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BEHIND THE SEEN
BEHIND THE SEEN
GENTLEMEN’S CLUB Jeremy Hackett brings classic English style to the 21st century — and there’s nothing prudish about it, writes Matt Morley
H
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Jeremy Hackett a.k.a ‘Mr Classic’ with his brown spaniels, Charley and Browney and above, ‘The Watch’ for Hackett by TAG Heuer
Pictures courtesy of Hackett
e’s come a long way since selling secondhand suits from London’s Portobello Road in the early 80s, and today Jeremy Hackett is at the helm of a growing brand. The dapper 57-year-old is founder and chairman of his eponymous brand, with over 70 stores spread across four continents, including a store at OR Tambo airport and another due to open late next year in Sandton City. Not that success has gone to Mr Hackett’s head; self-deprecating and immediately personable, he is perfectly happy to share a mug of milky tea from a footstool in a corner of his London headquarters while his staff get on with their work nearby. The contrast with some of his prima donna counterparts in Paris and Milan couldn’t be more pronounced; apparently the only hangers-on this man consents to are his two spaniels, Charley and Browney. Dressed in a grey wool threepiece suit with matching overcoat and signature dog-shaped tie pin, he is impeccably turned out, yet exudes the air of someone who didn’t have to think too hard about getting dressed in the morning. Behold, in short, the quintessential English gent. “You know the funny thing is that nobody in England wants to be seen to have consciously put an entire outfit together, to have made an effort to look good — that’s something the Italians are far more comfortable at doing,” he says. “Men here might opt for a smart suit, say, but then combine it with a scruffy pair of shoes. I’m generalising here, but English style becomes much more chic when adopted by Europeans. Luckily for us, the English look is extremely exportable.” And he should know, he’s built a mini-empire around it. Hackett’s initial insight was a remarkably simple one. In the 80s, there was a generation of young, upwardly mobile Englishmen who were unable to afford their own tailor but still yearned for something more than a generic off-the-peg suit. By diligently sourcing the finest secondhand Savile Row suits from house clearance sales and antiques markets, Hackett offered the quality and cut of bespoke, without the elitist price tag. It was a price-value formula that would become the foundation stone of his business.
So successful was the idea that demand soon outstripped supply, and the only way to grow was to start producing new clothes of his own in the same fabrics, style and feel of Savile Row, but at the same affordable price point as before. “When I started out, I only bought the very best second-hand clothes I could find; whether it was suits or hunting clothes, formal or casual. There was some really great stuff out there, entire wardrobes full of Savile Row suits. But eventually I had to move into production myself and, after a brief transition period, our clients completely forgot about the secondhand part.” A further six stores followed in London and Madrid before Dunhill Holdings, which would later become the Richemont Group, bought a majority stake in 1991.
This injection of capital meant the brand could now move into adjacent market segments such as a male grooming range, luggage and accessories, as well as invest in new stores, shop-in-shops and high-profile sponsorships. The next 14 years saw the team grow from being a small-sized business into a medium-sized business, but Hackett is somewhat dismissive of the Richemont era, preferring instead to discuss the Pepe Jeans Group buy-out that occurred in 2005. “Look, the Pepe guys are from a clothing background whereas Richemont specialised in large, well-established jewellery and watch brands.” He continues: “Our new backers are very proactive, understand our business and love the men’s clothing sector. Ultimately they are product people
and that makes all the difference to our relationship.” That belief in the importance of product above all else is a defining characteristic of the Hackett brand today, and indeed of traditional English menswear as a whole, which has less to do with trends and everything to do with timelessness, elegance and quality. Turning his nose up at suggestions that he is part of a post-crisis trend towards a “new luxury” based around craftsmanship and connoisseurship rather than status and ostentation, Hackett insists he has charted the same steady course for the past 27 years — it’s the rest of the world that is starting to appreciate his way of thinking. “For us, it’s very much a case of evolution rather than revolution,” he says. “Certain items need to be refreshed or tweaked along the
way, while other things are best not to mess around with.” Having now firmly established the business in the UK, the next few years are all about internationalisation with two new stores opening in Germany in early 2011, and long-term plans for a move into both the Chinese and American markets. “In France and Spain we own our own shops, whereas in other markets such as South Africa we would look for a local trading partner. The Middle East is another complicated market for us, so we’re going in with a partner there too.” Classic English style is made up of a complex web of rules, codes and conventions, something that Hackett believes only adds to the appeal of his products in emerging markets, where such formalities are completely novel. An entire section of Hackett.com is dedicated to style advice and tips on how to avoid the various sartorial faux pas that might expose an individual as somehow ill-informed or, worse still, an arriviste. A number of strategic partnerships help make the Hackett brand more accessible (to a certain class of consumer) while increasing its aspirational value. Sponsorships include the Aston Martin Racing team, the British Army Polo team, the Lotus F1 team and the Oxford & Cambridge Boat Race. Far more than an expensive form of corporate piggybacking, these relationships take the form of meaningful, multi-layered partnerships under the savvy eye of the Hackett marketing team. “These things all cost a lot of money, so if we didn’t back them up with a clothing range they’d become mere vanity projects. It would be very hard to justify associating my name with Aston Martin if I didn’t do anything with it! Generally, I don’t get into anything like that if it’s going to be short-term as it takes about three years for people to start picking up on it anyway; you have to give sponsorships time to develop and grow.” Arguably the same could be said of most advertising, although we suspect Hackett’s latest, brilliantly witty campaign may have had a far more immediate impact. Starring the impossibly fresh-faced Jimmy of Storm Models, who Jeremy describes as “wonderfully languid in manner and with a movie-star quality”, and the Charley-Browney team, the images perfectly capture the spirit and val-
Spring/Summer 2011
The current Hackett campaign
Jeremy Hackett’s style curiosities • The cuff button on jackets is traditionally made up of four buttons in total, and they should all be working, not just aesthetic. This is from the days when doctors and vets would unbutton their cuffs to wash their hands before carrying out a procedure. The line-up of buttons has its origins in the military, so the Welsh Guards have five buttons and the Cold Stream Guards a two-plus-two arrangement, and so on. • The khaki covert coat is the most English of all coats, and was originally worn in the country for shooting or hunting. The velvet collar comes in different colours to identify the hunt you belonged to, and the tracking stitches on the cuff denoted your rank within the stable yard. • The hugely popular Prince of Wales check, widely attributed to the Duke of Windsor (Edward VIII), was in fact first championed by Edward VII. • Historically, brown shoes should never be worn in town, although when someone asks if this rule still applies I almost can’t take them seriously. • Wearing a club tie when you do not belong to that particular institution is very bad form.
ues of the brand: pukka English style with a healthy dash of irreverence.
Underpinning all of this, from the clothing to the store design, sponsorships and advertising is
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BEHIND THE SEEN
way, while other things are best not to mess around with.” Having now firmly established the business in the UK, the next few years are all about internationalisation with two new stores opening in Germany in early 2011, and long-term plans for a move into both the Chinese and American markets. “In France and Spain we own our own shops, whereas in other markets such as South Africa we would look for a local trading partner. The Middle East is another complicated market for us, so we’re going in with a partner there too.” Classic English style is made up of a complex web of rules, codes and conventions, something that Hackett believes only adds to the appeal of his products in emerging markets, where such formalities are completely novel. An entire section of Hackett.com is dedicated to style advice and tips on how to avoid the various sartorial faux pas that might expose an individual as somehow ill-informed or, worse still, an arriviste. A number of strategic partnerships help make the Hackett brand more accessible (to a certain class of consumer) while increasing its aspirational value. Sponsorships include the Aston Martin Racing team, the British Army Polo team, the Lotus F1 team and the Oxford & Cambridge Boat Race. Far more than an expensive form of corporate piggybacking, these relationships take the form of meaningful, multi-layered partnerships under the savvy eye of the Hackett marketing team. “These things all cost a lot of money, so if we didn’t back them up with a clothing range they’d become mere vanity projects. It would be very hard to justify associating my name with Aston Martin if I didn’t do anything with it! Generally, I don’t get into anything like that if it’s going to be short-term as it takes about three years for people to start picking up on it anyway; you have to give sponsorships time to develop and grow.” Arguably the same could be said of most advertising, although we suspect Hackett’s latest, brilliantly witty campaign may have had a far more immediate impact. Starring the impossibly fresh-faced Jimmy of Storm Models, who Jeremy describes as “wonderfully languid in manner and with a movie-star quality”, and the Charley-Browney team, the images perfectly capture the spirit and val-
Q&A WITH ONE OF HACKETT’S CURRENT CAMPAIGN MODELS
Jimmy YoungWhitforde
Spring/Summer 2011
The current Hackett campaign
Jeremy Hackett’s style curiosities • The cuff button on jackets is traditionally made up of four buttons in total, and they should all be working, not just aesthetic. This is from the days when doctors and vets would unbutton their cuffs to wash their hands before carrying out a procedure. The line-up of buttons has its origins in the military, so the Welsh Guards have five buttons and the Cold Stream Guards a two-plus-two arrangement, and so on. • The khaki covert coat is the most English of all coats, and was originally worn in the country for shooting or hunting. The velvet collar comes in different colours to identify the hunt you belonged to, and the tracking stitches on the cuff denoted your rank within the stable yard. • The hugely popular Prince of Wales check, widely attributed to the Duke of Windsor (Edward VIII), was in fact first championed by Edward VII. • Historically, brown shoes should never be worn in town, although when someone asks if this rule still applies I almost can’t take them seriously. • Wearing a club tie when you do not belong to that particular institution is very bad form.
ues of the brand: pukka English style with a healthy dash of irreverence.
Underpinning all of this, from the clothing to the store design, sponsorships and advertising is
Hackett’s innate sense of good taste. So where does he go from here? “Well, we’ve just collaborated with TAG Heuer on a new watch, we already have a successful children’s range and, while there are no plans for any women’s wear just yet, I wouldn’t mind doing a hotel. I’m fed up with those selfconsciously cool boutique hotels in London nowadays. I’d like to create a country house in the city, somewhere that’s classical, good value and stands the test of time.” Despite the enormity of such a task, his confident and understated tone leaves the listener with little doubt that he’d take the challenge in his stride, in true English style. Visit the Hackett store at OR Tambo International or www.hackett.com
What is it like working on the Hackett campaign? What has been the best part so far? I love to work for Hackett, they ooze class and are lots of fun too. The best part is yet to come, though, as it just keeps getting better! What is your favourite Hackett look? Choosing a favourite outfit is hard … I feel great in all the clothes, but particularly the more quirky or unusual ones. Have there been any outfits that you could simply never bring yourself to wear in public? I’m not sure if I could pull off the madras get-up in too many situations. Funnily enough, though, it is one of my absolute faves! What is your personal style? Are you a jeans and flip-flops guy, or happiest in a threepiece suit? My personal style is influenced by punk music, 80s-90s surfwear, rugby, and mostly b-boy hip-hop, also known as “backpack rap”. I’d never wear jeans and thongs, but shorts and thongs when I go to the beach for sure — more for convenience than anything else. These days Hackett have set me up with clothes so I enjoy wearing them as much as possible; it’s a nice contrast to the overdone heroin-chic look that’s around at the moment. Did you pick up any useful style tips while working with the Hackett team? Yes. Jeremy told me to never do up the bottom button on a suit if there are flaps at the back. How was it to work alongside Mr Hackett's two brown spaniels? The spaniels are super-cruisy ... Browney is getting pretty long in the tooth by now, and Charley ain’t much trouble, so they’re low-maintenance to work with.
Jimmy is represented by Storm Model Management in London www.stormmodels.com
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