Tag Archives: SAVILE ROW

ANDERSON & SHEPPARD

A bastion of British tailoring, Anderson & Sheppard has been one of Savile Row’s pre-eminent houses since it’s establishment in 1906. The firm has been the preferred tailor to many international celebrities throughout its history (names such as Fred Astaire, Charlie Chaplin, Gary Cooper, Noël Coward, Laurence Olivier, Cole Porter, and Rudolph Valentino), in part due to the more relaxed structure championed by Frederick Scholte and Per Anderson, the firm’s founder who trained under Scholte. This style marked the firm as maverick young Turks, a counter to the traditional, heavily structured military style that had long defined the Savile Row suit. Anderson & Sheppard and their contemporaries essentially revolutionised the English-style, with the English cut today being synonymous with the silhouetted and drape espoused by this cadre of tailors. The style would attract a young Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII and latterly, the Duke of Windsor), earning the firm the prestige and honour of being a tailor by appointment to the Court of St James. Many decades later, another Prince of Wales would commission his suits from the house before he too would become King, HM King Charles III. The firm would also become a benchmark reference for the high couture fashion industry, having influenced customers including Tom Ford. No longer on the Row but located off-Row on Burlington Street, today the firm continues the bespoke tradition whilst also supplying a range of ready-to-wear apparel from their nearby haberdashery.

GIEVES & HAWKES

Gieves & Hawkes is one of the grandest of the Savile Row tailoring houses, an institution dating back to 1771. The house is renowned as a military tailor of distinction and a bespoke tailor of choice to many of the world’s best-dressed men. The firm has a long legacy as a tailor by appointment to various members of the British Royal Family and other royals, with the warrants to boot. The brand was formed in 1974 when two established tailoring houses merged, Hawkes & Co and Gieve & Co (pronounced with hard ‘G’). Hawkes & Co was founded in 1771 and had carved out a reputation as a preferred tailor to the most senior British Army officers and members of the Royal Household. Gieve & Co was founded in 1887 when it took over an older studio for whom James Gieve had apprenticed, with a legacy of dressing the most senior officers of the Royal Navy. The military tradition of both houses would come to define the Gieves & Hawkes silhouette and, indeed, the English style of defined shoulders and narrow tapered bodies. Today, the firm continues to offer a bespoke tailoring service together with a wide range of ready-to-wear apparel making them a go-to outfitters for their distinguished clientele.

FREDERICK SCHOLTE

Frederick Scholte is often heralded as the originator of the Drape suit and the London Cut / English-style tailoring, the style that has come to define Savile Row. A Dutchman, Scholte emigrated to the United Kingdom in 1880 at the age of 15 or 16. He apprenticed as a tailor, working with the Household Cavalry where he cut military uniforms to the exacting standards of the officers of The Life Guards, The Royal Horse Guards and The Royal Dragoons which then comprised the Household Cavalry and today are better known as The Blues and Royals and The Life Guards. These regiments were historically associated with the nobility, with many of their officers being commissioned from the upper echelons of society. These officers would have deep pockets and high expectations. Scholte would have needed to produce pieces to meet these specifications, with many of the officers using their bespoke uniforms as a means of demonstrating wealth and status and informally competing with one another to be the best presented. Scholte quickly earned a reputation as an outstanding tailor, whose craft was sought out by various members of high society outside of the military. He established his own workshop in the late 1890s and took on a number of apprentices, including Per Anderson who would go on to found his own atelier, Anderson & Sheppard. Scholte’s eye for an exquisite suit, borrowing from the military silhouette but giving a more relaxed, elegant look earned him an envious client list, including the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII, becoming the Duke of Windsor on his abdication), an icon of men’s style. The studio ceased trading on Scholte’s death in the 1940s but the occasional vintage piece still attracts great interest and many are featured in museums and galleries.

A. J. HEWITT

A very well regarded Savile Row tailoring house, Anthony J. Hewitt was established in 1976 by Anthony Hewitt who had previously plied his trade at Gieves & Hawkes and Anderson & Sheppard. He founded his eponymous studio having earned a reputation as an excellent cutter with a keen eye for the perfect silhouette. Many of his early customers migrated with him to his new home and were joined by a growing class of international businessmen, with many, notably, deployed to the Middle East or hailing from the region. In 1979, Hewitt hired a young cutter who hailed from a family with a great tailoring lineage tracing back to colonial India and, subsequently, to Zambia. That young man, Ravi Tailor, would later take the helm at the renowned institution upon the retirement of his mentor. The firm continues to produce bespoke pieces for their international clientele and has acquired the legendary safari and tropical tailoring house, Airey & Wheeler.

ALEXANDRA WOOD: BESPOKE SAVILE ROW TAILORS FOR THOSE IN THE KNOW

In the world of Savile Row tailors, Alexandra Wood is a relatively new kid on the block, having been founded in 2010. Nonetheless, Alexandra Wood has been picking up accolades and celebrity customers that would be the envy of many old tailoring houses. Originally established in Bishop’s Stortford offering tailoring and hire services, tailoring services are now offered from a  Savile Row (by appointment only)  and a Shoreditch premises too. The firm also carries a range of suits and tailored pieces available for hire.

ALEXANDER MCQUEEN: BRINGING THE AVANT-GARDE INTO HIGH FASHION AND CLASSIC TAILORING

Alexander McQueen is a British luxury fashion brand known for its avant-garde and often provocative designs. The brand was founded by the renowned British fashion designer Lee Alexander McQueen in 1992. McQueen quickly gained recognition in the fashion industry for his innovative and boundary-pushing creations.

AIREY & WHEELER: A TRAVELLING TAILOR TAILORING FOR TRAVELLERS

Legendary tropical weather tailor and a Savile Row institution, albeit located off-Row in Piccadilly, Airey & Wheeler was the first-choice tailor for distinguished gentlemen and military officers seeking lighter weight suits and tailored pieces for warmer climates, including the much-dismissed London summertime. Famous patrons of the House include a number of former Prime Ministers, Sir Winston Churchill and Sir John Major amongst them. The firm remained under the control of the founding Airey family until 1996 when it was acquired by and incorporated into the house of Anthony J Hewitt, itself now under the watchful eye and stewardship of renowned master tailor, Ravi Tailor.

SWAINE

One of Britain’s great luxury goods houses, Swaine (Swaine Adeney Brigg) has been supplying high-end accessories, leather goods, luggage and accoutrements to Europe’s upper classes for more than two centuries. Founded in 1750 as a saddlery, Swaine became synonymous with the finest quality riding equipment and travel accessories, a reputation that persists today. The house acquired noted umbrella maker, Brigg in 1943 and milliner Herbert Johnson in 1996 to place the firm at the forefront of the luxury accessories market.

Compton Webb

Compton Webb (C.W. Headdress), since 1899A Christy & Co. Ltd brand with a specialist focus on uniforms and work headwear(Multiple stores & various stockists)Head office: Unit 7, Witan Park, Avenue 2, Station Lane, Witney, Oxfordshire OX28 4FH, United KingdomTel: +44 (0)1993 770 736Flagship store: 16 Princes Arcade, London SW1Y 6DS, United KingdomTel: +44 (0)7710 394 602 cwheaddress.com