Bell & Ross BR 05 Black Steel

It’s not easy designing a modern-day wristwatch icon — but in the 1990s, French outfit Bell & Ross pulled it off. The brand’s instrument panel-inspired BR-01, with its square case, stark dial, and rubber strap quickly made waves in the watch world, leading to an explosion in popularity for the fledgling Parisian brand. Since then, Bell & Ross has expanded into different case shapes and design profiles. With the BR-01 and the BR-03 settled as clear mainstays for the brand’s catalog, the relatively new BR-05 has made a strong case to be a part of that crew.  The BR-05 marked an important step for the brand when it was first introduced in 2019. There was a clear design direction to make their signature “square within a circle” profile less serious and military-design driven and more refined-casual. The BR-05’s silhouette naturally lends itself to that transition and opened the door to various time and date models, as well as a bold chronograph. What we have here is the former, and it’s a slick looking watch. This particular BR-05 is a Reference BR05A-BL-ST/SST’ and is one of their more recent models dating to the 2020s. Housed in a 40mm stainless steel case with a sapphire crystal and a signed crown, it features a luminous black sunray dial with applied ‘Arabic’ indices, a matching ‘stick’ handset, and a date wheel at 3 o’clock. Absurdly legible, modern in aesthetics and sleek on the wrist, it’s powered by a Swiss-made BR-CAL.321 automatic movement and comes paired to a satin-polished integrated steel bracelet with a signed, dual-button, double fold-over clasp. In excellent condition overall, and including its inner box and warranty card, this BR-05 is a true wrist chameleon — no matter the office, out on the town or some far flung beach abroad — this watch will never look out of place. Own it today!