Rolex Domino's Air-King Review: A Quirky Slice Of History

As one of the most iconic names in the watch industry, a fast food chain is not typically what comes to mind when I think of Rolex. Oddly enough, the Crown has sparked fairly longstanding relationships with several corporations, among them being my personal favorite pizza delivery service, Domino's (gotta love the emergency pizza reward). Yes, as you likely already guessed from this article’s title, we’re going to explore one of the wackier Rolex watches in the brand’s history, the Air-King Domino’s, which has become a highly sought-after darling among the collector community in recent years.

[toc-section heading="Some Historical Context"]

Image: Bonhams

The Crown of today has halted producing any co-branded dials, largely to not dilute or cheapen its current status as the pinnacle of luxury in the popular imagination. But throughout the 20th century, there were many examples of Rolex being a bit less precious about its own brand perception. One could argue that the company's dabbling in things of this sort began in the mid-20th Century, when it was a common practice to put the watch retailer’s signature on the dial. The most famous of this kind are the pieces made largely in the 1950s and '60s with the Tiffany & Co. logo script, most commonly at twelve o’clock. Similarly, in this era, we see Rolex developing specialized, branded watches to be used as full-fledged tools in the field, as is the case for the COMEX co-branded Submariner issued to the French diving company. 

Image: Bonhams

In the latter half of the 1960s and throughout the 1970s, things really started kicking off. Continuing to court relationships with more corporations across several industries, including airlines like Pan Am, the Crown began printing the various companies’ logos right on the dial, typically above six o’clock. It’s key to note that these watches were never available for purchase by the general public. Instead, these watches were made for internal use only, often given to employees to commemorate a certain award or milestone in their career. 

Image: Bulang & Sons

Though there’s no record to detail the exact moment, Domino’s officially entered the chat around the year 1977. The Rolex Air-King Domino’s had a bit of a different set of parameters than the previous award-centric watches. Instead of being given as an award, it was more used as an incentive measure while the company was undergoing a massive expansion at the time. A reflection of what was becoming the highly performance-oriented ethos behind company culture, the Rolex Air-King Domino’s was given to franchises that managed to hit $20,000 in sales in a single week (roughly $108,000 in today’s money). That’s a lot of pizza. 

It’s important to note that the Air-King Domino’s was primarily awarded to owners of the franchise and managers, rather than employees who were working on a more hourly basis. This incentivized success model must have really been successful, as Domino’s had to move the goal post as the program went on. Later, a single franchise would have to hit $25,000 in sales for four weeks in a row to earn the same reward.

Other notable corporations that had similar success-oriented programs and offered co-branded Rolex watches were the grocery store chain Winn-Dixie, Coca-Cola, and Anheuser-Busch; all of these watches are also hot commodities on the vintage market. All of this quirkiness came to a close around the late 1990s, when Rolex decided that printing any other brand markers was not aligned with its own luxurious status. Still, the Domino’s Rolex Reward program is still going on today, though the watch the winner receives has the pizza box logo engraved on the caseback instead.

[toc-section heading="Reviewing the Rolex Domino's Air King"]

Image: Wind Vintage

There are several different references of the Rolex Air-King Domino’s, but the major aesthetic differences are seen on the dial (more on that later). Up until the 2010s, the Air-King was offered exclusively in 34mm sizing. Thus, the most iconic vintage examples of the Air-King Domino’s all feature 34mm Oyster cases, while the more contemporary editions with the branding on the bracelet and caseback are currently being produced in the modern 36mm size. 

Image: Wind Vintage

The caseback of each reference is closed, and each employee that received one had his or her initials engraved there, above the “T.S.M” for Domino’s founder Thomas S. Monaghan. All models are paired with the three-link Oyster bracelet. On the more contemporary models, there’s also a “badge” of the logo riveted on the first solid link of the bracelet, which is quite charming. 

Image: Bonhams

Alright, now on to the star of the show. There are two main iterations of the actual Domino logo at six o’clock, and they can largely, though not exclusively, be attributed to its production era. The first logo to be featured is the “straight” orientation, and was printed exclusively on the Air-King 5500 reference. Because it was the first, this is generally accepted to be the more desirable of the two. The red and blue logo itself is also much larger than the one that came after it, and something about the graphic has the impression of being more mid-century than its successor. 

The logo underwent a reorientation revamp around the mid-1980s, which lasted until the logo-fying of Rolex dials was nixed. Depending on the year the watch was produced, the “slanted” Domino’s logo will either be on the Air-King reference 5500, moving toward the reference 14000 and 14010 as the collection itself was updated. The dial underneath both orientations is in the classic silvered hue.

Image: Wind Vintage

There were three movements used throughout the lifespan of the Rolex Air-King Domino’s dial era, all of which were automatic and time-only. The first was the Caliber 1520, followed shortly after by the slightly upgraded 1530 — neither of which was Chronometer certified – and were used in the reference 5500 models. The subsequent 14000 and 14010 models utilized the automatic Caliber 3000, which had a smoother sweeping seconds hand than the 1520/1530 caliber thanks to its higher frequency of 28,800 vph (vs. the 19,800 vph of previous models). This caliber was also not certified. 

[toc-section heading="Final Thoughts And Prices"]

Image: Wind Vintage

Because of the rigidity of Rolex’s current brand identity, which is based on luxury and exclusivity, I always get a kick out of the Crown’s vintage models that allowed more room for quirkiness. The Air-King of the past also had the reputation as being the Rolex for the everyday person. Its lack of Chronometer certification sort of eased the barrier to entry, and it was among the most attainable in the brand’s offerings. So, it seems like a spiritual match made for a commemorative watch of the time, proof that putting your all into your work was leading to some tangible accomplishment – at least if you were a franchise owner or upper management. It’s kind of the ultimate highbrow-meets-lowbrow Rolex, pairing the logo of the most prestigious watchmaking institutions right alongside the logo of a fast and reasonably priced pizza chain. Currently, models are going for around between $8,000 - $14,000 on the secondary market — no pizza slice slinging required.  You can learn more about the modern Air-King over at rolex.com.