Fears and Garrick

‘The watch is greater than the sum of its parts, and its parts are wonderful’

Nicholas Bowmanscargill and David Brailsford, who run their respective small watch brands Fears (based in Bristol) and Garrick (based in Norwich), had been friends for years before they decided to work together.

While Fears, a revival of a historic company, is known for its elegantly classical timepieces priced from around £3,000, Garrick takes a profoundly artisanal approach to watches that are made entirely in-house, including its own movements.

The Fears Garrick timepiece (pictured) – “it’s a Fears watch that we’ve made,” explains Brailsford – sees Bowmanscargill apply his crisp aesthetic to Garrick’s rich horological technique.

The dial features side-byside power reserve and small seconds displays, above an opening for the slowbeating balance.

“We started realising that some people had watches from both of us, even though we’re very different brands, so it made sense to do something,” says Bowmanscargill. “The watch is greater than the sum of its parts, and its parts are wonderful.”