Our History

Our History

With more than 230 years of tradition and experience, our first showroom opened in Newcastle in 1778. When Rolex made the move to Geneva in 1919 and was firmly regarded as the watchmaker of both accuracy and innovation having produced the first waterproof watch, we were the UK’s first appointed stockist of Rolex watches that same year.

From then, Goldsmiths has been elevated and transformed into a dynamic destination for luxury. Today, Goldsmiths is the one of the leading quality jewellers in the UK with over 90 showrooms in every major town and city from Aberdeen to the south coast and Northern Ireland. It all comes down to one thing: we love what we do, and it shows. Big or small, gold or silver. We love it all and our team is expertly trained to help you find and keep safe items you will treasure forever.

Goldsmiths & Rolex

Our long-standing partnership began with Rolex began in 1919, as we were selected to be a Rolex stockist at our Northern Goldsmiths store in Newcastle. Commemorating the occasion, we were thrilled to install a vast four-sided golden Rolex clock above the store in 1937. We are proud that over 100 years later, the store remains on the same corner of Blackett Street today and continues to showcase our well-established relationship with Rolex.

The Watches of Switzerland Group & Rolex

The Watches of Switzerland Group is honoured to represent Rolex across all three of our fascias - Goldsmiths, Mappin & Webb and Watches of Switzerland. As the leading luxury watch specialist in the UK, we are honoured to be part of the worldwide network of Official Rolex Retailers. In addition to our Rolex showrooms across the United Kingdom, we have the privilege of operating Rolex Boutiques on Bond Street in London, Buchannan Street in Glasgow and within Heathrow airport.