Anderson & Sheppard: A Style is Born

Anderson & Sheppard finally have a monograph of their own, A Style is Born, which is being released next week.  I stopped by The Drake Hotel in Chicago to chat with Mr. Hitchcock and Mr. Heywood about the book, their amazing customers, and their US tours.

The weather here in Chicago hasn’t been the greatest these past few days.  Between the rain, wind, and busting crowds, trudging up Michigan Avenue to meet the gents from Anderson & Sheppard at their Drake Hotel outpost felt oddly like the first time I waltzed down Oxford Street to reach the Row.

Once the door opened into the beautiful suite-cum-tailors’-shop, it felt even more like the Row.  Cloth books everywhere, Mr. Hitchcock in a blue double-breasted number, and warm handshakes all around.  Anyone trying to tell you that Anderson & Sheppard are stodgy and unwelcoming is talking about an entity long gone.  Certainly not the Anderson & Sheppard I’ve come to know and love.

To make things easier for their American customers, Mr. Hitchcock has been coming to cities like Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Washington DC, and, of course, New York for the better part of three decades now.  And I’m happy to say their schedules are jam-packed.  ”People sometimes make a weekend out of it,” Mr. Hitchcock told me of customers who live near, but not in, the cities he visits.  They come stay at the same hotel, enjoy a weekend in the city, and of course order some clothes.

It’s this dedication and passion that created A Style is Born.  This is not mass-market monograph with thin glossy pages and already-familiar images.  Vanity Fair editors Graydon Carter and Cullen Murphy, both Anderson & Sheppard men, have put together a tome that perfectly embodies the quiet elegance of the firm.

Pictures of the skilled cutters and tailors mingle with playful snapshots of clients enjoying their beautiful clothes.  You’ve got the usual Astaire and Hamilton, but also less-seen gents wearing their clothes as they see fit.  Charles Finch in his tweed suit and canvas slip-on sneakers is a personal favorite of mine – I can hear him chuckling on the page.

Hands down though, my favorite section is the grand finale.  ”The Last Word” is a chapter filled with passionate customers reflecting on the firm, and their words are accompanied by original illustrations from Paul Cox.  ”The drawings are so good we’ve had customers look at them and say ‘I’d like that please,’” Mr. Hitchcock relayed.

Reading what the customers have to say is priceless.  Any marketing department or author can put together a puff piece, but nothing as powerful as this.  The list of names, which I’ll let you discover for yourself, includes a number of people for whom luxury is no stranger.  Yet, something about these clothes and the people who make them means something to them.  They’re not just beautiful, they’re important.  

Those in the club (and the book) provide inspiration, and I’m left sitting here providing the aspiration.  What more can you ask for.

A Style is Born officially releases next week, and can be found on Amazon.