Suit Yourself
Menswear labels for shoppers who want smart threads that are made to last
Shopping sometimes feels like work. To find the right shirt, one often has to slog through dozens of cloth racks and/or web pages. This isn’t true of S.E.H Kelly, which is run by a Savile Row-designer duo who make clothes for men, every aspect of which—the cloth, the buttons, the buckles—is from the British Isles.
The label’s workshop occupies a very small and rather dark workers’ unit built at the end of the 1800s. It is tricky to locate even from half a yard away. “Visitors often remark, ‘Not easy to find, are you?’ which I take as a compliment, since I’ve always enjoyed visiting places which are off the beaten track, or require some effort to discover. [They are] always more fun, I think, and exciting, [which] hopefully brings a tinge more interest and character than a typical shopfront”, said founder and owner Paul Vincent.
As slow-fashion movement gains momentum, there’s a growing pool of shoppers who prefer clothes that are made to last—and feel special. Also from London, Casely-Hayford is one of the few that offer both. The brand creates fashionable yet tailored pieces for men who want things that fit just-so. 10 years since launching, they opened their first shop where men—and women—can buy ready-to-wear garments. But the bespoke service sets the brand apart. “If someone wants our trainers made in a different colour, we can do that,” says Charlie Casely-Hayford, the son of the father-son team, “alongside a custom bomber jacket and alpaca coat.”
Sources: Ideo Blog (September 27, 2018) | The Monocle Minute (October 23, 2018) | Image: Tristan Fewings/Getty