CLOTHES SHOPS

See Also: CLOTHES SHOPS, DISAPPEARED; CLOTHES SHOPS, SPECIALIST; GARMENT MANUFACTURING; MENU

There is an argument that because British high street retailers and department stores were slow to embrace the Internet, companies such as Asos and Net-a-Porter found an opportunity to secure an Internet presence.

Laura Ashley

Sir Bernard Ashley (1926-2009)

In 1953 the Ashleys were living in a basement flat in Pimlico when they founded the business. In 1955 the couple moved to Kent.

In 1968 Laura Ashley opened its shop in South Kensington. This proved very successful.

In 1998 MUI Asia acquired a majority holding. In 2020 the company went into administration. The brand re-emerged as a shop-within-a-shop in branches of Next. A flagship shop was opened in Westfield.

Location: 23 Pelham Street, SW7 2NQ (purple, orange)

2094, Westfield Shopping Centre, Ariel Way, London, W12 7GF

Website: www.next.co.uk/shop/brand-lauraashley-0

Browns

Browns was founded in 1970.

In 2019 Browns moved to Brook Street.

Location: 39 Brook Street, W1K 4JE (orange, purple)

23-27 South Molton Street, W1K 5RD (Former premises) (blue, brown)

Website: www.brownsfashion.com

Burberry

Burberry moved its show from Milan to London in 2009. This was regarded as being indicative of the growing importance of London Fashion Week.

In 2018 Christopher Bailey stepped down as Burberry's Chief Creative Officer. He had been central to the brand's global development.

Location: 121 Regent Street, W1B 4HS (purple, grey)

Website: https://uk.burberry.com https://uk.burberry.com/stores/regent-street-store

Jaeger

Lewis Tomalin (d.1915).

In 2020 Jaeger went into administration. Marks & Spencer acquired the brand the following year.

Location: 20 Cambalt Road, Putney, SW15 6EW. Tomalin's home

Website: www.marksandspencer.com/jaeger

Joseph

In 1960 the Casablancan-born brothers Joseph (1936-2010) and Maurice Ettedgui arrived in London. In 1962 they opened a hairdressing salon on London's King's Road. Two years later their brother Franklin joined them. Joseph developed an interest in clothes. He took to displaying in the salon garments that had been created by designers whom he admired. In the 1970s he opened his first Joseph clothes shop on Sloane Street. This was designed by Norman Foster and had a monochrome decor. In 1999 the Ettedguis sold a majority holding in the business. In 2005 the sibs sold their remaining equity.

Website: www.joseph-fashion.com

Marks & Spencer

Website: www.marksandspencer.com

Moss Bros.

Moses Moses was a Talmudic scholar. To keep himself and his family he sold second-hand suits from a handcart. Eventually, he opened a shop in Covent Garden in 1851. He anglicised his surname by dropping its e . His sons Alfred and George developed the firm by developing a bespoke tailoring business. The brothers were friendly with Charles Pond, a bankrupt stockbroker who had a taste for amateur dramatics. They hired suits to him. His fellow amateur thespians took to doing likewise.

At the 1923 general election the Labour Party won 191 seats. It was invited to form its first ever Cabinet. At the time, senior ministers were required to attend Levees at court. King George V was stickler on matters ceremonial. His Private Secretary informed the party's Chief Whip new ministers would be able to hire the required frock coat and silk hat from Moss Bros or purchase them outright for 30.

During the United States's Prohibition era, it became customary of Moss Bros. staff to enquire of America customers whether they wanted their jacket pockets Half pint, pint, or quart size?

It is reputed that at the 1953 coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, a dewy-eyed peer turned to his neighbour, an African dignitary, and exclaimed What a great day for the queen! And what a great day for Moss Bros! came the reply.

Moss Bros had a section that sold secondhand clothes. It was known as the dead man's department .

There is a story that Monty Moss (1924-2014) gave serious consideration to changing his surname to its ancestral form, which was Moses. However, he appreciated that the family business would become known as Moses Broses rather than the highly successful Moss Bros .

Location: 27 King Street, WC2E 8JB (blue, red)

Website: www.moss.co.uk

J. Simon

John Simon was the son of a tailor. He served an apprenticeship in the Charing Cross Road shop of Cecil Gee who was a friend of relatives. There, the windows that he dressed had a high impact, impressing the young Paul Smith. Simon moved on to Burberry and then went freelance, working for Austin, which sold almost exclusively American apparel. The shop's customer base was middle-aged and the stock was selected to meet its tastes. Simon appreciated a this approach could be adapted to appeal to young people.

The Ivy Shop stocked a golf jacket that was called the Baracuta G9. Simon redubbed it the Harrington after Rodney Harrington, a character played by the actor Ryan Neal in the American television drama Peyton Place.

J. Simon closed in 2009. In 2011 the business reopened in Chiltern Street.

Documentary: Lee Cogswell (dir.) John Simons: A Modernist (2018).

Location: The Ivy Shop, 10 Hill Rise, TW10 6UA

J. Simon, 46 Chiltern Street, W1U 7QR (red, pink)

J. Simon, 2 Russell Street, WC2B 5TD (red, turquoise)

27 Shaftesbury Avenue, W1D 7EG. Austin's premises. (orange, purple)

Website: https://johnsimons.co.uk

David Backhouse 2024