The Anderson & Sheppard Expatriates Thread

[The_Foxx]

for those interested in some nice pix of an A&S suit, saw this photo-heavy listing on ebay. Price is way too high for a vintage bespoke suit, but enjoyed the pictures which illustrates some of the style and details of a nice A&S. I enjoyed it and thought I'd pass it along:

http://cgi.ebay.com/8-500-ANDERSON-S...3A1%7C294%3A50

 

[voxsartoria]

From the first draft of Chapter 6, A World-Class Product, from Evil Plans, a book due according to the author Hugh MacLeod to be published by Penguin in 2011:

=== excerpt begins ===

6. A WORLD-CLASS PRODUCT.

"The curious story of an English Savile Row taiÂlor and an under-employed cartoonist."

In late 2004, things were still rough for me. I was still broke, unemÂploÂyed and wonÂdeÂring what the hell I was going to do next. The ansÂwer came from a direcÂtion I would never have predicted.

At the time, I was living in CumÂbria, in a cotÂtage in the Northern English boonÂdocks, not far from the famous Lake DisÂtrict. I was just lying low, scraÂping a living doing freeÂlance, trying to save money. It was a bleak and miseÂraÂble time for me, frankly.

In the local village pub, I got friendly with a local fellow named ThoÂmas Mahon. We were about the same age, and his busiÂness wasn't going very well, either.

ThoÂmas was a taiÂlor. He made suits. And not just any kind of suits. He made the best of the best. $5000, hand-made suits. He'd been traiÂned down on Savile Row in LonÂdon, the legenÂdary English home of taiÂloÂring. Some say they make the best suits in the world, there. He had made suits for rock stars, royalty, famous desigÂners and... you name it. He really was that good. The man who traiÂned him, DenÂnis HalÂberry, was head cutÂter for AnderÂson & ShepÂpard, one of the most esteeÂmed taiÂloÂring firms in the world.

A few years preÂviously, ThoÂmas had got sick of worÂking on Savile Row, deciÂded he misÂsed his beloÂved CumÂbria, and deciÂded to move back home and set up shop in the village he grew up in.

EverÂyone told him he was mad, but he paid no attention.

Though he was one of the most resÂpecÂted taiÂlors on Savile Row, it turns out he wasn't very good at getÂting the word out about his work. His cusÂtoÂmers loved him, but they didn't like to tell other peoÂple about him. They wanÂted him all to themÂselÂves. So in spite of his forÂmiÂdaÂble talent, ThoÂmas wasn't getÂting one-fitth the busiÂness he deserved.

So there we were, ChristÂmas approaching, and in spite of us both feeÂling a wee bit gloomy about our current ecoÂnoÂmic staÂtuÂses, we were cheeÂrily sitÂting in the local pub one eveÂning, with ThoÂmas telling me all these wonÂderÂful stoÂries about the peoÂple and expeÂrienÂces of worÂking on Savile Row.

Finally I inteÂrrupÂted him.

"Tom", I said, "these Savile Row stoÂries are terriÂfic. You should blog about them."

"What's a blog?"

By this time I had been blogÂging for about three years, and knew all about how it worÂked. That night, we came up with an EVIL PLAN. I would show Tom how to blog, he would make the suits, I would figure out a way to spread the word online.

EnglishCut.com was born.

InsÂtead of using the blog to hard-sell his suits, ThoÂmas just wrote these great little blog posts about the world he knew and loved- the comÂmuÂnity of Savile Row taiÂlors. He'd write about it all- his friends on the Row, the pubs they drank in, the other busiÂnesÂses on the Row. He just wrote about it honestly, with great pasÂsion and affecÂtion. He praiÂsed the other shops, his comÂpeÂtiÂtion. Why not? They were all good peoÂple, with second-to-none skills.

A few years later, he would conÂfide in me that he never thought anyone would ever find what he wrote about that inteÂresÂting, so not expecÂting anyÂbody to read it, he just wrote it his way. If he had thought a lot of peoÂple would be inteÂresÂted in it, he would have writÂten it difÂfeÂrently. More uptight. Less transparent.

And boy, was he wrong in the end. PeoÂple LOVED his blog. They ADORED the transÂpaÂrency and ThoÂmas' easyÂgoing, unpreÂtenÂtious manÂner. So much so that, within no time at all, he had gone from under-employed taiÂlor, to having a two-year waiÂting list, just to get a first appointment.

If you go online and GooÂgle ThoÂmas or English Cut, you'll find a lot to read about. The story got a got of attenÂtion in the bloÂgopsphere back then, simply because in 2005, an English Savile Row taiÂlor was proÂbably the perÂson you'd least expect to start a blog. But it worÂked. It worÂked AMAZINGLY well.

We worÂked together for about two more years, before amiÂcably going our sepaÂrate ways. It was one of the most rewarÂding career moves I ever made. And I think ThoÂmas would say the same.

My father once remarÂked to me, "I bet you had no idea in the beginÂning that the blog would work as well as it did, eh?"

True, I had no idea. But looÂking back, we had a few things going for us.

i. A great proÂduct. ThoÂmas is one of the best taiÂlors in the world. His suits REALLY ARE that good. If we were just selling comÂmoÂdiÂfied drek, I doubt if anyone would've paid much attention.

ii. A uniÂque story. When he starÂted, ThoÂmas was the only Savile Row taiÂlor wriÂting a blog, and this gave him a uniÂque voice in the bloÂgosphere. This fueÂlled the inteÂrest. Had masÂses of taiÂlors already been blogÂging, it would've been much harÂder for his own uniÂque "idea-virus" to spread. The first-mover advanÂtage rule still applies.

iii. PasÂsion & AuthoÂrity. ThoÂmas has both in spaÂdes. That's what kept peoÂple coming back. That's what built up trust. That's what turÂned his reaÂders into cusÂtoÂmers. Which is why "Share what you love" is the best advice there is.

iv. ConÂtiÂnuity. He kept at it. He didn't expect the blog to transÂform his forÂtuÂnes overÂnight. As I'm fond of saying, "Blogs don't write themÂselÂves". Based on our expeÂrience, if you want blogs to transÂform your busiÂness, I'd say give yourÂself at least a year.

v. Focus. It was always about the suits. It was never about what he had for breakÂfast, GooÂgle trafÂfic, or frothy gosÂsip about other bloggers.

vi. ThoÂmas spoke in his own voice. ThoÂmas is a straightÂforÂward, affaÂble fellow, and the voice on the blog is the same as the voice you meet in real life. He never tried to misÂreÂpreÂsent himÂself on his blog, nor try to create some over-glamorized image of his proÂfesÂsion. He just told it like it is. And peoÂple resÂponÂded well to that. As he once put it, "We're so lucky we don't have to create the brand out of thin air. We just tell the truth and the brand builds itself."

vii. SoveÂreignty. The only peoÂple we had to please were the two of us. No bosÂses or outside invesÂtors to keep happy. BosÂses and invesÂtors like guaÂranÂtees, but there aren't any.

viii. We were both broke when we starÂted. Had we had masÂses of money at the beginÂning, we would have had a lot more options on how to get the word out. In all likeÂlihood, these options would have been a lot more expenÂsive and not nearly as effecÂtive. SomeÂtiÂmes lack of capiÂtal is a defiÂnite advantage.

A blog is a great way to build one's own perÂsoÂnal "gloÂbal micÂroÂbrand". As the Job-For-Life no lonÂger exists, as the value of the social "posiÂtion" eroÂdes and the value of the "proÂject" takes its place, perÂsoÂnal brand deveÂlopÂment becoÂmes far more imporÂtant to one's career. Blogs are a good place to start.

Hey, if a Savile Row taiÂlor can do it, what's your excuse?


=== excerpt ends ===


- B

 

[voxsartoria]

Steed (DeBoise) SB suit in 11oz Lesser Lumb's Golden Bale worsted flannel:

Made up as a three piece, vest not worn today.


- B

 

[wingcat]

excellent anecdote voxsatoria, thoughtful and well written. thanx

 

[A Y]

LL Coops2 made into 6x2 DB by Tom Mahon:

Fit pics tomorrow if I'm feeling brave and not too lazy.

--Andre

 

[Dw3610wm]

Thanks for a wonderful thread. I would love to see this in its finished state, Vox;

 

[emptym]

Wonderful piece on Mahon, Vox. Thanks for sharing it.

Originally Posted by A Y

...Fit pics tomorrow if I'm feeling brave and not too lazy.
Nice. Looking forward to the fit pics, you brave soul.

 

[Baron]

Originally Posted by voxsartoria

Steed (DeBoise) SB suit in 11oz Lesser Lumb's Golden Bale worsted flannel:

Made up as a three piece, vest not worn today.


- B

Beautiful. Do you have any close up pics of the fabric? I'm curious to see how different worsted flannel looks from woolen.

 

[Concordia]

Originally Posted by voxsartoria

Steed (DeBoise) SB suit in 11oz Lesser Lumb's Golden Bale worsted flannel:

Made up as a three piece, vest not worn today.


- B

I've got one of those in the works-- 2pc, no ticket pocket.

 

[Sterling Gillette]

Vox and all the other A&S-expat clients: I see all the coats made by A&S-influenced cutters have ticket pockets nearly as large as the hip pocket below. Is this a typical stylistic element of the Scholte school of cutting or simply an English fad? The Austrian cutters I met all do a much smaller ticket pocket.

 

[Manton]

Originally Posted by Sterling Gillette

Vox and all the other A&S-expat clients: I see all the coats made by A&S-influenced cutters have ticket pockets nearly as large as the hip pocket below. Is this a typical stylistic element of the Scholte school of cutting or simply an English fad? The Austrian cutters I met all do a much smaller ticket pocket.

The ticket pockets are the same width top to bottom as the hip pockets, but they are about half as long left to right. The fronts of both pockets line up, so in a frontal shot, where you can't see the back end of eiher pocket, you might not be able to tell that the ticket is half as long.

 

[Sterling Gillette]

Originally Posted by Manton

The ticket pockets are the same width top to bottom as the hip pockets, but they are about half as long left to right. The fronts of both pockets line up, so in a frontal shot, where you can't see the back end of eiher pocket, you might not be able to tell that the ticket is half as long.

Very interesting, thank you Manton. I have learned from one of my tailors that the Austrian (practised by Konsal, Niedersuesz, etc.) tradition ist to make the ticket pocket half as wide (top to bottom & left to right) as the hip pocket below and not lined up with it but centered to the front dart. This way, they are in line with the curve of the quarters. Of course, this only makes sense if the flaps are properly angled to resemble the quarter's lines.

 

[Manton]

Actually, some tailors line up the front edges of the two pockets while some place the ticket pocket a bit further forward. I prefer the latter approach.

 

[aj_del]

Originally Posted by A Y

LL Coops2 made into 6x2 DB by Tom Mahon:

Fit pics tomorrow if I'm feeling brave and not too lazy.

--Andre

Love the fabric

 

[voxsartoria]

Originally Posted by Dw3610wm

Thanks for a wonderful thread. I would love to see this in its finished state, Vox;

Originally Posted by voxsartoria

Fear the Reaper Thursday:



[click for supersize]

Steed (E. DeBoise) bespoke suit in Lesser 11oz worsted Lumb's Golden Bale flannel
Borrelli shirt, double cuffs
Marinella bespoke lined six-fold tie
Trianon 18k and shell links
Simonnot-Godard cotton square
DorÃ

-DorÃ

socks
Saint Crispin's model 115 stitch caps in black calf
Tiffany Etoile band in platinum
Cartier Tank Louis in yellow 18k

Closeup:

- B

- B