Rolex plans new factory and 2,000 jobs in Switzerland

Rolex, owned by the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, has its headquarters in Geneva and production sites in Geneva and Biel/Bienne in western Switzerland. Rolex/Jean-Daniel Meyer

The luxury Swiss watch brand Rolex hopes to invest CHF1 billion ($1 billion) in a new production site at Bulle in western Switzerland that should result in 2,000 new jobs.

The watchmaker hopes to build a new production site at Bulle in canton Fribourg, which should be inaugurated in 2029, Swiss public television, RTS, reportedExternal link on Monday.

The deal still needs to be finalised: the sale of two plots of land (100,000m2, the equivalent of ten football pitches) still requires the approval of the Bulle parliament.

Contacted by RTS, Rolex did not wish to comment until the deal is signed. However, the cantonal economics department told RTS that the signing is planned next month.

“A project of exceptional magnitude is on track in Bulle with the prestigious company Rolex,” declared Oliver Curty, president of the Fribourg government, adding that the authorities would “ensure that it succeeds”.

The luxury watchmaker, founded in 1905, was seduced by Bulle’s central location – between Bern and the Lake Geneva region – and the potentially large pool of workers.

Rolex, owned by the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, has its headquarters in Geneva and production sites in Geneva and Biel/Bienne in western Switzerland.

With a turnover of almost CHF8 billion in 2021, according to estimates by Morgan Stanley, Rolex is by far the most successful Swiss watch brand around the world. Rolex produces more than a million timepieces each year in its largely automated factories.