A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century.
Savile Row is a street in Mayfair, central London. Known principally for its traditional bespoke tailoring for men, the street has had a varied history that has included accommodating the headquarters of the Royal Geographical Society at 1 Savile Row, where significant British explorations to Africa and the South Pole were planned; and more recently, the Apple office of the Beatles at 3 Savile Row, where the band's final live performance was held on the roof of the building.
Bespoke tailoring or custom tailoring is clothing made to an individual buyer's specifications by a tailor. Bespoke garments are completely unique and created without the use of a pre-existing pattern, while made to measure uses a standard-sized pattern altered to fit the customer.
Gieves & Hawkes is a bespoke men's tailor and menswear retailer located at 1 Savile Row in London, England. The business was founded in 1771. It was acquired in 2012 by the Hong Kong conglomerate Trinity Ltd., which was in turn purchased by Shandong Ruyi in 2017. After Trinity was subject to a winding-up petition for debt in September 2021, Gieves & Hawkes was acquired in November 2022 by Frasers Group, owner of Sports Direct.
Ozwald Boateng, OBE is an English fashion designer, best known for his trademark twist on classic tailoring and bespoke styles.
Norton & Sons is a Savile Row bespoke tailor founded in 1821 by Walter Grant Norton. The firm is located on the east side of the street, at No. 16. It was purchased in 2005 by Scottish designer Patrick Grant, who revitalised the tailoring house. He sold the majority stake to James Sleater and Ian Meiers following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Turnbull & Asser is a British men's clothing retailer offering bespoke and made-to-measure garments. The company was established in 1885 and currently has its flagship store on Jermyn Street in the St James's area of London and its bespoke store around the corner on Bury Street. In addition to the two London stores, the company has a shop in New York City.
Henry Poole & Co. is a bespoke tailor located on Savile Row in London, United Kingdom. In the 1860s, it is widely-believed to have designed the first modern-style dinner jacket, according to specifications provided by the Prince of Wales. Some call the company “the founding father of Savile Row.” Its headquarters is at 15 Savile Row.
H. Huntsman & Sons is a high-end fashion house and bespoke tailor located at No. 11 Savile Row, London. It is known for its English bespoke menswear tailoring, cashmere ready-to-wear collections, and leather accessories.
Hardy Amies London (Limited) was a UK-based fashion house specializing in modern luxury menswear.
Fox Brothers & Co is a clothmaker based in Wellington, Somerset, England. The company is one of the few working cloth mills still producing cloth entirely in England since 1772, although the present company was incorporated in 1996.
Timothy Charles Peto Everest is a Welsh tailor and fashion designer. He moved to London in his early twenties to work with the Savile Row tailor Tommy Nutter. He then became one of the leaders of the New Bespoke Movement, which brought designer attitudes to the traditional skills of Savile Row tailoring.
DAKS is a British luxury fashion house, founded in 1894 by Simeon Simpson in London. It is one of only 15 firms to have held royal warrants from three members of the Royal Family. Officially granted to DAKS' Simpson Piccadilly store in 1956 was the royal warrant of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, followed by that of the Queen in 1962 and Charles, Prince of Wales in 1982.
Chester Barrie was a 'semi-bespoke' gentleman's tailor last located at No. 19 Savile Row, London.
Sir Edwin Hardy Amies KCVO was a British fashion designer, founder of the Hardy Amies label and a Royal Warrant holder as designer to Queen Elizabeth II.
Richard James is a bespoke Savile Row tailors and contemporary menswear company. It was founded in 1992 by designer Richard James, a graduate of Brighton College of Art and a former buyer for the London boutique Browns, and his business partner Sean Dixon. The Design and Brand Director is Toby Lamb, a graduate of Central Saint Martins. Richard James has won both the British Fashion Council's Menswear Designer of the Year and Bespoke Designer of the Year awards.
Thresher & Glenny, founded in 1755, is one of the world's oldest surviving tailors, shirt makers and outfitters. The company has held Royal Warrants since the late eighteenth century and makes court attire, and bespoke and ready-for-service gentlemen's garments including suits, jackets, shirts and ties. Today the company trades through a retail outlet at 1 Middle Temple Lane, in London, England.
Savile Row tailoring is men and women's bespoke tailoring that takes place on Savile Row and neighbouring streets in Mayfair, Central London. In 1846, Henry Poole, credited as being the "Founder of Savile Row", opened an entrance to his tailoring premises at No. 32 Savile Row. The term bespoke is understood to have originated in Savile Row when cloth for a suit was said to "be spoken for" by individual customers. The short street has been termed the "golden mile of tailoring", where customers have included Charles III, Winston Churchill, Lord Nelson, Napoleon III, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Laurence Olivier and Duke Ellington.
Tom Gilbey was a British fashion designer associated with Savile Row tailoring of the 1960s. His designs have featured in the Fashion Museum, Bath, and are in the collections of the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Museum of London.
Hormazd Narielwalla is a British collage artist and author based in London.
