Your watch is becoming more valuable or losing value? The color of the bezel – the ring around the watch face – can be crucial for this. The Bloomberg Subdial Watch Index, which evaluates the market value of wristwatches, shows that two Rolex models differ in price on the secondary market, although the only difference is the color scheme.
The prices of the latest version of the Rolex GMT Master II with a red and blue ceramic bezel, nicknamed “Pepsi,” increased by 4.1%, to about $21,000 last year, according to data from Subdial, a UK-based watch trading platform. At the same time, prices of what is known as “Batman” – essentially the same watch but with a black and blue bezel – fell by 10.1%, to about $16,000.
In retail, both watches are sold at the same price – about $10,700 – on the same Rolex Oyster steel bracelet.
The divergence shows how the convenience and perceived scarcity of a model can affect prices. Dealers, collectors, and watch industry media have speculated that the Pepsi GMT could be discontinued this year amid rumors of production challenges in manufacturing the red and blue bezel. It hasn’t, and the model remains in the Rolex catalog.
With over 10 billion Swiss francs ($11.1 billion) in estimated annual sales, Rolex SA, based in Geneva, is the largest Swiss watch brand, controlling about a third of the global premium Swiss watch market, according to estimates from banks like RBC and Morgan Stanley. Rolex does not disclose production numbers for individual watches or in general. Analysts estimate that the brand produces about 1.2 million watches per year in total.
Rolex is building a new production facility in Fribourg, Switzerland, with an expected opening in 2029, which will increase the capacity of its four existing national production facilities in Geneva and Biel.
The Pepsi, which was the original bezel color when the GMT was first launched in the 1950s, remains one of the hardest Rolex watches to buy at retail from an authorized dealer. Just like the Daytona chronograph, demand far exceeds supply, and customers may wait months or even years before receiving the call. Rolex launched the Batman GMT in 2013.
The 4.1% gain of the Pepsi in a year contrasts with a 5.7% loss in a Rolex watch price index compiled by Subdial. The Bloomberg Subdial Watch Index, which tracks the prices of the 50 most traded watch models by value on the secondary market, fell by 8.7% in a year. The index remained virtually unchanged in May.
This story was produced with the help of Bloomberg Automation.