Spotlight on: Bremont Watches

The Bremont watch brand was founded in 2002 by two brothers, Nick and Giles English. The aviation-themed timepieces are made to withstand extreme conditions. With cases made of steel that is nine times harder than normal, the watches are subjected to severe extremes during testing.

Several limited editions were inspired by World War II fighter aircraft with internal parts made of relics of the steel from them.

Nick and Giles English grew up in Norfolk in the UK as the sons of Euan English, a very talented engineer. He was also an award-winning aerobatics pilot who loved to restore old planes and cars. The two brothers loved playing in their father’s workshop among old tools and mechanical objects. Their father nurtured their fascination by buying old clocks for the boys to take apart and put together. Needless to say, they were a happy, close-knit family.

But a fateful tradgey stuck in 1995. Euan decided to take young Nick up in a 1942 Harvard two-seater that he had restored. Something went wrong with the engine and it crashed on impact. Euan died instantly and Nick had multiple bone breaks.

The family was devastated. The tragedy was life-changing for Nick and his brother Giles. They both quit their jobs working in the city and threw themselves into their father’s hobby of plane restoration. After realizing that this hobby could not develop into a full-time business, they set up a workshop to develop their second love, watch-making. Euan had also been an avid watch collector who loved to remove the back and study the moving parts.

It was the brothers’ goal to create the very best watch possible for the mechanically minded person. They were determined to reach this goal no matter how much developing and testing it took. In 2007, they were ready to launch the brand.

How the brothers came to use the name Bremont is another story. While flying their bi-plane over the Champagne region of France, they were forced to make an emergency landing in a farmer’s field. France has strict laws that call for taking a plane apart and removing it to a more suitable take-off area. The farmer helped the brothers move the plane into his barn to hide it just before the police arrived.

The farmer had a workshop full of old clocks and engine parts. They were at once reminded of their beloved father. The farmer’s surname was Bremont.