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Graham Browne bespoke in City of London

hineygate

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Does anyone have any experience with Graham Browne? He quoted me £725 for a bespoke 2-piece when I rang this morning. That is obvoiusly incredibly cheap for London, so was wondering if there is a catch.
 

A Harris

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I've seen examples of his work before. I cannot speak to the fit, but the worksmanship was pretty good. It's not on the level of the big name Savile Row tailors, but still good.
 

hineygate

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Thank you for your reply. When you say that the workmanship was not as good as Savile Row, what about it was inferior?
 

SimonC

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I walked past this morning as I was heading that way. The samples in his window certainly look nicely made (and he's not got any of that cliched baste-fitted stuff with the lapels still open), and there was a customer in there getting a baste fitting - certainly Graham (for I presume it was he) seemed to be very attentive and the fit looked good (as far as I could tell at that stage of construction).

Also in the area at a similar price there's a tailor in Leadenhall Market (but I'd steer clear as he often seems to stand in the doorway trying to drum up trade), and Castle's (in Castle Court, a small lane off Cornhill). To the best of my knowledge, both of these tailors charge around £800 for a two-piece bespoke.

A little more expensive would be Couch & Hoskin, or Thresher & Glenny. I think they both start at about £1200, but T&G are currently doing 20% off bespoke if you pay upon ordering. Fox & Sons on London Wall also offer some form of bespoke service, but I don't know how it works / what the pricing is.

There's also Lawrence Highman in the Barbican, but it looked all but dead when I went over to investigate - there was certainly none of the paraphernalia I'd expect a thriving tailor to have.

If anyone else has further information on tailors located within the square mile, especially those at the lower end of the price range, I'd be interested to hear - especially experiences from those who've used them.
 

mr_prak

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What are your alternatives in London for this price? Can you also get MTM of a couple of the big names on savile row?
I remember an old threat with names of a couple of names of Soho tailors. I believe they also have bespoke in this price range.


Edit:
Just read the other post i was referring to: It was in the 'who is chan comparable to outside asia?

Quote:

but i dont think chan's stuff is really bespoke! i would say it is more glorifide M2M - also they dont have the skilled trades people in HK now. this is true for all M2O products even shoes bag's etc! also most are too inconsistant, today you will get a great product and tomorrow you will get a bag of sh1te for the same price.

if i had the choice i would much prefer to buy in London or naples you can but full bespoke from of the row for about 800 pounds in a staple fabric, tailor such as Chris Kerr, Tom Browne and Tony Lutwyche all on Berwick Street. and all their prices are starting about 700 - 950 pounds and the suit i have from Chris Kerr is far better than any of the suits i have seen from chan.

and i would still have my suit made by him if i was in London more regular


I don't know what MTM costs at Huntsman, I would really love to own a huntsman... typical one button, WOW
 

Winot

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Grahame Browne has made all but two of my non-OTR suits (my first was a MTM from a nice Greek Cypriot chap in Green Lanes and my second a bespoke from Tmiothy Everest for my wedding). I am very happy with the quality/price ratio. I should say however that I am very much in the foothills of knowledge about these things; I couldn't tell you for example what their house style is but my impression is that they are reasonably (rather than very) drapey.

I have had the following made:

1. SB 3B peak lapels two piece in grey fresco.
2. SB 3B peak lapels three piece in blue birdseye.
3. SB 2B peak lapels two piece in chocolate brown with light blue pinstripe.
4. DB 6x2 two piece in greyish brown herringbone with blue windowpane.

All were made with an extra pair of trousers and all cost around the £900 mark (apart from the 3 piece where I had the waistcoat made after the suit and it cost an extra £200). Prices for a two piece are indeed about £725.

The suits really are bespoke. There is a baisted fitting after a couple of weeks and the final fitting is from 2-6 weeks later depending on how busy they are. The quality is good but when I have needed alterations done (or even a whim indulged e.g. changing the buttons on suit no. 1 after a year) these have been done without complaint or charge. There are two cutters, Grahame and his colleague (don't know his name I'm ashamed to say) and they farm out the making (within London I think) although there is an elderly chap on the premises who seems to do some jobs.

So what's the downside?

Well it's quite an efficient operation, but the corollary is that they are not particularly keen to chat about the minutiae of the craft or the pros and cons of the various options. You can feel rushed into a decision as a result. Nor are they very good at making suggestions about what might suit you. I get the feeling that they have a product and they are very comfortable with it, but not particularly innovative or imaginative. That's not to say that they have ever resisted my requirements; it's just that I would have appreciated a bit more guidance whilst I was learning about what I liked. Also, I can see places where the fit could be improved. Nothing drastic - things like the collar really hugging the shirt collar at the back of the neck; more consistency on sleeve length; higher armholes. I guess that this is what the extra £1500 would buy if I went to the Row.

The other thing is that whilst they have a good range of conservative fabrics, there is less choice of the more left field examples (that probably says more about my tastes than theirs). And they've only a dozen or so linings, although that doesn't bother me much.

All in all, I would recommend them unreservedly, with the caveat that it is probably worth doing a fair bit of research on sites such as this, so that you go along with a clear idea of what you want. That said, at £725 a pop, you can afford to experiment a bit more than with most bespoke.

(And if any members would like to see my suits they are very welcome to PM me - I am based on Holborn Viaduct and cycle to work so keep all my suits in the office).

W.
 

SimonC

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Thank you ever so much for your very informative reply - that serves as a more than worthy response to the PM I sent you. I'd be interested in buying you a pint / [insert non-alcoholic alternative here] one lunchtime next week if you're around. I'll send you a PM, but I'm asking here in case anyone else wants to join us?
 

Winot

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Some news on Graham Browne - I'm sorry to report that Graham's business partner Mike died unexpectedly earlier this year as a result of a heart attack. After a difficult period running the business on his own, Graham has managed to find two younger men to work in the shop (Russell and Dan). I visited yesterday to order an odd jacket* and I'm pleased to say it all seems to be running very smoothly.

[* a 3 roll 2.5 SB with patch pockets, side vents and fishmouth lapels in a brown herringbone from the Porter & Harding "Glorious Twelfth" book]
 

SimonC

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Just resurrecting an old thread with two updates; 1. Simon Crompton (no relation to me) has provided a photo-documentary of the construction of his Graham Browne suit online, starting here My First English Bespoke Suit 2. Graham Browne are having a sale - £650 buys you a full bespoke two-piece suit (waistcoat an additional £180 if you need one) made from selected bunches. Nothing too fancy, but solid-looking cloth of reasonable quality
 

ld111134

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A true 3-piece bespoke suit for under US$1,400? That is a great deal.
 

fox81

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i just commissioned a navy mohair 2 piece. 650 gbp
 

joshman

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Just ordered 2 suits from the H Lesser 11/12oz book this lunch time. For £650 one can't even get a pair of pants from some SR tailors.
 

Greatday

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I do not know about Graham Browne's abilities to produce bespoke suits, but I can definitely share my today's experience with his shop.

Yesterday, I pop in to his place because I needed an alteration of one of my suits. One of the guys in his 40s met me there. He explained to me that he would be happy to help me. To take in the suit he offered me the price of 40 pounds plus 20 pounds for neck alteration.

Today I brought my suit for alteration, but this time, it was a different guy in with Graham Browne himself. The service which I got from both of them was worse than in the worst possible place. Firstly, they told me that why I bought suit from someone else and did not come and ordered a suit from them. After that my alteration price jumped to 150 pounds. I explained to them that I was told by one of their colleagues that it would cost me 60 pounds overall. The answer was: "Sorry, he is the boss - pointing at Graham Browne - it is his decision to provide quotes.

For this kind of poor service, I decided not to alter my suit with these horrible tailors. They reminded my some scam taxi-drivers at night.

I will never suggest them to anyone.
 

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