Magnolia

Magnolia started with my Nana.

The idea came to me while walking through the Botanical Gardens in Cambridge with her.

I’ve always been incredibly close to my Nana, and while we were walking together, I started thinking about time, about family, memories, and how nothing lasts forever.

I wanted to make her something.

Not just buy her something, but actually create something from scratch that she could wear for the rest of her life. Something that would remind her of me, and something that could represent how much she means to me.

I decided I wanted to make her a watch.

And that’s where Magnolia began.

While thinking about the design, I became fascinated by the magnolia flower.

Magnolias are ancient. Their history stretches back millions of years, with the magnolia family existing long before humans and dating back to the age of the dinosaurs.

I loved that.

I wanted the watch I made for my Nana to represent something that felt timeless. Something that had existed long before us and would continue long after us.

So I put a magnolia flower on the dial.

For me, that flower represents the love between me and my Nana.

Our lives might not last forever, but what she’s given me, the memories we’ve made and the love I have for her will always be a part of me.

Magnolia became my way of putting that feeling into something physical.

Something she could look down at on her wrist and think of me.

I didn’t come from the watch industry.

Magnolia literally started with ideas and drawings on a piece of paper.

I sketched out what I imagined the watch could look like, thought about the colours, the flower, the shape and all of the little details I wanted it to have.

I then worked alongside a designer to turn those ideas into a proper watch design.

We went backwards and forwards, refined the details and eventually arrived at the Magnolia you see today.

A British-designed watch, powered by a Japanese automatic movement.

Then we manufactured it.

And suddenly, an idea I’d had while walking around a garden with my Nana had become a real watch I could hold in my hands.

Originally, this was about making something for one person.

My Nana.

But the more the watch came together, the more I realised the story behind it wasn’t only ours.

Everyone has someone.

A grandparent. A parent. A partner. A friend. Someone who has shaped who they are and who they wish they could somehow hold onto forever.

So I made 100.

Each Magnolia is individually numbered, and Magnolia No. 001 belongs to my Nana.

It always will.

The other 99 watches allowed me to share a small part of our story with other people.

And hopefully, over time, each one will develop a completely different story of its own.

At its heart, Magnolia is about family.

It’s about wanting to give something back to the people who gave so much to me.

It’s about appreciating people while they’re here.

And it’s about creating something that can outlive a single moment.

I don’t know exactly what MONTRE PEOPLE will become in 10, 20 or 50 years.

But I know where it started.

Walking through the Botanical Gardens in Cambridge with my Nana.

One idea.

One magnolia flower.

One watch I wanted to make for someone I love.

And 100 pieces that became the first chapter of MONTRE PEOPLE.