advantage, but to what extent is unknown. Omega is owned, for example, by the Swatch Group. Swatch is public company that pays approximately 25% in taxes.

Here’s a cut/paste article from 2015 about Rolex.

Is Rolex a non-profit company? And if so, why?
The founder was Hans Wilsdorf and Rolex was the work of his life. He owned all the shares.

He wanted it to survive and thrive after his death, but did not have any children to take over, so he found an ingenious solution: he set up a trust, called the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, and gave the shares to the trust. The main objective of the trust is to perpetuate the company, although it does also have a mandate for some minor charity work in Geneva (helping the blind, watchmaking school, etc).

Its important to note that the Foundation's trustees are not owners or shareholders, they are only custodians, like the board of a nonproft. They decide how to reinvest the profit, hire or fire the Rolex director, and so on. As trustees, they may get a free watch from time to time, but they are not owners and don't benefit financially.

So in a way, Rolex, a globally successful company which generates 4 billion in sales annually, belongs to nobody! Nobody uses this money. How many billions has it hoarded over the years is a mystery as neither the Rolex comapny's or the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation's accounts are public. I guess a good part of the profit is re invested in the company, as there is no shareholder pressure to take profit, and thats why Rolex can invest so much into making perfect watches and building the most amazing factories. The staff are well paid too, and have lots of holidays, there is a 1 percent turnover so they must be pretty happy.

You can find the foundation's statutes on rc.ge.ch, but not the financials, which again, are secret. Overall its an amazing story!!!

So to answer the question, no, Rolex is not a for-profit company, wholly owned by a nonprofit foundation, the mission of which is to perpetuate Rolex.

7 December 2018, 07:16 AM	#5
seabreeze60 "TRF" Member Join Date: May 2017 Real Name: Dan Location: USA Watch: Tudor, Carl F. Buc Posts: 1,580	Is Rolex a Nonprofit? Rolex sales are now in the $6 billion range. Since they don’t pay corporate taxes and dividends like their competitors, Rolex has a cost advantage, but to what extent is unknown. Omega is owned, for example, by the Swatch Group. Swatch is public company that pays approximately 25% in taxes. Here’s a cut/paste article from 2015 about Rolex. Is Rolex a non-profit company? And if so, why? The founder was Hans Wilsdorf and Rolex was the work of his life. He owned all the shares. He wanted it to survive and thrive after his death, but did not have any children to take over, so he found an ingenious solution: he set up a trust, called the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, and gave the shares to the trust. The main objective of the trust is to perpetuate the company, although it does also have a mandate for some minor charity work in Geneva (helping the blind, watchmaking school, etc). Its important to note that the Foundation's trustees are not owners or shareholders, they are only custodians, like the board of a nonproft. They decide how to reinvest the profit, hire or fire the Rolex director, and so on. As trustees, they may get a free watch from time to time, but they are not owners and don't benefit financially. So in a way, Rolex, a globally successful company which generates 4 billion in sales annually, belongs to nobody! Nobody uses this money. How many billions has it hoarded over the years is a mystery as neither the Rolex comapny's or the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation's accounts are public. I guess a good part of the profit is re invested in the company, as there is no shareholder pressure to take profit, and thats why Rolex can invest so much into making perfect watches and building the most amazing factories. The staff are well paid too, and have lots of holidays, there is a 1 percent turnover so they must be pretty happy. You can find the foundation's statutes on rc.ge.ch, but not the financials, which again, are secret. Overall its an amazing story!!! So to answer the question, no, Rolex is not a for-profit company, wholly owned by a nonprofit foundation, the mission of which is to perpetuate Rolex.