Tag Archives: UK

TALLISKER

A legendary whisky from the Isle of Skye, Tallisker has been at the forefront of the Scotch whisky industry since the distillery’s foundation in 1830. Produced at the same facility ever since, the brand focuses on its rugged seaside location and its unique heritage as one of the most iconic makers in the highlands and islands. Known for its peaty tones, using spring water sourced from its immediate vicinity, Tallisker has often been touted as the greatest whisky in the world with famous patron Robert Louis Stevenson suggesting it may even be the “king o’ drinks”. The brand today sits within the Diageo portfolio and produces a range of aged single malt whisky, with various cask varieties to meet the preferences of the most discerning of palates.

HAND & LOCK

Hand & Lock has plied its trade as the leading embroiderer in the United Kingdom since its foundation back in 1767. The firm is regularly sought out by the Royal Household, high-ranking military officers, City livery companies and bespoke tailors to undertake intricate embroidery work and is a go-to supplier when commissioning specialist ceremonial or costume pieces. The firm’s celebrated customer list has also included a host of glittering names from Hollywood and high society, with many famous wedding dresses having been embroidered by hand by the Hand & Lock team. The firm sits under the Firmin House group, which includes tailoring, medallier and military outfitter brands.

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.

ROLLS ROYCE

Henry Royce was an engineer who believed in the highest standards and a quest for perfection. His first car did not satisfy those precise and exacting standards and so, in 1904, he endeavoured to create his own, market-leading engine for the burgeoning automotive industry. Car dealer, Charles Rolls, was so greatly impressed that he sought to become the exclusive dealer of Royce’s cars which would be sold from his London business to the most discerning customers. In 1906, Rolls-Royce was born and their legacy would be forever determined and, today, Rolls Royce cars are still recognised as the ultimate status symbol, the pinnacle of automotive engineering and a byword for luxury.

Rachel Trevor Morgan

Rachel Trevor MorganMilliner to Her Majesty the Queen of England, Rachel Morgan’s bespoke creations are high in demand for special occasions.(By appointment only)18 Crown Passage, King Street, St James’s, London SW1Y 6PP, United KingdomTel: +44 (0)20 7839 8927racheltrevormorgan.com

Try & Lilly

Try & Lilly, since 1864Specialising in military and uniform hats with a supplementary line in casual mens hats including their Hats of Ireland range crafted from Donegal tweed.(Various stockists)Head office: 95 Kempston Street, Liverpool L3 8HE, United KingdomTel: +44 (0)151 207 2001tryandlilly.co.uk