Shopping: It was time for a move
Bremont is a fine British watch company with a new connection to Southern California. It’s not only that Tinseltown celebrities such as Orlando Bloom, Ellen DeGeneres and Ryan Seacrest are fans of the timepieces’ sporty design and durability. Now company principal Nick English has moved to Santa Monica to expand the company’s business in North America, choosing the West Coast over New York. He arrived in February, nesting here with his wife and three young children after living on another west coast — the French one, near Biarritz. You might catch the 39-year-old puttering down Sunset on his 1969 Triumph Scrambler to meet clients at the Soho House in West Hollywood.
Though less familiar on these shores, Bremont is a marquee name in the U.K., especially because the watchmaker partners with high-profile sporting events such as the Epsom Derby and Goodwood Festival of Speed. British celebrities who wear Bremonts also have a predilection for sport, sometimes of the extreme kind. Actor Ewan McGregor banged up his Bremont Alt1-C on a grueling motorcycle trip from Scotland to Africa. “Man vs. Wild’s” Bear Grylls wears an Alt1-P on his expeditions for the Discovery Channel. Bremont is currently teaming with Norton Motorcycles for a planned invitation-only celebrity road tour through the California desert.
Nick and Giles inherited their father Euan’s fascination with aviation and timepieces. The elder Englishman would collect antique grandfather clocks for the family to tinker with. Flying vintage aircraft was also a family affair. In 1995, Euan and son Nick were flying a restored plane that crashed and killed Euan; Nick broke more than 20 bones but survived.
English says that two years later he and Giles were piloting a vintage aircraft that had to make an emergency landing in a French farmer’s field. Antoine Bremont, the farmer, aided the brothers and struck a fatherly chord, English says. Like Euan English, who served in the Royal Air Force, Bremont had been a pilot during World War II, he restored wall clocks and still wore his father’s heirloom watch.
That near-death experience was the catalyst the brothers needed. They quit their finance jobs in London and set up a timepiece workshop in Biel-Bienne, Switzerland. Nick and Giles decided Bremont had a catchier ring as a brand than their surname. “It would be corny in Britain, to have a watch with ‘English’ in the front,” Nick English says.
In 2007, the first Bremont timepieces hit the marketplace after several years of development and tests, such as Swiss chronometer testing in which watches are subjected for 15 days to temperature changes and varying arm positions to see if they maintain accuracy. Bremont watches came out as 99.998% accurate, certified by the Controle Officiel Suisse des Chronometres (COSC).
Bremont watches aren’t cheap, starting at $4,000 for a BC-S with a black face and going to $11,500 for a limited-edition EP120, which contains part of a WWII-era Spitfire aircraft. The popular Bremont Alt1-C features classic styling and a leather band for $5,650. “It’s mainstream luxury,” English says.
What does English love most about Southern California, his new home? “I love the outdoor lifestyle and lovely L.A. folk,” he says. “Here people work on laptops in cafes — in London I would feel guilty doing that.”
Bremont watches are available at Tourneau, 10250 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles. (310) 553-8463. 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday; noon to 7 p.m. Sunday.
Opening
Tiziana: Tiziana has returned after a 20-year hiatus. Tiziana Guida ran her eponymous women’s boutique on Melrose Avenue during the 1980s, then took time off to be a mom. But she kept her trademark signage, which now overlooks Vermont. The new Tiziana opened March 12 and features the same stretchy body-conscious dresses that were all the rage during her first run and that have made a comeback. Check out the eye-catching hot pink dresses with asymmetric sleeves by Mark Wong Nark that start from the low $400s. The store also stocks chunky jewelry and accessories.
1766 N. Vermont Ave., (323) 663-3370. Noon to 8 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays; noon to 6 p.m. Sundays.
Events
Montana Avenue Tax-Free Day Saturday: Montana Avenue merchants give shoppers a break by covering the sales tax on purchases. Sixty retailers are participating, including boutiques Planet Blue, Weathervane, Anat B, Michael Stars, Leona Edmiston, Lucky Brand Jeans, Sean, ABS, Blue Jeans Bar, Bikini, Only Hearts, Cabochon Fine Jewelry, Moondance Jewelry, Souliers, London Sole, Step! and Palmetto.
Montana Avenue between Seventh and 17th Streets, Santa Monica. 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Hurley Phantom Upgrade Saturday: In time for summer, men can trade in any other brand’s trunks at Surfside and get Hurley’s new Phantom board shorts at half price. Phantom board shorts are quick-drying, nonchafing and have Nike’s high-tech Flywire waist support. One lucky board-short upgrader could win a dream trip to Indo — that’s Indonesia in surfer lingo — to hit the waves with the surfer Rob Machado and the Hurley team (odds are 1 in 200). There will also be giveaways, prize packs, snacks and music.
233 E. 17th St., Costa Mesa. (949) 645-4624. 4 to 6 p.m.
https://www.hurley.com/phantom
Spas
Spa Montage’s Soiree through June 30: Montage Beverly Hills is offering a spa soiree package ideal for bridal showers, bachelorette parties and girls’ day out. For $200 per person, guests get a 60-minute spa treatment, luncheon or tea, champagne toast and a relaxation room for the day.
225 N. Canon Dr., Beverly Hills. (310) 860-7840. Call for a reservation.
