History
While the first tailors moved onto the street Savile Row in 1806, the origins of its tailoring history can be traced back to the beginning of the 17th century. The story begins with a tailor called Robert Baker (RB), originally from Staplegrove in19th century
Henry Poole and Co
Henry Poole & Co are the acknowledged "Founders of Savile Row" and creators of the Dinner Jacket, called aGieves and Hawkes
Gieves & Hawkes is a traditional British gentleman's bespoke tailor located at No. 1 Savile Row. The business dates from the late 19th century, and was formed by the merger of two separate businesses, 'Gieves' (founded 1785) and 'Hawkes' (founded 1771). Starting out with roots from two suppliers who focused on theDege and Skinner
Dege & Skinner (pronounced ) is known for its expertise in military as well as civilian clothing. It remains a family-run business and celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2015. Located at No. 10 Savile Row, the firm was founded as J. Dege & Sons, and became a joint venture between the two families when William Skinner Jr. joined the firm in 1916. After the Skinner family took full ownership, the business was renamed Dege & Skinner, reopened by customerDavies and Son
Davies and Son is an independent tailors on the West side of SR, having started in Hanover Street in 1803. It moved to its current location in 1986, making it the oldest independent tailors on Savile Row. The brand incorporates a number of other tailoring businesses including: Bostridge and Curties and Watson, Fargerstrom and Hughes, Johns and Pegg, James and James, Wells of Mayfair and Fallan & Harvey. It is now owned by Patrick Murphy, Graham Lawless and Mark Broadfield, with former owner Alan Bennett as chair. Davies & Son held the Royal Warrant as Military Tailors to HRH The Duke of Edinburgh. Other customers have included: Joseph P. Kennedy Sr., Calvin Klein,H. Huntsman and Sons
Huntsman, a 163-year-old business, was taken over by Roubi L'Roubi and Pierre Lagrange in January 2013. L'Roubi is a British-born designer of Sudanese origin who is also couturier on New Bond Street, while Lagrange is a hedge fund investor from Belgium. Huntsman has its roots in equestrian wear and this is a part of L'Roubi and Lagrange's country lifestyle. L'Roubi explained toNorton and Sons
Norton & Sons was established in the city of London in 1821, the firm moving to Savile Row in the middle of the 19th century. In the 1960s Norton's incorporated the other Savile Row firm of J. Hoare & E. Tautz. The firm were tailors to Sir Hardy Amies. Since 2005, the business has been run by the fashion designer and creative director Patrick Grant. Grant is also known for his work with media, especially theKilgour, French & Stanbury
Founded in 1882 as T & F French in Piccadilly, in 1923 French merged with existing Savile Row tailor A.H. Kilgour to form Kilgour & French. In 1925, Fred and Louis Stanbury joined the firm, and in 1937 the business changed its name to Kilgour, French and Stanbury. In 2003, the business became Kilgour. In 2013, Fung Group acquired Kilgour from JMH Lifestyle. At present, Carlo Brandelli is the Creative Director (he was CD between 2003 and 2009). He stated: "The first time I was here t Kilgour I contemporised. But this time I'm experimenting with what bespoke can be. Because a suit is still a form of armour, it tells everyone where you are in the hierarchy." Unfortunately, the re-branding exercise overseen by Brandelli has not been commercially successful, and the company went into administration on 27 February 2020. Kilgour however "will continue to operate and will contact customers to make arrangements to fit and deliver clothing in hand and to take orders for new garments", although the property on Savile Row is now vacant and it now appears to be an internet-only business.20th century
Anderson and Sheppard
In the early 20th Century, tailoring was softened by Frederick Scholte, a Dutchman, when he developed the English drape for the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII). Scholte's "dress soft" style was developed into the "London cut", the house style of A&S, by Peter Gustav Anderson a protégé of Scholte. The "London cut" is a high, small armhole with a generous upper sleeve that permits the jacket to remain close to the neck while freeing the arm to move with comfort. In 1906, Peter Gustav, also known as Per Anderson, founded A&S at No. 30, Savile Row. In 2004, A&S' lease at No.30 expired, and the building's landlords wanted to raise its rent. Shortly thereafter, Anda Rowland assumed A&S' daily operations. Rowland, daughter of entrepreneurWelsh & Jeffries
Welsh & Jeffries has premises at No. 20. It is owned by James Cottrell and includes the tailors Lesley & Roberts. It started in 1917 on the high street of Eton and became an established military tailor. In 1990, H.R.H. the Prince of Wales confirmed Welsh and Jefferies's pedigree when he appointed the firm with his Royal Warrant as sole military tailor. They are an independent company. Owner James Cottrell started as an apprentice at the age of 16 in Kilgour French & Stanbury and trained there for 5 years. He worked there as a coatmaker for 15 years before becoming a cutter at Tommy Nutter, from where he went to Henry Poole for 18 years. He was invited to join Welsh & Jefferies as a partner in January 2007, and in February 2013 took over the business with Yingmei Quan as junior partner. Yingmei Quan won the Golden Shears competition in 2011 which enhanced her reputation as one of the better cutters on Savile Row. Cottrell stated: "Finding your cutting style is a process that improves with your experience throughout the years by looking at people’s figures and trying to get a perfect line and balance for that person."Chester Barrie
Chester Barrie was established in 1935 by expatriate English tailor Simon Ackerman, who wanted a British brand and tailoring for his New York-based clothing business. Locating its factory in Crewe from 1939, close to theHardy Amies
The British fashion houseNutters of Savile Row
Nutters of Savile Row was opened onChittleborough & Morgan
Chittleborough & Morgan was formed in 1981 by Joseph Morgan and Roy Chittlebrough. Before opening their own shop, Joseph and Roy were both cutters at Nutters of Savile Row, working with Tommy Nutter and Edward Sexton. They produce only bespoke clothing from their Savile Row premises, there is no ready-to-wear or made-to-measure.New generation
Modernisation, which had begun in 1969 with Nutters of Savile Row, had slowed by the early 1990s, so Savile Row tailors were "struggling to find relevance with an audience that had grown increasingly disassociated". Three 'New Generation' designers are credited with keeping Savile Row ahead of the times: they were Ozwald Boateng, Timothy Everest (a former apprentice of Nutter's) and Richard James. Having each broken away independently from the Savile Row mould, public relations professional Alison Hargreaves coined the term "New Bespoke Movement" to describe collectively the work of this "new generation" of tailors. Interest reached a peak in 19>97 when the three were featured together in ''Vanity Fair''. The newcomers altered their shop fronts and used marketing and publicity to their advantage. For example, when Richard James (tailor) opened its Savile Row store in 1992, it introduced Saturday opening, something of a revolution to Savile Row at that time. Eight years later in 2000, Richard James (tailor) opened a new shop with large plate glass windows that allowed customers to see inside. The new generation challenged the traditional Savile Row styling, bringing twists and "a fine sense of colour to bespoke suits." They were seen to "push the envelope of modern suit making and bespoke active wear, creating more contemporary silhouettes with bolder fabrics." Unlike the older establishments, this new generation of tailors set out to garner celebrity clients, disseminate their products via supermarket chains and attract wider national and international custom, raising the profile of their new tailoring style. In 2001 Richard James was awarded the title Menswear Designer of the Year by theRichard James
Richard James was founded in 1992 and was the first of the 'New Establishment' or New Bespoke Movement tailors ofOzwald Boateng
Ozwald Boateng, a pioneer of the new generation, saw himself as both tailor and a designer, coining the term "bespoke couturier". Born inSteed Bespoke Tailors
Steed Bespoke Tailors was established in January 1995 by Edwin DeBoise, whose father and brother are both tailors, and Thomas Mahon. They are based in Savile Row and Cumbria making bespoke and semi bespoke suits with a range of braces, buttons and ties. DeBoise trained at the London College of Fashion, and then apprenticed under Edward Sexton, followed by seven years at Anderson & Sheppard, before founding the company Steed. 2002 was Steed's eighth year in business and one that saw an amicable split with Mahon, who is now with English Cut. In September 2008, Edwin's eldest son Matthew DeBoise joined the company and is learning the trade under his father.Kent and Haste
John Kent and Terry Haste have worked together, on and off, for over 30 years. John has held the Royal Warrant for many years for the late Duke of Edinburgh, who had followed John from Hawes and Curtis when he left that company to set up on his own. Terry, previously Head Cutter and Managing Director at Huntsman (having originally started his apprenticeship at Anderson and Sheppard), joined John about ten years ago. The two had previously worked together at Hawes and Curtis together with Stephen Lachter, shirtmaker, who still works with them in Sackville Street. The three have a great deal of experience between them: Terry worked with Tommy Nutter, designing and cutting such garments as the outfits ofRichard Anderson
Richard Anderson was founded in 2001 by Richard Anderson and Brian Lishak who acquired Strickland & Sons (est. 1780) in 2004. Richard Anderson is author of ''Bespoke: Savile Row Ripped and Smoothed'', his autobiographic account of being an apprentice tailor. Customers have includedStowers Bespoke
Stowers Bespoke, established in 2006 by Ray Stowers, former head of bespoke at Gieves & Hawkes for 25 years, was created to reverse the trend in the modern market to mass-produce garments in the far east, with all ready to wear suits, accessories and made to measure suits in England. In 2008, Stowers Bespoke purchased the shop at 13 Savile Row from retiring tailor James Levett.Cad and the Dandy
Cad and the Dandy was founded in 2008 by former bankers James Sleater and Ian Meiers. Cad and the Dandy initially came to an arrangement with Chittleborough & Morgan to allow appointments in their shop. The company had a turnover of £1.3m in 2010, and was listed byKathryn Sargent
In April 2016, tailor Kathryn Sargent became the first woman to open a tailoring house in SR (although she has since moved back to Brook Street). Among those Sargent has dressed include royalty, actors, politicians and sportsmen. The master tailor, originally fromWilliam Hunt
Whitcomb and Shaftesbury
Whitcomb and Shaftesbury (W&S), named after the intersection of two nearby streets, was started in 2004 by two Indian twins Mahesh and Suresh Ramakrishnan on St. George Street, near SR. Both had been working in New York but the brothers spotted "a gap in the market for high quality tailoring and quality advice". TheOther companies on Savile Row
*Established in 2002, Jasper Littman is based at 9 Savile Row, providing a visiting tailor service in South East England. * Henry Herbert Tailors are based at fitting rooms at 9–10 Savile Row. They offer a visiting service with their Savile Row by scooter service as well as meeting customers on Savile Row. *Gormley & Gamble are based at Cad and the Dandy, 1st Floor, 13 Savile Row. They are the first tailor on London's Savile Row to cater exclusively for women. *Other tailors include: Kent & Curwen (No. 2); Bernard Weatherill (No. 5); Comelie (No. 9–10); Higgins & Brown (No. 9–10); Katherine Maylin (No. 9–10); King & Allen, Holland & Sherry (No. 9–10); Manning & Manning (No. 9–10); Nooshin, Holland and Sherry (No. 9–10); Paul Jheeta (No. 12); Castle Tailors (No. 12); Steven Hitchcock (No. 13); Martin Nicholls London Ltd. (No. 13); Hidalgo Bros. (No. 13); James Levett (No. 14); Stuart Lamprell (No. 18); Maurice Sedwell (No. 19); Gary Anderson (No. 34/35); Alexandre: owned by British Menswear Brands (No. 39); 40 Savile Row (No. 40); *The oldest tailors in London, Ede & Ravenscroft, have a premises close by onConduit Street tailors
*Established by Austrian tailor Jonathan Meyer at 36 Conduit Street in the late 18th century, Meyer & Mortimer supplied both theFuture
As of November 2014, there are only two family-owned tailoring houses left on Savile Row, namely Dege & Skinner and Henry Poole & Co. Managing director of D&S William G. Skinner, when interviewed by The Business of Fashion (BofF) website, stated: "Ready-to-wear has been available on the Row for some time, but recession and a tough economic climate have led some retailers further down the road of ready-to-wear..." Although in recent years the global luxury menswear market has grown at roughly double the pace of luxury womenswear, the tailors of Savile Row face the stark reality that bespoke tailoring is simply not a scalable business. How different companies compete in the forthcoming years will vary. Starting with the 150-year-old company Dege & Skinner, William Skinner points out the young people involved: the future generation of tailors, serving apprenticeships within the trade. He stated in an interview toWestminster Special Policy Area 2016
In November 2016, SR was given special planning rules within the City of Westminster by the introduction of 'Special Policy Areas'. These new planning rules include four other areas and will "make it far harder for developers and landlords to dilute their distinctive character by allowing "clone" chain stores to force out smaller independent businesses." Mark Henderson of G&H and chairman of SR Bespoke Association is quoted as saying "I’m absolutely delighted. It’s recognition that Savile Row is totally unique." Westminster policy 'CM2.3: Savile Row Special Policy Area' states: "The Savile Row Special Policy Area (SPA) is home to a historic concentration of bespoke tailoring, with the street name in itself acting as a widely recognised international brand, synonymous with the unique and high quality bespoke and discreet, personal service it offers." It also states: "Encouraging bespoke tailoring uses in the Savile Row SPA will continue to support this cluster of bespoke tailoring activities and the wider bespoke tailoring industry in Westminster and the UK." Councillor Robert Davis said: "Like a good suit, planning policy should be made to measure." Also: "We are using our powers to protect some of the capital’s most valuable assets and create environments where specialist traders can thrive."See also
*References
Further reading
*''Savile Row: The Master Tailors of British Bespoke.'' James Sherwood,External links