Retail Therapy - denim in London

Just to placate anyone who's waiting for my interview with Jenny Balfour-Paul (nearly there!), I thought denim fans preparing for a spring denim overhaul might appreciate a quick roundup of the major retail outlets in London. I'll come back to this post and update it - please feel free to email me or add comments about places I've forgotten.

Son of a Stag is on Drapers Walk, Truman Brewery, Brick Lane; carries a decent range including Lee, Levi's etc - they now have a Union Special chainstich machine so can alter the length of your jeans and keep the right style of hem.



Union Special at Son of a Tag. Check out The Clerk, too, for more chainstitch tomfoolery

Butchers of Distinction has indeed closed down.

Beyond Retro on Cheshire St, just off Brick Lane, sells vintage stuff. You will pretty much always find Big E and Stormrider jackets, with occasional choice 50s items, hats, old Converse, you name it.



Present is at 140 Shoreditch High St; expensive, but they sell great stuff including Studio D'Artisan, several of their own Trickers collabs, Nigel Cabourne and some lovely oiled Parkas from Millerain.



You can drop on Brick Lane, take in the market, all the above shops, the overpriced market in Spitalfields, Columbia Rd on a Sunday and finish up here for an espresso although sadly world champion Barista   Gwilym Davies  has now moved on to his own shop on Leather Lane.




Spitalfields market
Personally, I would rather shop in Spitalfields market than pay retail at some of the bigger stores. THursday is the best day - lots of vintage clothes, as well as bric a brac and antiques. (some of the same stallholders will do Portobello on a Friday).

For denim freaks, David White's Ragtop stall (at the front, on the left) is a must-see. Items are reasonable prices - not a bargain, but not as pricey as, say, The Vintage Showroom.



Dover St market is worth a look; mostly overpriced fashion brands, but I did see some nice Chambray shirts in there last time I went.

You should also check out Cinch on Newburgh St for the full range of LVC; this is one of Levi's few remaining boutique stores, along with Buttenheim in Berlin. Althoug their LVC is £20 or so more expensive onan online, you get to try them on first; they have reasonably regular sales and if you're a regular they will look out old items - they found me some old Valencia St 201s, and I've had other choice sale itmes from them. 

Don't forget the Lee store nearby on Carnaby St; they have the Edwin-made vintage range downstairs (again overpriced I'm afraid, but you can try them on before buying via Rakuten).

There's also Meet Bernard, for Nudies, Edwin at College Approach in Greenwich, SE10. Look out for T-shirt stall in Greenwich market run by www.departmentofworks.com - Cary, aka The Clerk, also has a vintage Union Special and offers a chainstitch service. Nearby, on Creek Road, is the Emporium - their stock is mostly vintage, but they usually have a good range of vintage reissue Lee and Blue Bell/Wrangler.

The Vintage Showroom, 14 Earlham Street, Seven Dials
A nice store, with a good selection roughly similar to David White's. The first couple of times I've been in they've been friendly, but... but not consistently so.



 RRL, Mount Street, Mayfair
 In recent months, I think their collections have arguably improved - lots more hunting- and military-inspired collections. And the nice staff help make up for the hefty prices. Full story here.
































 American Classics on Endell St in Covent Garden is the grandaddy of denim in London, and has carried LVC, Lee and others for a couple of decades now.



 


The shop has a great range including LVC, Lee, SDA and Sugar Cane, plus jackets by Filson, Belstaff and others. The quality of stock has gone up and down over the years, as has the service, but last time I popped in it looked impressive. Cav, a tallish guy, shaven-headed, knows what he's talking about.


I have also been a customer of Interstate, opposite, for many years. They used to do Euro Vintage Lee at bargain prices; now Lee's range is dull, but they still stock Edwin and a lot of Carhartt plus other workwear-related stuff.



Interstate
17 Endell Street
London WC2H 9BJ
020 7836 0421

Selfridges must have changed their buyer; their range is pitiful these days.

FInally, Liberty has recently opened a denim department (March 2011).
The assistant, who was reasonably helpful, told me this was "the first department working with heritage clothing in London."

This, the basement section, has always been a bit olde-worlde. And there is of course an irony implicit in a swanky department store hosting such blue-collar clothing, with fake wear, augmented with expensive working men's ephemera.

Still, an attractive RRL range. As ever, their washes are very impressive.




And a good range of LVC, too, altho based mostly around the Rough Rinse, without all of the good new flannels and duck items.



They also stock Jean Shop, a fair amount of SDA (103XX, Chore jacket, sweartshirts), PRPS and Edwin.

RRL opening, Mount Street, London

I've always been impressed with the loving attention to detail lavished on RRL outlets, even since I first stayed round the corner from their Bleecker Street store in Greenwich village. Now they've teleported over a huge chunk of Americana, for it to materialise on Mount Street, in the heart of Mayfair.

I had time for only the briefest of chats with some of the people responsible, but it's obvious they've lavished a huge amount of care - and money - on the two storey store, which is so packed with stock and ephemera that it looks as if it's been in situ for half a century or so.


Interior: on the right of the second photo is Niall Maher, Vice President of Merchandising, who flew over from NYC for the launch.

RRL flew over several US craftsmen to construct the display shelves from English Oak, or to craft the beautiful Victorian-style mirrored signs. It looks like someone's been scouring reclamation years and antique stores for a long time. In an ideal world, my basement would look like this, and I'd spend my time smoking cigars and sipping brandy.






I was impressed by the breadth, and depth, of what was on display. For the past decade or so, I have tended to notice RRL for their heavily-distressed repro denim. Even a decade or so ago, while some of their design was a little generic for my taste, it was obvious they were using some of the best American laundries (notably, I'm told, Bart Sights). Now much of the detailing of the design, too, is much deeper, with some very esoteric vintage references. Just a few weeks ago, I was exchanging emails with Roy Slaper about Cinch designs; he'd come up with what he thought was an entirely new one, only for an old patent to be discovered by Mike Harris, which looked awfully similar. Now this RRL design seems to take a broadly similar influence, combined with their own detailing - which takes some cues from turn-of-the-century (the last century) Neustadter Brother pants. Nicely done.

I love the suspenders (OK, braces, too).



























Yet what I liked best about this collection is the take on formal tailoring; the theme below is Deadwood, named after a defunct town in the West, and based on suits worn by gamblers and other shady types.

It's pretty authentic to 1890s tailoring - chunky but short lapels, the darts go way up toward the armpit, which gives a very distinctive, flattering profile. I saw this being worn by Edward, whom I know from Levi's but has moved to RRL, it looked terrific. Sadly I neglected to photograph him full length, but you'll get to see his bottom half in a minute.

On the left hand side of the shop is the second theme, Left Bank, based on the look of that ol' fashion icon, Ernest Hemingway. When he was slim, presumably.

Now, the items that I was drooling over the most. Some of the RRL items have what is, to me, pretty rarefied price tags. But these babies should repay you with years of wear.

Firstly, Northampton-made boots; lovely half-broguing, with what I'd describe as an american-influenced last shape.  We weren't sure who made these - I'll amend the post if I find out - but RRL have a longterm relationship with Crocket & Jones, who have made some superb boots for them in the past. But for a Crocket & Jones design, this is very chunky. In a good way. My favourite C&J-RRL were Veldtschoen construction, but these are a conventional Goodyear Welt. Very nice waxy calf grain.

And finally, what for me was the most drool-worthy item, the Madison Boot. These are US-made in Horween Cordovan; my guess is they're made by Julian, hopefully someone will correct me if I'm wrong. Again, a Goodyear welt, with an attractive vegetable tanned calfskin lining, and a beautiful oal-tanned leather outsole. On the heels you'll find the now-obligatory Cats Paw. There are just 20 pairs made, to mark the opening of Mount Street. The price, at £900, might seem eye-watering, but it compares very well indeed with the Wolverine Cordovan. Below, you can see see them on the feet of the afore-mentioned Edward.

I was impressed with the shop, which is arguably out of my denim comfort zone. But one last thing struck me, compared to some of the RRL stores I've visitedin the past: the staff. They're lovely, enthusiastic, knowledgeable and approachable. This is Jude, displaying the Madison. If you have £900 burning a hole in your pocket, hurry; only 20 pairs available.

The RRL store is at 16 Mount Street, London W1K 2RH. www.ralphlauren.com

Update: according to an industry luminary (whom I'd like to feature here at some point), many of RRL's classic washes were done by Bart Sights, a well-known figure in the industry, also responsible for, among others, the first (and best) LVC Nevada replica. Makes sense.  Merci to my source.