Latest Review
May 23, 2026 
Neall Brick is a familiar face in the watch enthusiast community. A regular at the Windup Watch Fair, Neall is a key member of the product development team at Citizen, where he helps ensure new releases are built with enthusiasts in mind. He’s also a street photographer, frequent traveler, and all-around gear obsessive. For this latest edition of Tool/Kit, Neall walks us through his go-to travel setup, refined over multiple trips to Japan while overseeing the design and development of new watches. Along the way, he shares his top gear picks and, more importantly, his ideal travel companion: the new Citizen Promaster Land GMT. So, put your tray table up, your seat in its upright position, and settle in for a closer look at how to pack for a trip to Japan.
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself, what you do for Citizen, and what hobbies/products you are enthusiastic about?
I am the Director of Merchandising here at Citizen Watch America, which helps design and curate the product that you see here in the USA, Canada, Mexico, UK, and Latin America, along with some of the global launches. I’m very enthusiastic about watches and photography, along with some everyday carry (EDC) items like pocket knives, flashlights… ya know, all the fun stuff.
The Promaster Land GMT, with that striking red dial, feels purpose-built for travel. How does it fit into your personal kit when you’re on the move?
Fits seamlessly, to be honest. It wears so well, and the aesthetic of the steel bezel and red dial fits right in with how I usually like to travel. I’m a big fan of not dressing down for travel, even for long flights, so this usually goes with my workwear aesthetic that I like when I’m not in business attire. Its Eco-Drive movement is ideal for travel. You never need to worry about a battery dying or an automatic power reserver running out. It’s powered by any light, not just sunlight. This means that even on a long, dark transoceanic flight, the ambient light within the plane—whether from your neighbor’s overhead lamp or the movie screen in the seatback in front of you—is keeping the watch topped off throughout your trip.
From your perspective, what makes a great travel watch, and how did those ideas influence the development of the Promaster Land GMT line?
A great travel watch is something that I think is very legible, has great lume, and the ability to track a second time zone. Those factors influenced the GMT line in so much as that is exactly what Promaster already stands for, and adding the GMT complication is a no-brainer for the lineup.
When you’re heading to Citizen’s HQ Japan, what’s your mindset going into a trip? Are you optimizing for efficiency, flexibility, or something else entirely?
My mindset usually starts with what I need to wear for my trip. Is this a suit-and-tie trip or a bit more office casual? And then, believe it or not, I have a spreadsheet where I list out the days of the trip and try to plan out outfits for each day. This makes packing more streamlined and easier to anticipate. So, I’d say efficiency is my main focus.
How would you describe your overall travel philosophy? Are you a strict minimalist, or is it more about thoughtful curation? Can you talk us through the aspects of your kit?
I would definitely say I’m more into thoughtful curation than minimalism. I love things! So I have a very hard time being a minimalist. Aspects of my kit are ever-evolving, but I’ve kind of narrowed things down around a few core items. My MVST carry-on aluminum bag is my go-to carry-on suitcase. With me, I will always have my Observer Collection Papa Wallet, which houses my passport and any foreign currency. I always travel with a notebook, pen, and Tokyo transit card. I also use my Whiskey Wallet on these trips, as it has a slim expandable coin pocket, which is perfect for Tokyo. They still use coins in their currency much more than in America.
My daily carry bag when walking around town is the Indy from the Observer Collection, which houses my Leica M10-P, mounted with one lens, and usually a second lens in there as well. I also carry a Ridge power pack and my Ricoh GR IV Monochrome, a new addition to my kit. I’ve also found it fits a packable GORUCK 15L Bullet bag when I’m using the camera or have that around my shoulder, which is great if I want to buy anything while I’m out.
What’s the one item in your kit you’ve refined the most over time, something you’ve upgraded, swapped, or obsessed over getting just right? And what’s something you used to travel with that you’ve completely eliminated and why?
I think it’s my daily carry bag while walking around town. I’ve gone through a few iterations. On my first few trips, I carried my Tango bag, which is great for office days but not so great for walking around town. I then went to a Peak Design Everyday Bag and then a GORUCK backpack, both of which I found too big or cumbersome to walk around town with. So the combination of the smaller Indy bag for my cameras and smaller accessories, along with the packable GORUCK, has become the perfect companion.
Walk us through your go-to carry setup. What bag are you using, and how do you organize everything inside? How do you balance accessibility versus security when you’re moving through airports, trains, and cities like Tokyo?
So my go-to setup for traveling through the airport is my MVST carry-on suitcase along with my Filson Dryden duffle pack. The duffle is a bit of a hybrid bag that has your normal duffle handles and crossbody strap, but it also has the ability to be converted to a backpack, which is really handy at times. It has a dedicated laptop storage pouch along with a dedicated extra shoe area, which I’ve used many times. The actual interior is much larger than it probably gets credit for. It’s become a great second bag and personal item for me for longer trips.
My passport stays on me in the most concealed pocket, usually in either a Barbour jacket or a chore coat of some kind. When I’m walking around the city, it’s the same thing. My passport wallet stays in my interior jacket pocket while everything else is in my Indy or across my body while walking around.
What are the essential tech items that always make the cut for an international trip, and how do you keep them streamlined? Do you have any specific rituals or systems for keeping your tech charged, backed up, and ready across time zones?
Essential items would be my work laptop, iPad mini, Ridge power bank, AirPods Pro, Kindle, of course a watch (usually multiple), and either one or two cameras. I have everything charged and ready to go before heading to the airport, and then I have the power bank if I need emergency power. I also carry a charger and cord with me that’s easily accessible in my bag for easy charging while sitting somewhere with a plug or at my seat on the plane.
How much of the enthusiast community factored into the design and positioning of the Promaster Land GMT, and what were you personally hoping they’d connect with?
I think the enthusiast community and the mass consumer are starting to blend more and more together in some aspects, which we took to heart in the Land GMT. Citizen is known for creating these amazing watches that are usually over 44mm at times, so as we celebrated 35 years of Promaster a couple years ago, we wanted to show what the next 35 years of Promaster can be. I think we started with a new trio of Air, Sea, and Land watches in that 40mm realm. This being the Land model at 39.5mm, it wears so well, and I hope the enthusiast sees that the downsizing is happening in certain areas.
How do you personally use the GMT function in a particular way when traveling between NYC and Japan? Why is it important that this style of travel watch be powered by any light, using Citizen’s Eco-Drive movement?
I personally use this GMT watch to keep track of my home time when I’m traveling. The Eco-Drive GMT movement is a unique one, as we usually like to classify GMTs as either flyer or office, and this falls somewhere in between, I think. The hour hand does independently move forward in hour increments, but when you rotate the crown the opposite way, you get a quick-set date versus the hour going backwards. This is perfect for traveling from NYC to Japan, as I can move the hour forward 13–14 hours depending on the time of year, and I’m good to go.
Our Promaster lineup offers the best level of performance for on land, in the air, or at sea, and we see a huge opportunity within our Land category. We launched the U822 a couple years ago, and now expanding the Land category with a traditional GMT complication has driven tremendous interest and excitement. This year, Citizen is celebrating 50 years of Eco-Drive innovation, the brand’s proprietary technology that converts any light into power for a watch, eliminating the need for disposable batteries. This truly remarkable technology is not only eco-friendly but allows wearers the freedom to pick up any Eco-Drive watch like this Land GMT and have confidence that anywhere you go, it will be powered by any light.
As a street photographer, Japan offers a unique visual environment. How does shooting there differ from NYC for you?
It’s so different, and I haven’t been able to really figure it out myself yet. Japan offers just such a photogenic aura to it where everything seems to look good. Maybe because it’s just so new to me still, even after being there a handful of times. The architecture, the people, the way of life—it just suits street photography like nowhere else.
What’s your typical camera setup when you travel, and how do you integrate that into an already tightly curated kit?
My typical camera setup has become a Leica M rangefinder model. On my first trip to Japan, I used a Q2, but since then have used an M10, M11, and now M10-P. On my last trip, I decided to focus on one lens, which I think really helped me. I could really focus on that one focal length and not feel the need to constantly switch, which was nice.
Do you have a favorite photo you’ve taken in Japan, or a moment that really encapsulates why you love shooting there?
This is tough. Some of my favorite photos of all time have been taken in Japan. I really just love my early mornings before heading to the office or walking through street festivals with people in traditional garb that feel like they come out of nowhere and yet are super authentic.
When you think of your travel experiences and visiting the Japanese headquarters, how does Citizen’s mantra “Better Starts Now” come through when putting Promaster Land GMT through the paces?
I love the mantra “Better Starts Now” because it shows that we are never finished. We’re never finished with creating what we think can be the best watch we can make. And this Promaster Land GMT is a great example. It’s got some of the best lume in our entire catalog, its case size is extremely wearable, and it’s perfect for traveling to Japan or a commute to the city. I love the steel bezel aesthetic, as it can be dressed up or tackle the biggest mountain you can find. Best of all, thanks to Eco-Drive’s “Powered By Any Light” functionality, you’re instantly reducing risk of being late or missing out on any of your travel itinerary’s adventurous activities.
