Top UK Rolex Seller Set to Miss £3 Billion Sales Target
(Bloomberg) — Watches of Switzerland Group Plc plans to drop a target to more than double sales and profit by 2028 as the luxury market has deteriorated since the forecast was set, according to people familiar with the matter.
Britain’s top seller of Rolex watches had forecast that sales would surpass £3 billion ($4 billion) but that’s unlikely achievable in the time frame given, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information.
Representatives for Watches of Switzerland declined to comment. Shares dropped as much as 9.5% on Friday, the most in nearly a year, before paring most of the fall.
Although the drivers of growth laid out in its “Long Range Plan” in Nov. 2023 remain the same, the company intends to give fewer specific forecasts with prescriptive time frames, management including Chief Executive Officer Brian Duffy will explain to investors next month, the people added. The luxury reseller will continue to provide yearly guidance, they said.
The reversal reflects a broader reckoning across the luxury industry. After an extraordinary post-pandemic surge, the sector hit a wall at the end of 2023 following the collapse of Chinese consumer demand — a key engine of growth that had powered everything from Swiss watch exports to Paris fashion houses.
Since then, all the major watch and jewelery brands have also had to contend with record gold prices inflating input costs, currency volatility, escalating tariffs under US President Donald Trump, and the economic knock-on effects of conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine.
Swiss watch exports have slid from their 2022 highs and have yet to recover meaningfully. Overall exports shrank 1.7% to 25.6 billion francs ($31.6 billion) in 2025 – the second consecutive year of decline.
Still, Watches of Switzerland has weathered the luxury sector’s slowdown better than most. The stock is up more than 74% in the past 12 months, out-pacing growth at its much-larger luxury peers including Richemont, LVMH and Hermes.
Growth has been supported by expansion in the US, the fast-growing certified pre-owned watch market, e-commerce investments and deeper partnerships with leading brands. Since entering the US around 2017, Watches of Switzerland has built annual sales to roughly $1.25 billion, or more than half of group revenue. The significant uplift in personal wealth in the US is likely to push market share gains further.
Read: Watches of Switzerland Hits Record Driven by US Watch Collectors
The retailer is also betting on growth in jewelry following its acquisition of Roberto Coin, while lab-grown diamonds have emerged as a fast-growing category among younger consumers seeking larger stones at lower price points.
Watches of Switzerland has previously said it expects revenue growth of 5% to 10% at constant currency this fiscal year.
(Updates share moves in third and eighth paragraphs.)
©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
