Fashion
Princes, pushy neighbours and Pooles; Hayley Leaver chats to Angus Cundey, the chairman of Savile Row’s oldest resident
A
s the acknowledged “Founders of Savile Row”, the creators of the Tuxedo and the former tailors of Winston Churchill and Charles
Dickens, Henry Poole & Co isn’t short of impressive credentials. Perhaps none more so than the fact it has remained a family-run business for the Pooles and Cundeys since its establishment in 1807. And catching up with the sixth generation and current chairman, Angus Cundey, is it easy to see why this international brand has survived when others haven’t. “I think pretty much every Savile Row firm has been sold at some stage,” says Mr Cundey, “and we are actually the only one that still has the original family running it. “While we went through a period where the
heritage was not respected as it is today, I think it would be true to say that we are the only tailors in Savile Row who have been able to keep their old ledgers, showing the different generations of families that have visited. “We have 40 royal warrants around the walls and the staff certainly respect the heritage of the firm, which helps us to maintain this history that we have.” And what a wonderful history it is. Started in
1806 by James Poole, the company was originally a military tailors, particularly during the time of the Battle of Waterloo, making uniforms for army officers. When James’ son, Henry, took over the reins in 1846 the focus shifted to making clothes for the aristocracy and hunting, fishing and shooting. Similarly, his decision to enlarge the premises and build a new entrance helped to change the future of English tailoring forever. Cundey adds, “Tanks to Henry Poole turning
the company around and making the main entrance on Savile Row, which at that time was full of doctors and surgeons, we founded Savile Row, which has now become the most famous street of tailoring that there is. “We’ve always manufactured our garments
on Savile Row and if the business is going to continue, which I certainly hope it will, then I hope it will do so here.” An innovator in more ways than one, Henry
Poole is also credited as the creator of the dinner jacket in 1865, thanks to his friendship with the then Prince of Wales and future King Edward VII. Cundey adds, “When the Prince of Wales was
in London he always had to wear a tailcoat and a white tie for dinner as Queen Victoria insisted upon it every night, without fail. So when he was given Sandringham by his mother one of the first things he said was “I’m not wearing a white tie anymore I”m going to see my tailor”. And that’s
Embassy was installed in London and the Japanese came to Henry Poole for their western suits. “If you’re making clothes for Americans and Japanese therefore you can’t have a distinct house style. What we’ve tried to achieve is that an American walking down Wall Street would look equally as smart as a Japanese person walking down the Ginza in Tokyo. People come to us for an elegant, comfortable suit that will look correct in any part of the world.” While the showroom is home to more than
6,000 cloth swatches, including superfine worsted, pure cashmere and cottons from the finest mills in Huddersfield, the West Country and Scottish Borders, America’s influence has also encouraged some important innovations in fabric weight. He adds, “Te main thing that people don’t
realise is that in the 1950s all English people, including myself, were wearing suits made from heavy cloth, of about 18/19oz. Now however, because of the developments in air conditioning and central heating, we have literally halved the weight of our cloth, which has actually made us more like engineers than cutters or makers. As you cannot manipulate a very thin cloth like you can an 18oz cloth, all of our tailors and cutters in many ways have had to become much more skilled than the tailors from my father’s day.” It is this international appeal that has helped them to also agree a franchise arrangement in
Japan and open up three shops in China (two in Beijing and one in Hangzhou). Tey also make regular visits to France, Germany, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Austria, Japan and the USA. Although they would like to add India to this list, protecting their home at No. 15 Savile Row remains their current priority. Cundey concludes, “My biggest concern is people muscling in on Savile Row. Tere are companies that I would certainly not call Savile Row tailors who have moved onto the street to use the name, and my biggest concern is that this will go on, ultimately squeezing out our workshops. “Currently every basement along the east side of the street has sewing tailors, trousers and coat makers working there, and it depends so much on the climate of rates and rents. When you are manufacturing on site, you obviously can’t afford the high rents that you could if you were just a retail shop. “We’ve managed to do it so far but it is an area
that concerns me. In this very competitive world we could be squeezed out and it is something that we are fighting all the time.”
For more information visit
www.henrypoole.com or telephone 020 7734 5985.
how the dinner jacket came about.” With additional orders from William Waldorf
Astor, Robert Goelet, Ogden Mills and Pierre Lorillard, who were all members of New York’s Tuxedo Club, the Tuxedo was born. As the story suggests, despite its constant
presence on Te Row, Henry Poole & Co has also been an international company for more than 150 years. Which is something that has been reflected in its style. Cundey adds, “In 1851 we started having
American customers, who were doing the European tour. Similarly, in 1871 the new Japanese
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