A Fishergate jeweller has launched its new showroom extension with a 7ft floral replica Rolex.

The giant centrepiece at Whittles Jewellers was created to celebrate the opening of the new Rolex room and luxury diamond suite at the Preston store.

The extension was opened by the Mayor of Preston, councillor Trevor Hart, who said the expansion at the 155-year-old jewellers raises the profile of the city centre.

In addition to the extended showroom, Whittles has been accredited as one of the only Rolex repair centres in the UK – testament to the expertise and knowledge of in-house watchmaker Barry Douthwaite and the team at Whittles.

The Mayor of Preston, Councillor Trevor Hart, cut the ribbon on the showroom extension.

He said: “Whittles Jewellers is a very established business in Preston and this expansion not only raises its profile, but that of the city centre too. It’s an honour to be at the official opening and I wish them continued success.”

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Joanna Rhodes-Valentine, managing director of Whittles said: “We are immensely proud of the new showroom which offers an enhanced customer experience for when selecting a Rolex timepiece or choosing a diamond for that special someone.

“To secure this accreditation is a real testament of the quality we have here in our watchmaker, Barry Douthwaite and the product knowledge of the rest of our team.

“It really is a privilege to be awarded this responsibility and we look forward to representing the Rolex brand when being entrusted to look after our clients’ prized timepieces.”

The stunning replica Rolex watch was created especially for the launch event by multi-award winning floral designer Sara Barrow, of Flowers with Passion in Longridge.

The 7ft centrepiece took five days to craft and was made up of approximately 2,000 white chrysanthemums, which were spray painted six different colours using 12 cans of spray paint.