A bespoke suit at Henry Poole

Why it is on the list

Henry Poole built the showroom whose new entrance opened onto Savile Row, and the street became the centre of men's tailoring from there; the firm has been back on the Row, at number 15, since 1982.¹ Warrants on its wall run from King Edward VII and King George V to the Imperial Household of Japan.² Every garment is made by hand on the premises to the client's own pattern.³ The cutter measures you and cuts a paper pattern, the cloth is cut by hand with inlays left for later alteration, and one tailor is assigned to you for as long as you stay a client.⁴ The suit is basted and fitted, taken apart and re-cut, fitted again, then finished and buttonholed by hand.⁴

It is the wrong choice for anything needed within days: a first order takes two to three fittings.⁵ For a client who cannot come to London, the same cutters hold fittings in hotels in Europe and the United States several times a year, and in Tokyo twice a year.⁵

How to get it

Request an appointment through the form on the contact page, by email to office@henrypoole.com or by telephone on +44 (0)20 7734 5985.⁶ The shop is open Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 17:15; the office answers from 10:00 to 17:00 and replies within 24 hours.⁶ Ask for a first appointment for a bespoke suit; the cutter helps choose from about 6,000 cloths, and up to ten swatches can be ordered free beforehand, arriving within a working week.⁴

Fittings can be taken on Savile Row or at the next trunk show, not necessarily where the order was placed.⁵ The pattern is kept and adjusted after the first order, so a second suit needs fewer fittings.⁴

Discretion

The showroom and cutting room are on the ground floor; the tailoring workshops sit below street level.¹ Overseas clients are measured and fitted at a hotel they choose from the house's list rather than in the shop, and a finished suit can be collected or delivered to any address.⁵