"It was an accident really, well, not an accident. A fabulous coincidence. I stumbled upon it completely by chance. I was at Oxford finishing off an MBA and a friend of mine was supposed to meet me for lunch. He called to say he couldn’t come, so I grabbed a copy of the Financial Times and sat and read it because there was nothing else to read. I got as far as the ‘Businesses for sale’ section and there happened to be an advert on that one day for Norton & Sons. There was just a little advert that said ‘Bespoke tailor for sale, 16 Savile Row. Contact Mr. Granger by letter’. That’s as much as it was planned. There was no planning whatsoever. It was just completely fortuitous.
I came and met the owner and came to the shop and looked around and having never worked in clothing before I just fell in love with the place. I’d always been very interested in craft and making things, I’d always worked in manufacturing companies and I’d always been very interested in clothes but I’d never thought ever, to work in the clothing and tailoring industry."
Seems like fate, no? Anyway, not only is this guy renowned for rescuing not one, but two iconic English "brands", but he's also one of the rare few working in menswear today that truly gets the whole style vs. fashion thing and the relationship between the two. And lest we not forget the attention to detail and craftsmanship (I mean, just look at a picture of a Norton & Sons suit) that is at work. From bespoke to ready-to-wear, from Saville Row to the runway, Patrick is someone you need to know about if you don't already.
[Pictures courtesy of Swipe Life.]
-L.A.S
Posts
7 Days of Big Boi: Day 4
ReplyDeleteWith one stroke of the pen I tune in to your satellite radio
or FM station; I've been patiently waitin, to weigh in
Been under construction for two years
But now it's 'bout that time I double-dutch my way in
Left foot, right foot, steppin over biters
It's like the game is haunted cause there's so many ghostwriters
Me, see I'm a lifer with supply that may seem endless
Straight rider like a biker on a chopper with a hitlist
Witness, the nigga that spit that vicious
Pitbull attack shit when it comes to this rap shit
... Daddy Fat Sax (bitch) follow us
Follow us, now
Try to all the way, now
It's not another let, down
Got somethin to say, right now
I know some of y'all done wrote a nigga off
Like the leases on these cars and these homes you niggaz thought
you stayed in, with so many bosses why are they still
layin niggaz off they job? Nigga for real
Gon' give a nigga a gig then
Help a brother get up out this pigpen
But nobody wants to keep it pimpin or 110
So with this pen I begin to illustrate from within, boy (boy)
Paint a pretty picture like I'm chillin with my friends
Everybody's got a pocket full of ends to spend
See Picasso couldn't blend, put it all together or fit in
I'm like a crocodile walkin 'round with alligator skin
Yes I'm is, the product of the ghetto where I lived
Call me Spongebob boy (boy) soaked up game as a little bitty kid
And never been a lame, before the fame I was the shit
And now I'm just Big, ya dig?
[Chorus]
Why don't you come and find out
What this is all, about
I, will only say this once
So, come and follow us
See we not even gonna play with 'em either
We gon' la-la-lay it down every fuckin time we see 'em
Make the club get crunk, yea, we them type of people
But wait, it's not a sequel, no wait, it's BB's prequel
The beginnin before the beginnin, spend it how you spend it
Then, if you sell dope nigga stack it when you get it
Can't trick it, or spend it until it's gone
That's slippery business holmes, gon' get you a business loan
C'mon!
[Chorus]
Now I lay you niggaz down
You already sleep so bitch rest in eternal peace
You still scared of the Boogeyman?
I know you hatin but you know you was a 'Kast and a Goodie fan
Ain't no night light, it's light's out
I put these lyrics up your ass so far you never get the mic out
I know who LAWRENCE wanna sound like
With that Fruity Loop bullshit, fuck nigga night-night
Love Norton and the new E. Tautz collection, but popped into Barneys the other day and E. Tautz shirts were $400 off the rack, the sweaters were $600+ and sportcoats were $3k+. It was was all great and the fabrics were lovely, but those are bespoke prices.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I'll ever reach the tax bracket required to be one of Patrick's customers, but I admire his work reviving Norton & Sons.
ReplyDeleteCheck out this episode of the BBC documentary Savile Row. It was filmed a few years ago, but Patrick is interviewed throughout (though he doesn't appear until the 18th minute). Great stuff.
http://wp.me/pM5DK-7K