A Conversation with Fielding & Nicholson

In the British menswear movement Savile Row and it's clothiers sit high atop the precipice of the tailoring fraternity, like the proverbial Manchester United unchallenged and like the newly crowned champions of English football the competition is falling behind. Not on quality or design, but often through lack of knowledge that there are other makers who can challenge the infamous names of the W1 postcode.

Fielding & Nicholson are hoping to make the attainability of suiting comparable in quality and service from the revered address a reality without having to take out a small mortgage.

We recently met with Ian Fielding who, a decade ago, saw a gap in the market to appeal to a more discerning customer who could forgo the recognised stalwarts in favour of a man with a vast knowledge of his trade and a inclination to provide continued service and dedication to a loyal group of patrons.

On a typically changeable, sunny/rainy April day in London we met at no.12 Savile Row to find out more about the brand and how Ian hopes to expand and increase it's demographic in a monopolised arm of the fashion industry:


ES: How did the company begin life?

F&N: After a succession of jobs in PR, marketing and managing clothing accounts for a tailor having a keen interest in clothes we set out to create a service for the market.

ES: Where did you learn you trade?

F&N: In London with Tom James, a personal tailoring service. Although I was based in London I would be visiting clients across Europe and bringing a tailoring service to the customer.

ES: What sets you apart from your competitors?

F&N: We use the same milliners and cloth suppliers as the Savile Row houses but can afford to have a lower price point as we don't have to pay the rents for a shopfront on the famed street. Our factory and workshop are in Ossett.

ES: What best describes your style of tailoring?

F&N: Classic British aesthetic, think Sherlock Holmes brought in to the 21st Century. A mix of city and country styles.

ES: Who would best represent your brand?

F&N: Daniel Craig or Jude Law.

ES: Which tailors do you admire or draw inspiration from?

F&N: I really like what the Cad & The Dandy are doing at the moment and classically Huntsman are a personal favourite.

ES: When you're not wearing bespoke suiting, what high street stores do you recommend?

F&N: Charles Tyrwhitt has a great casual range which is good value for money and I really like Nigel Hall, quality British brands.

ES: What is your price point?

F&N: We offer a made to measure service starting at £650 and bespoke at £1,200*. All of our products also come with a 5 year guarantee for repairs or alterations.

ES: Will you be showing at any of the menswear events in the Summer?

F&N: We will have a presence at Bristol fashion week and are hoping to secure appearance at the London Collections: Men for A/W.

ES: What does the future look like for Fielding & Nicholson?

F&N: We're hoping to set up operations in Switzerland to increase our presence in the European market and the USA in the very near future.

ES: How do people make an appointment with you?

F&N: You can call us on 020 7324 6049 or email team@fieldingandnicholson.com, we have offices in Clerkenwell or here in Savile Row for appointments or we can come to you, at home or at work, nationwide.

*Price excludes VAT. This is equivalent to Suit Supply (I like what Suit Supply are doing but being a Dutch company they have a very slender slim silhouette which doesn't tend to flatter the average stocky gent).


So if you're thinking about making an investment in tailored clothing for any cause you can find more info for Fielding & Nicholson on their website here. You can also follow them on Twitter @bespokentailor .

Many thanks again to Ian and Luisa for taking time out to talk to us.

Photo's: Courtesy of Fielding & Nicholson.

Brand Watch: Harry Stedman

An Anglo-American heritage brand drawing inspiration from the 1940's and a young man's worldly experiences. What's not to like ey, you could almost be looking at still from an episode of Heartbeat.

The shots from the debut collection look superb. Clean, classic with attention to detail and quality of the garments paramount. I'm looking forward to seeing what's next from these guys.

What caught my eye as I browsed the collection was the appearance of Barry The Barber's shop!

You can take a look at the collection here.

Source: Harry Stedman

Street Style: Jonathan's Aviator Jacket

Barry The Barber

Facial hair in all its varied forms and rock n' roll inspired haircuts are becoming ever more popular, and so too the resurgence of the 'gents barber'.

The man trusted to keep you looking ship shape, like your tailor and cobbler, is someone with whom you should have a great rapport.

Barry is a lone ranger and he's tucked away on Calvert Street, E2 next to Arnold Circus from Tuesday to Saturday so you might have missed him.

Visit Barry's website to arrange an appointment.

Street Style: Navy DB

Everything about this dapper gents outfit works so well. 

Different hues of blue from the socks to the navy pocket square, and all topped off with a pair of longwing brogues.

GQ @ Selfridges: Shoe Carnival

You know sometimes you just fancy getting a really intricate cityscape tattooed on your creepers? Well no I've never had that thought either but it sounded interesting enough on the invite.

Last week GQ hosted an event at Selfridges in conjunction with the mens shoe department promoting their 'Shoe Carnival' theme which runs until the 21st of this month and aims to give shoppers a number of different opportunities to get a more personal service when buying their footwear.

That particular evening Oliver Sweeney were offering a tattooing/personalisation service for pairs of shoes bought on the night and for the remainder of the month there are a number of different shoemakers making appearances in store.

Next up is Joseph Cheaney who will be showing the art of a cobblers craft whilst also showcasing special designs from their range and a made to measure service from April 11th.

GQ treated shoppers to a show from Cirque Du Soir and style assessments from The Bumbys.

Myself and Mr. Tee had the chance to photo some beautiful footwear and stylish revellers as well as meeting GQ's online fashion editor Nick Carvell who was looking rather dapper in double breasted number and double monk shoes no less.

Refreshments were supplied by Heineken, Vitamin Water and Joe & Stephs gourmet popcorn.

Zegna

Gucci

Ralph Lauren

Tods

Lanvin

Paul Smith

Grenson

Oliver Spencer

You can follow Nick on twitter @NickCarvell.

You can also see more photo's from the event at Heineken's Facebook page here.

No. 44 a Fashion Experiment

We all the know the respected heritage brands that have established their place in today's menswear market, the Hackett's, Barbour's and Belstaff's of this world, but what credence is given to those at the other end of the spectrum those making the first steps into a market that doesn't seem to see much in the way of introductions too often.

No. 44 curated by Katrin Salem and Samuel Rook aims to appeal to the creative, the dandy and the gent with a clean cut silhouette and a classic tailoring basis.

Katrin, a bespoke tailoring graduate of UAL has experience at Elizabeth Radcliffe, Sir Tom Baker, and E Tautz whilst Samuel a graduate of LCF has most recently spent time as head of premium suiting at Topman.

Both a bespoke service and a ready to wear range are available and the collection is a mix of sharp tailoring with a dandyish air and casual pieces made from high quality fabrics. Drawing on a mixed heritage, and an array of experience in high street and high end tailoring it seems all bases are covered.

We were grateful to be invited along to the launch of a residency at the nautically named Port of Entry a space for aspiring creatives under the sure footed Shoreditch bar El Paso and enjoyed an interesting evening with the chance to meet and talk with Katrin who was as amiable a host as you could wish for and very informative to boot.

Here's too a successful season and hopefully we'll be mentioning No. 44 in the same breath as our most loved British brands in time to come.

You can see more pictures of the event on the Facebook page here.