Rolex staff fail to detect $500 counterfeit watch during service

A journalist from Wired successfully passed a $500 counterfeit Rolex Oyster Perpetual through a routine maintenance check at the brand’s flagship store on Old Bond Street in London without being detected.

The experiment involved requesting a simple bracelet adjustment, which required staff to examine the timepiece. Despite the inspection, employees failed to identify the watch as a fake, eventually returning it to the customer with congratulations on the “beautiful watch.”

This incident highlights the rise of “super clones,” a new generation of high-quality luxury replicas mass-produced by Chinese factories. These watches are sold via social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, with transactions often brokered through WhatsApp and paid using USDT. Some replicas are considered so accurate by enthusiast communities that they are classified as “NWBIG” (Not Worth Buying in Gen), suggesting the quality is high enough to rival the value of purchasing an original.