The London Lounge

While I was away last week a very heavy packaged arrived for me. It turned out to be the longest, most expensive brochure a tailoring firm will likely ever produce. Titled Anderson & Sheppard: A Style is Born, it's a beautifully made book about the firm, its history, and with many photos of its more celebrated clients. And a few others who likely knew the editors.

One nice touch-- to divide sections, the editors used double-spread photos of A&S house fabrics. With an index in the back, in case you want to see about whether they have featured your favorite chalk stripe or 13oz herringbone.

Concordia, what is your opinion? Is it worth the price (35GBP on Amazon) and time?

Andrey

My price was a bit lower, unless you count all of the invoices over the last 15 years.

As to whether it's worth it-- hard to say. It's extremely well done, and it has some great pics of the shop as well as of finished product. The text is also well-written, albeit completely biased. I'm glad to have it but if you've been trolling the internet for that kind of insight, you might have hit your limit already.

Concordia wrote:My price was a bit lower, unless you count all of the invoices over the last 15 years.

As to whether it's worth it-- hard to say. It's extremely well done, and it has some great pics of the shop as well as of finished product. The text is also well-written, albeit completely biased. I'm glad to have it but if you've been trolling the internet for that kind of insight, you might have hit your limit already.

It's a pity that they left the original shop.
NJS

Thank you for sharing.

Amazon US and UK.

NJS wrote: It's a pity that they left the original shop.
NJS

Dear NJS,

the question is: can you operate a bespoke only business out of Savile Row while keeping your owners and banks happy? All the big sharks there survive on MTM and RTW. But I know you know

Best regards, David

davidhuh wrote:

NJS wrote: It's a pity that they left the original shop.
NJS

Dear NJS,

the question is: can you operate a bespoke only business out of Savile Row while keeping your owners and banks happy? All the big sharks there survive on MTM and RTW. But I know you know

Best regards, David

Dear David,
It's just a pity.
best,
NJS

I'm always reluctant to suffer change, but their new shop is really an upgrade to the previous one. Not that the dour old place, with no sign of employees inside and no hint in the window of their preferred style didn't also have its charm.

Concordia wrote:I'm always reluctant to suffer change, but their new shop is really an upgrade to the previous one. Not that the dour old place, with no sign of employees inside and no hint in the window of their preferred style didn't also have its charm.

No 32 Old Burlington Street is a fine place; it's just that so much of A&S's history was bound up with the old place - grim as you say that it was and, at the end of the day, I suppose, too big for them and just big enough for the new chap.
NJS

davidhuh wrote:

NJS wrote: It's a pity that they left the original shop.
NJS

Dear NJS,

the question is: can you operate a bespoke only business out of Savile Row while keeping your owners and banks happy? All the big sharks there survive on MTM and RTW. But I know you know

Best regards, David

There are still firms on the Row who are purely bespoke, nothing else; Welsh & Jefferies is one of them (not big shark though, thankfully).

So does Henry Poole and Norton & Sons (if you don't count their relation to E Tautz, which is not featured inside the shop).

Andrey

Scot wrote:
There are still firms on the Row who are purely bespoke, nothing else; Welsh & Jefferies is one of them (not big shark though, thankfully).

andreyb wrote:So does Henry Poole and Norton & Sons (if you don't count their relation to E Tautz, which is not featured inside the shop).

Andrey

Dear Andrey, dear Scot,

indeed, you are right and I ask you to apologise my hasted judgement.

Best regards, David

Concordia wrote:While I was away last week a very heavy packaged arrived for me. It turned out to be the longest, most expensive brochure a tailoring firm will likely ever produce. Titled Anderson & Sheppard: A Style is Born, it's a beautifully made book about the firm, its history, and with many photos of its more celebrated clients. And a few others who likely knew the editors.

One nice touch-- to divide sections, the editors used double-spread photos of A&S house fabrics. With an index in the back, in case you want to see about whether they have featured your favorite chalk stripe or 13oz herringbone.

Dear Concordia:

Thanks for sharing this information, I'm looking forward to adding this book to my haberdashery library.

Best Regards,

Cufflink79

andreyb wrote:Concordia, what is your opinion? Is it worth the price (35GBP on Amazon) and time?

Andrey

This month's Vanity Fair features sort of a potted version of the book for anyone who wants a nibble.

I received two books about bespoke firms last week.
The A&S, A Style is Born and the Rubinacci book.
I must say that I enjoyed the A&S book very much and rate it highly.
But as an A&S customer I am biased.