Simon Holloway Takes Dunhill Again to Its Roots in British Tailoring

LONDON — Dunhill's new inventive director Simon Holloway has chosen a predominantly girls's trend showcase to current his first menswear assortment, and whereas the selection could seem uncommon, there's a logic to it.

Holloway, who took up his position final April, desires to refocus consideration on British luxurious menswear. Regardless of a number of thriving manufacturers and companies in and round Savile Row, there isn’t any longer a males's trend week right here. So what higher place to make a splash than London Trend Week?

“It's essential to recapture the mantle of beautiful British menswear as a result of it's been a bit absent,” Holloway stated in an interview.

“The world references British menswear in its design work, whether or not its heritage in shade, material typology and even the codes of traditional menswear; It actually derives from an English building. Celebrating it in a very stunning method will probably be great,” she added.

Since becoming a member of the 131-year-old British home, owned by Compagnie Financière Richemont, he has been trying to create a robust visible language for Dunhill by way of activations and campaigns that intensify British type and craftsmanship.

Holloway is conversant in many features of British type and his experience spans males's and girls's clothes, equipment and footwear. He got here to Dunhill after a short interval as inventive director of James Purdey & Sons, the well-known gun producer and out of doors clothes provider which can also be a part of the Richemont group.

He’s British, lives in London and studied trend design at Kingston College Faculty of Trend. He’s identified for his mushy contact, his experience in luxurious materials and leather-based, and his means to work in ready-to-wear, footwear and equipment.

Previous to becoming a member of Purdey, Holloway served as inventive director of Agnona and has constructed a profession in trend and luxurious, holding senior inventive positions at manufacturers resembling Hogan, Jimmy Choo, Narciso Rodríguez and Ralph Lauren.

He stated his precedence is “to retell the story of Dunhill, and it's a narrative that lots of people don't actually know. Dunhill began with every thing automotive associated. And there was an exploration of outerwear, like the unique automobile coats that have been made within the early 20th century.”

“Sports activities tailoring” was Dunhill's path to ready-to-wear, and early types have been impressed by English aristocrats' love of driving.

Within the archives, Holloway discovered leather-based and generally tweed coats and jackets, which he used as inspiration for the autumn 2024 assortment.

He has eradicated these early designs and recreated them for the 21st century, giving them a lighter and extra modern contact.

The silhouettes, Holloway stated, really feel “quintessentially English,” however gained't be produced in a stodgy, old style method. “They’re extra according to the way in which males costume right this moment, whereas bearing in mind the depth and heritage [of fabrics] that Dunhill clients are accustomed to,” he added.

In an additional tribute to British historical past, Holloway's exhibition will happen within the Duveen Wing of the Nationwide Portrait Gallery, which was opened by King George V and Queen Mary in 1939.

“I actually needed to indicate the gathering in a quintessentially British setting, and never in some stuffy outdated Pall Mall membership with all of the unlucky symbols of empire that nobody desires to have a look at or affiliate with,” the designer stated.

The Nationwide Portrait Gallery, opened in 1856, appeared like the suitable selection for Holloway for different causes as effectively. He believes that the establishment has been addressing “the problematic historical past that exists within the nation” with out dropping its historic or aesthetic worth.

He additionally believes the newly renovated gallery is a “reflection of the society we dwell in right this moment” because it sheds gentle on artists, writers and designers all through historical past.

“Many of the art work in these rooms celebrates creativity. The theme of the galleries is a way more constructive message than the stuffy 'Mr. So-and-So,'” Holloway defined.

That stated, you hope the backdrop of work, gilded frames, and silk-padded partitions doesn't give anybody the incorrect impression.

“I'm not making an attempt to create some sort of interval drama,” he stated, including that the gathering is “very a lot supposed for a person of right this moment.”

Within the assortment, he’ll provide Dunhill's three levels of tailoring: ready-to-wear, tailor-made and made-to-measure, as a singular imaginative and prescient on the runway.

Dunhill's customized clothes, he stated, is large enterprise.

“We now have a really sturdy and dependable clientele internationally with vital customized and bespoke manufacturing companies in the USA, Japan and China, and in addition right here at house,” the designer stated.

“We discovered that our tailoring gross sales are rising by double digits. There’s a enormous demand for each ready-to-wear tailoring and bespoke and bespoke orders,” he added.

A spokesperson for the model stated Dunhill shouldn’t be feeling the impression of the worldwide luxurious slowdown, with “gross sales rising yr on yr in each the West and Asia.”

As reported, the corporate restructured its operations in 2022 with a bolstered give attention to “traditional type, masculine magnificence and a way of Britishness.”

The model not too long ago closed its retailer subsequent to the Royal Academy as a result of proprietor's refurbishment of the constructing. Because of this, Dunhill's focus over the following 18 months will probably be on its members' international flagship membership, Bourdon Home, on Davies Avenue in Mayfair.

Bourdon Home has had an inside renovation in addition to an up to date and developed “expertise” that goals to attract clients into the Dunhill universe. An in-house tailoring workforce is offered for the model's rtw, customized and bespoke choices. There’s additionally a discreet VIP house, barber store and Alfred's Café.

Holloway stated he is able to use Bourdon Home as a laboratory to check his concepts and improvements, much like founder Alfred Dunhill's method.

When he accepted the place, Holloway described the home's founder as “a pioneer, an innovator and one of the influential British tastemakers of the 20th century. His obsession with ingenuity and refinement created a home synonymous with luxurious and high quality, a strong and lasting inspiration.”