A YORK retailer is to expand its team after going into partnership with a Danish designer.

The watch shop formerly known as Time Out, in Colliergate, has become the first and only Bering boutique in the UK.

It has also been made the company’s service centre for the whole of the UK, mending its watches, which are sold by some jewellers, and taken on its name.

The company, which is still owned and managed by Time Out founder Shazad Ajmal, is recruiting additional watch repair staff and plans to increase its sales staff as well in the future.

Mr Ajmal set up Time Out three years ago after having worked for Beaverbrooks, The Watch Hospital Group and heading up the watches and jewellery division of Alfuttaim, in Dubai.

He said they met Bering at the Spring Fair in Birmingham and the company was looking for a main base in the UK.

“We fell in love with the watches, and they wanted to have the boutique here in York,” he said.

The shop will also be used as a showroom and staff and retail training centre for the brand.

The business, which currently employs three people and has a full repairs workshop, expects to recruit another two or three staff.

Mr Ajmal said: “Now everything which requires work in the UK will come through us.

“They were quite impressed with our repairs facility and we invested quite a lot of money in transforming the shop with Bering furniture and light box displays.” He said they visited the national service centre in Germany to get an idea of what they were taking on.

“As soon as that work starts to come in, staffing will need to be increased to cope with the workload,” he said.

Henrik Leth Møller, UK director of Bering, said that the collaboration with the former Time Out and the choice of York as a location was ideal, because York was a key tourist centre and the city had a history as the Viking capital, which forged further links with the Danish brand.

“We won’t rule out opening more UK boutiques but there are no plans at the moment,” he said.