Fergus Nash
Some defunct brands that have been resurrected by the modern mechanical watch boom have often returned mysteriously, bought by private companies that have glorified their inherited heritage to ease their modern insubstantiality. Fears is the exact opposite, having not only been resurrected by members of the original family, but has also used its heritage to innovate and offer meaningful timepieces. In this week’s Micro Monday, we look at the brand’s journey through its widely praised Fears Brunswick series.
The story begins in 1846 when Edwin Fear founded the company at the age of 22 and set up three shops on Redcliffe Street in Bristol. Success grew in leaps and bounds and whilst individual watchmakers’ names on the dials went out of fashion, the Fear brand began to emerge around the 1920s. By 1931, the third generation of the Fear family was running the business, employing over 100 watchmakers and exporting watches to 95 countries. Sadly, all Fear’s locations were devastated by bombing raids in the 1940s, but the company regained its footing in 1945 with a new shop. Tragedy struck again in 1976 when the pressures of the quartz crisis mounted and the shops were forced to close.
Fast forward to the 2010s, Edwin Fear’s great-grandson studied to be an investment banker before serendipitously landing an apprenticeship at Rolex, little aware of his family’s vast legacy. Nicholas Bowman Scargill felt the need for a career change, and discovered that his watchmaker ancestor was in fact the founder of Fears, and decided to re-found the company in 2016. Their first watch was the Red Cliff, but it was Fears Brunswick in 2017 that really started to grab attention. Modernizing one of the cushion-case watches of the 1920s with a more robust case design, applied numerals, and skeletonized hands doesn’t seem like it should work in theory, but the combination of modern and Art Deco details is luxurious and perfect. The 38mm diameter was ahead of its time, heralding a resurgence in the popularity of small cases.
The first few years of Fears’ resurgence have been promising, with their story, British-made credibility and robust catalogue helping to spark widespread conversation as an independent luxury brand. In 2019, the introduction of Fears Brunswick Blue took dial colour variation to a new level, with three layers across two surfaces, resulting in a shade of blue that changes depending on the viewing angle. It further proved that Fears is not afraid of modern developments, and gained more fans.
2020 has been a chaotic year for most people, especially small business owners, but Fears has had a rollercoaster ride of a year. February was promising a year of big business, but by March, Nicholas Bowman Scargill was working the night shift at a supermarket to keep the company afloat. It’s a scary proposition for anyone, but even more so when you’re fighting to save a family-owned traditional business that has already been closed once. But the launch of the Fears Brunswick Salmon was uplifting. Salmon dials were one of the first colors to take center stage in 2020, right before green infiltrated every sports watch that seems to exist, and while the Fears Brunswick Champagne was launched at the same time, it was the salmon that had the whole internet talking. The coppery pink-toned vertically brushed dial walks the perfect line between vintage and modern, making the Fears Brunswick look surprisingly appealing.
The 2021 Fears Brunswick Pt. delivered the unthinkable: an independent brand suddenly launched a platinum-cased watch for £28,000, and it actually sold. Available in two colours, Brunswick Blue and Anthracite Grey, with or without diamonds, collectors who bought the Brunswick Pt. demonstrated their confidence that the Fears brand would deliver a watch worth the price, and no one was disappointed.
The latest addition to the Fears Brunswick line is the Brunswick 40, launched in 2022, which has completely revamped the look of the series with a contemporary touch. It enlarged the case to 40mm, revisited the delicate sector dial, enhanced the iconic hands, introduced a fitted steel bracelet and brought in crisp dial colours. The dial is slightly recessed in the centre, which, together with the three-dimensional Arabic numerals, gives the dial a beautiful depth. The colours are available in genuine opaline-finished silver, Brunswick Blue or a beautiful pink that reminds me of a strawberry milkshake. The £3,750 price tag may seem steep for a watch powered by an ETA 2824, but the handcrafted nature of these watches, dedicated to local British suppliers, makes the whole experience of owning a Fears very worthwhile.
If you would like to see the Fears Brunswick lineup for yourself, be sure to check out their website. here.
