How a watch industry veteran’s breakdown resulted in Split, a timepiece brand that helps mental health
The Split MC-5, £1,800
Ed Margulies is the third generation of a distinguished family in the horological world. For 30 years he’s worked throughout the watch industry, in the family business, training at manufactures of a number of prominent brands. It’s fair to say he knows the watch industry inside and out, and he was making the most of his experience. It was when he and his wife had children that life took an unanticipated turn.
‘Trauma inside me came flooding out,’ he says. ‘I was a wreck. It threw me to quite a dangerous place. I wasn’t capable of doing anything in my life. I’d drop the kids off at school with a big smile on my face, say hello to everybody, then get in the car and drive as far away as possible and have a cry for hours.’
After a lot of work, when he finally got some energy back, Margulies says, ‘I wanted to do something a little differently that changed the script a bit.’
He had seen the power a watch had to spark a conversation. ‘A watch is a way of expressing yourself. People buy a watch to tell a story. I wanted to give people the opportunity to tell a different story and not about status and egos.’ So he thought about what a new watch in a saturated premium and luxury market could be. Understanding that the two things he knew most about were watches and mental health, he decided to put the two together and see what panned out.
That’s how Split watches was born. Taking his favourite watch design, split chronographs with two registers, Margulies started looking at materials. Deciding against precious metals for attracting unwanted attention, and rejecting steel for its ubiquitousness, he visited factories, looking for practical materials for the modern world. He came up with a fusion of high-level polymers and ceramic which is scratch resistant and creates a soft feel to the case.
For the movement he didn’t want to head for Switzerland, instead turning to Japan and Seiko to create a bi-compax chronograph with an exhibition caseback.
When it came to the strap, ‘we checked all options and went for FKM rubber, which is difficult to create but great to wear as it’s malleable and sits nicely on the wrist. It’s also antibacterial and water resistant.’ On the back of each strap there’s a space where Split can arrange for a calligrapher to put a message if buyers want it personalised.
Left to right: Split ambassador Don Letts, Dara Amjadi, founder Ed Margulies
‘The message behind Split is the founder’s story. I’m now really open about my issues. Before, I never spoke to anyone about them and hid behind my smile and felt very alone,’ Margulies says. ‘One day someone I didn’t know very well asked me how I was and I didn’t want to lie anymore. When I opened up, it gave him the opportunity to speak about how he was feeling too. We need to be empathetic to each other and be aware we’re all in this together. We need to be conscious of others who struggle.’
Split is about philanthropy on another level too. ‘For every watch sold, we donate an hour of therapy at the Anna Freud Centre. It deals a lot with youths under 18. It’s an amazing charity, offering a safe place to talk about their issues.’
Each watch is in a limited edition of 250 per nuanced colour. There will be a GMT for £850 out next spring, plus a non-complication watch in two sizes. Then Margulies plans to create a sub brand watch for under £100, with all monies going to a charity. ‘The aim is very clear: to get people talking about mental health, with a cool watch to tell the story.’ And, instead of the smiley 10 past 10 hands position usually seen on displayed watches, Margulies is going for a more frowny 23 past 7, making a change in the script from the start.
£1,800; splitwatches.com
