Richard James

Richard James opened his eponymous house in September 1992 with business partner Sean Dixon, taking a small, then-derelict shopfront at 37a Savile Row that had no running water. It was the smallest shop on the street at the time; the landlord handed over the keys without asking for a deposit. James, a graduate of Brighton College of Art and a former buyer for the London boutique Browns, set out to keep the strong, flattering cut associated with Savile Row tailoring while injecting color and irreverence -- bright cashmere knitwear, satin ties, and suits finished in unexpected shades such as pink, lime, or mustard. The shop also broke with Row convention by opening on Saturdays, drawing a younger clientele of artists, actors, and creatives alongside its traditional legal and finance customers. Richard James is generally credited as the first of the 'New Establishment' tailors -- the wave of designers who arrived on Savile Row in the 1990s and pushed it toward a more fashion-conscious identity without abandoning bespoke craft. The house went on to win the British Fashion Council's Bespoke Designer of the Year and Menswear Designer of the Year awards. In March 2024, Richard James unveiled a new flagship, 'The House of Richard James,' at 29 Savile Row, consolidating its bespoke and ready-to-wear operations more than three decades after the original 37a opening.