One Of The Best Rolex Boutiques I've Ever Seen

Over the last few years I have been to a lot of Rolex Boutiques and Rolex Authorized Dealers. To be honest I am not even sure how many, but I would say I have visited no less than fifty stores that were authorized sellers of Rolex watches. However, not all of these dealers are created equal. Some are amazing, some are frankly one step away from having Rolex remove their ability to sell their watches. One particular visit recently really stuck out to me, and it happens to be figuratively in my backyard, Clarkson Jewelers in St. Louis Missouri.

Let me be clear, they aren’t paying me or even do they know that I am writing this article. I do not get anything from this, but I am sure you will. 

Before I get into the Rolex experience at Clarkson, I wanted to give my opinion of anything non-Rolex first. They recently added a Breitling Boutique area in their store. It looks exactly like a Breitling Boutique in Lucerne, Switzerland I went to a few months back. The same flooring, cabinets, walls, pictures, signage…you name it - it was the exact same. They also had a killer selection to choose from of Breitlings in the case. One thing I wanted to note is the experience of buying a watch from a brand who has an online shop compared to buying in a brick and mortar store. First, it's far more personal to buy from a store. It can be a little cold buying a Superocean online directly from Breitling. Breitling really cannot do much to change that, since in reality its point, click and buy online. Whereas in a store, you get that personal attention from the staff. They size it for you. They answer questions. That one on one sales experience is kinda golden and adds a lot for me as a consumer. 

In a world of online shopping, it can be really nice to purchase a $4000 watch (that happens to be the same price either way) directly from a store. Also, it is an instant purchase - you walk out with both the watch and story to boot. I felt that Clarkson Jewelers really exemplified that experience. The staff was attentive but not overbearing. They were knowledgeable but not showy. They did not make me feel like I was a fish out of water, which frankly I have felt a ton of times at different jewelry stores. Now, let's get into why you may have begun to read this article, the Rolex section of the Clarkson Jewelry store.

First, it is amazing. I want to use a ton of expletives to tell you just how cool this area was - but this is a PG13 blog so I will limit it to “freaking awesome.” The overall ambience of the place made me feel like I was whisked away to Switzerland to the finest Rolex Boutique in the land. There is only one other boutique at this level I could even compare it to, and it is the one in Manhattan where they have a full bar and offered me a cappuccino with the Rolex coronet on it in chocolate powder (that may have been the coolest Rolex experience I have ever had). What blows me away is that this new Rolex boutique in St. Louis, Missouri came in at a super close second!  The amount of Rolex watches on display for you to try on are fantastic, the overall space was immaculate and the staff literally was frankly nicer than in any other store I have ever been to. I did put my name down for the Tudor Pelagos FXD and was honestly told a reasonable time it would take. It is nice getting a little bit of honesty these days. I could keep going, but it just was impressive all around.

I grabbed some images off their Instagram and website, taken by Rolex but if you find yourself in St. Louis Missouri, do not miss this place. It frankly is a destination watch experience. I also signed up for their emails while I was there, and they plan to start selling Grand Seiko soon. This store is out doing itself and a definitely must-stop destination if you find yourself in or around St. Louis, MO.