Entrepreneur Michael Coade spotted wearing a Rolex

Entrepreneur Michael Coade was recently seen wearing a vintage Rolex GMT-Master ref. 16750, a piece that sits in a particularly interesting corner of the Rolex collecting world — respected by insiders, still accessible to serious enthusiasts, and carrying a genuine engineering story worth telling.

The GMT-Master ref. 16750 was produced between 1981 and 1988, bridging the iconic long-running ref. 1675 and the subsequent ref. 16760, the so-called 'Fat Lady.' Its most significant upgrade over the ref. 1675 was the introduction of the caliber 3075, a movement that finally brought a quickset date complication to the GMT-Master line. That single functional improvement made the 16750 dramatically more practical for daily use — a dual time-zone pilot's tool that could now actually be worn and adjusted with ease. The case measures 40mm in stainless steel with a matte dial in earlier examples transitioning to glossy dials in later production runs, and it carries the classic bi-color Pepsi or matte black bezel configurations depending on the variant.

For collectors, the ref. 16750 occupies a nuanced position. It lacks the age-patina mystique of a ref. 6542 and the raw desirability of a ref. 1675 'Gilt,' but it offers something equally compelling: a fully usable vintage GMT-Master with a modern-enough movement to keep excellent time, at a price point that hasn't yet been entirely consumed by speculative fever. Matte dial examples with original tritium indexes showing consistent aging are particularly sought after. The watch represents sound collecting logic — buy on condition, buy on originality.

Michael Coade, known in entrepreneurial circles for his business acumen, appears to wear the ref. 16750 as a working watch rather than a display piece — which is precisely how a GMT-Master is meant to be used. That sensibility, choosing a tool watch with genuine horological depth over a more obvious status signal, speaks to a collector's eye rather than a brand loyalist's.

On the current grey market, a clean Rolex GMT-Master ref. 16750 in good condition with original bracelet trades broadly between $8,000 and $14,000 depending on dial condition, bezel fading, and paperwork. The ref. 16750 has no official retail price today, having been discontinued decades ago, but its market trajectory has been steadily upward — and patient.