Henry Poole & Co.: The First Tailor of Savile Row

A history of Savile Row's founding father, told through its most famous clients: icons of aristocracy, politics, and the arts.

Known as the founding tailor of Savile Row, Henry Poole & Co. has dressed the world’s most important men and women for over two centuries. Their craft of bespoke tailoring was meticulously documented through the generations in a complete set of ledgers, to which sartorial expert James Sherwood has been granted special access. Telling the story of Poole’s most colorful characters, this fascinating account distills Sherwood’s research into sixty iconic customers. Categorized as Emperors and Maharajas, Kings and Queens, Statesmen and Politicians, Financiers and Millionaires, Artists and Performers, or Heroes and Villains, each client is profiled with details of their signature garment. From artists and writers, such as Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Wilkie Collins, to financiers J. P. Morgan and Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild, this book offers a unique window into an establishment at the very heart of nineteenth- and twentieth-century public life.

Illustrated with historic portraits and photography of the premises as they are today, this intimate glimpse into the private lives of some of history’s most influential figures is essential reading for anyone interested in Savile Row and the evolution of style.

200 illustrations

James Sherwood is a London-based style writer, broadcaster, and curator. Currently editor-at-large for The Rake magazine, he has written for the Financial Times and the International Herald Tribune, among others, and is the author of Jewelry for Gentlemen, Bespoke, and Henry Poole & Co.