OSCAR UDESHI IS THE IDEAL TAILOR - HONEST, OBSESSIVE AND STRIVES FOR PERFECTION IN EVERYTHING HE DOES. CHAIRMAN OF THE BRITISH MENSWEAR GUILD AND ONE OF THE YOUNGEST MENSWEAR DESIGNERS TO SHOW ON THE OFFICIAL PARIS FASHION WEEK CALENDAR, UDESHI IS QUICKLY REDEFINING THE WORLD OF MENSWEAR. THE MONTEBURY MET OSCAR AT CLARIDGE’S IN LONDON TO DISCUSS FORM, FUNCTION, CHIVAS REGAL AND THE PERFECT SUIT.
“ There is a right way and a wrong way, nothing in between ”
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THE MONTEBURY: YOU WERE A LATE STARTER IN FASHION. WHAT WERE YOU DOING BEFOREHAND?
Oscar Udeshi: My father wanted me to be a lawyer, I wanted to be an architect and so we compromised on economics. After university, I was a banker in the city of London and Frankfurt for three years. I had a car accident - my life didn’t flash before my eyes but I asked myself what if it did? I knew I didn’t want to become a banker anymore so I travelled around the world and then went back to university to reclaim my soul, and did a masters in philosophy. One day I opened my closet and saw that I had fifty suits and over two hundred shirts (I stopped counting at two hundred) and eighty ties at the age of twenty three. I said that I either needed counseling or if I make it my business, it is ok. I never found things exactly the way I wanted. It wasn’t the right shape, it wasn’t cut correctly, it didn’t fit the right way or I couldn’t get the details. You can explain until you are blue in the face but there is no substitute for doing something yourself and that’s how my passion and my hobby became my profession.
WHAT WAS THE FIRST STEP YOU TOOK?
OU: I loved shirts and people generally have more shirts than suits. I wanted my own collar points, my own collar shape, my own cuffs so I started having those made and learning how to make those. To make a shirt, it is actually relatively simple, because there are only so many parts in it and there is only so much you can do. One of my backgrounds is in philosophy, so I know that there are only so many combinations as there are, which means you can exhaust most things. So, I started off with shirts and boxer shorts with left over shirt fabric, cufflinks and ties and we started selling that in 2000.
WAS THAT THROUGH A PARTICULAR OUTLET?
OU: Our first customer was Takashimaya on Fifth Avenue in New York. She only took black, grey and white. Everything had to be black, grey and white. That’s the way it was back then.
YOU SAY THAT YOU TOOK YOURSELF BACK TO UNIVERSITY. YOU ALSO WENT TO CENTRAL SAINT MARTINS?
OU: I went Saint Martin’s evening courses. My mindset is more from a tailoring background as opposed to fashion. I don’t |
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usually have too much patience for fluffy, airy people and air kisses etc. That’s just not me. Because what we do always has a story behind it, it’s very Germanic in that form follows function. It has to work and it has to be the right product. That is the essence because if it is not going to work, you are not going to use it. Thankfully, most of our clients are men. As a man, I would not put up with wearing high heels and a bra because that cannot be comfortable by any sense of the imagination. Men’s clothing/fashion does not change that much, because you can’t really reinvent the wheel. Gaultier tried to get men in skirts, but there is a limit to what you can do. You have certain parameters and to be creative within those parameters is much more of a challenge. Womenswear you can do anything, but for a man, you have strictly defined parameters for what you can and cannot do. It is making something wearable and comfortable within that, that is the challenge.
IS THIS WHY YOU STARTED TO FOCUS ON THE DETAILS OF YOUR SHIRTS ETC. DO YOU THINK THAT WITH MENSWEAR, IT IS ABOUT THE SMALL DETAILS INSTEAD OF SOMETHING THAT IS QUITE LOUD?
OU: Yes, because if it is quite loud, you are not going to wear it again and again. It is the small details, the subtle markers that define one man from another. For men, a very easy one is a watch. Nowadays, a Rolex is seen as the bare minimum, and a watch is actually jewellery nowadays so you have to focus more on the details. I find that because men are still wearing jackets and trousers, you cannot change the fabric too much, so the only way you can differentiate it is how it is sold, i.e. through marketing/pr or making the product physically better, which is what I prefer doing. I still believe that for what you are paying, you should be getting something for it. I will probably never ever in my life buy anything from Abercrombie and Fitch because it costs two dollars to make and is sold for one hundred. Does not work with me, I cannot do that.
SO, IT IS ALL ABOUT QUALITY?
OU: Quality, but you also have to do something different otherwise it looks like everyone else's. Just because you stick a name on it, there is only so far you can sell that. Like Pierre Cardin, just because you stick your name on everything, does not mean that you are going to have a long sustainable business. |
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UDESHI Autumn/Winter 2009. Photo © 2009 Graham Breck. |
AT WHAT POINT DID YOU TRAIN ON JERMYN STREET?
OU: I found one of the last remaining bespoke Jermyn Street shirt makers, of which there are about three in England. Shirting is more famous and more of a tradition in Italy than it is here, simply because of the climate. In the old days, a gentleman would never take off his jacket or you would have a waistcoat underneath. The cut of the suit was of paramount importance but the shirt underneath could have been a garbage bag. Shirts in the old days were very big and very long because people used to sleep in them. It wasn’t seen as important, because a shirt was seen as an undergarment, such as underwear which you wouldn’t really display in public. Literally, you would see the cuffs, collar and a small opening on the chest, but you wouldn’t see anymore than that. Whereas in Italy, in a warmer climate, where clothing was lighter and you would take off the jacket, it was more about the fit and possibly also the fabrics. In England, it never really got that hot so to sell linen shirts in England was very difficult, as it still is to this day. There was certainly limited creativity when it came to shirts, and it is only recently that English shirts have become slimmer fitting.
So, I basically learnt under one of the few bespoke Jermyn Street shirt makers, who took me under his wing and said ‘look, assume I know nothing about fashion and tailoring but this is shirt making - tailoring and shirt making are two very different things’. He was very particular, very pedantic and there were many times when I would butt heads with him. He always came up with an argument for every single point I raised, and proved to me why I was wrong. That was a very, very good lesson. He is very opinionated, is very hard to deal with, but from him I learnt a lot. There is a right way and a wrong way, nothing in between.
DID THAT CHANGE YOUR PERSPECTIVE ON EVERYTHING?
OU: Fashion was about the brand, about the fabric and sometimes about the fit. Here, I guess, being a failed architect, it was the love of putting things together and learning how to manipulate them. Most boys like playing with lego in some form (some like playing with dolls, which is fine too) and building something. Having your piece of paper, your fabric and making something three-dimensional into a shirt as well as learning all of the combinations is what interested me. It is almost like a system, where everything has to fit together which is why a lot of the times things don’t work out. Rules such as how much sleeve and collar to show under the jacket are all the things that fit together but if you have a good shirt, you also need a good tie, which again has to follow certain parameters. Then the suit that goes with that shirt has to match the certain collar shape, and the person’s face has to match the shape of the lapels etc. putting that all together, you have this grand system that if you do it correctly and well, you have clients who will not be physically able to purchase clothing anywhere else. Don’t forget that nowadays, most people’s fathers walk around in t-shirts, jeans or khakis. They might have still learnt it from their father but the current generation is definitely not going to learn it. I have sixty year old men who come into the shop and do not know how to tie a bow tie. Things like that which are obvious to me, you realise people have forgotten. |
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AT WHAT POINT DID THE UDESHI BRAND TAKE SHAPE?
OU: I was working out of my uncle’s in Austria whilst I was working out where I wanted to live. This was when I was twenty four or twenty five. I got very bored and so one day, I put my surname into a computer (because everything we do, we stand behind, so it has our name) and tried with two hundred different fonts. I met somebody who became a very good friend of mine and over a bottle of Chivas Regal, we designed the logo. I told him about the ideas and what kind of style I favoured and what type of clothing I wanted to create, and that’s how we came up with the logo, which put a lot of things into place. With the logo, there is a limit to what we can and can’t do which helps to set the tone. You have to be consistent in whatever you do, which if you don’t do, you dilute the core values of the brand. A lot of my clients have lived my previous lifestyle, when I was a banker, so I am kind of my own test dummy because if I am not going to wear it, they are definitely not going to wear it.
WERE YOU PLANNING TO TARGET A SPECIFIC MARKET WITH UDESHI?
OU: We wrote this wonderful business plan - target age group, 25-40, income level this, marketing that etc. Our youngest customer was twelve, and our youngest customer who came to us by himself was sixteen. Our oldest customer was eighty seven. We have billionaires, we have cab drivers, we have chefs, we have doctors, we have bankers. We have more or less everyone and the one thing they have in common is not where they are from, how old they are or how much they earn, it’s their mindset. They want something special, they want something different and something that reflects their style and personality. One of our builders will save for three weeks to buy a pair of jeans from us, but because they are what he wants and they match the other pieces he has. We have another who is worth three or four million pounds, and comes in every two months and buys a new blazer. He wants something slightly different but has the same attitudes.
WHAT HAPPENED AT PARIS FASHION WEEK?
OU: We showed at the British Ambassador’s residence. It is a beautiful building, and British industry is very keen to promote its own kind. No matter how much the royals get slagged off, Prince Andrew does a lot. I was told that we were an illustrious company because Paul Smith, Vivienne Westwood had their first catwalk there. That was a marker in time to show that we had been recognised, because not everybody gets on the calendar at Paris fashion week. From the beginning, you have to have very thick skin and believe in yourself because people such as Ralph Lauren are terminally insecure, which you have to be, because you are only as good as the last thing you did. You have to constantly improve.
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT SEASONS AND COLLECTIONS CHANGING EVERY YEAR?
OU: If it was always the same, then there would be no reason to buy new stuff. Magazines would cease to exist and there would be no advertising. Humans are a very strange breed because we |
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are always looking for something new and we are never satisfied. People get bored very easily. In terms of seasons, it’s another way of selling clothing. People who work in fashion have to pick up the feeling of the moment, and build up their own philosophical and psychological systems. If things are bad, colours are dark and muted, but if they are going well, you have brighter colours. Things do change but for me, I will always have the same jacket length but I might change the lapel width etc. I am probably more of a traditional male, so you find something that works for you, you continue with it, you make small tweaks, but you stick with it. Why fix something that is broken?
YOU ARE NOW CHAIRMAN OF THE BRITISH MENSWEAR GUILD. HOW DID THIS COME ABOUT AND WHY DO YOU THINK YOU WERE CHOSEN?
OU: The British Menswear Guild. It sounds awfully posh, doesn’t it? I was always curious about what they did and for a long time they were supporting Pitti Uomo, which we were exhibiting at. We tended to always cross paths, so I joined and I had access to new customers that I wouldn’t have had access to before. I got more and more involved and because I was one of the most proactive people at the time, and the youngest by a large margin, I was elected Chairman. The British Menswear Guild is a wonderful institution that we have to bring up to date very quickly. I was very disappointed, because I was expecting long lunches, cigars and port. I ended up going to the meetings and we had sandwiches and tea, although I have since changed that. The British Menswear Guild was started in 1959 and in those days, British Menswear was at the forefront of menswear. The Italian menswear industry is built on Savile Row, because apparently a famous Italian opera singer had his clothes made on Savile Row and then imported them into Italy where people learnt how to recreate them. Everything is still based on the English gentleman, but unfortunately you are more likely to find an English gentleman in Milan or Rome than you are in London. British quality, made in Britain still counts for a hell of a lot, and some companies do still do that better than anybody else. We are made up of these wonderful brands and they are now learning about the need to reinvent themselves, because if Church just did black brogues, or wingtip, they would have gone bankrupt a long time ago.
WHAT DOES YOUR ROLE AS CHAIRMAN OF THE BRITISH MENSWEAR GUILD INVOLVE AND WHAT DO YOU FEEL YOU HAVE LEARNT FROM IT?
OU: Because of the diverse history and quality of the brands, it has reinforced in me the idea of English quality and English manufacturing. This ‘can do’ attitude and tradition usually doesn’t involve cost, but it is about making it better. That attitude constantly propels me, being in the Guild or in my own company. Some companies that are perceived as stiff are not actually like that because what one sees happening on the retail front and what happens behind the scenes can be miles apart. I am trying to have more and more things sourced in the UK, but not just to say that we have things made in the UK, because that is a cheap marketing trick. You can get plain grey fabric, which you can get from Italy or from England, |
“ You are only as good as the last thing you did. You have to constantly improve ”
but the one from England will be nicer. Not just because it is made in England, not because it is more expensive, but the way it has been constructed. It has not necessarily been done to a price, which has been detrimental in the past. Because of the way it has been woven, it wrinkles less, it creases less and it is more durable, it doesn’t become more shiny.
A LOT OF COMPANIES WANT TO REBRAND THEMSELVES AS LUXURY BRANDS AND OFFER ‘BESPOKE’ SERVICES. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A GOOD AND BAD BESPOKE SUIT?
OU: Just because it is bespoke, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is right or good. Bespoke comes from the word ‘bespeak’, i.e. cloth reserved for a client. Bespoke is something that is made for an individual, usually by an individual. Just because you have your own pattern, made by an individual, that does not make it a good product. There are very few tailors who do everything because the man who drafts the pattern does not usually make the jacket, that’s the jacket maker, the person who makes the jacket does not make the trousers, because that’s the trouser maker. You can be a master of some things, but not a master of all. Somebody who makes wonderful jackets, you usually find that the trousers are deficient in some way, not because of a lack of skill, but because they maybe didn’t spend as much time as they do on jackets. Just because it is bespoke, doesn’t necessarily mean it is flattering or any good. If you wear it, you like it, and other people say that it is good, then that’s it. Most people are well served by ready to wear or made to measure. If you have a peculiar body or peculiar stylistic details, then yes, go for bespoke. Once you have bespoke done properly, then you will never go back. It will feel like a second skin and if you do feel conscious of it, then it is not good bespoke.
WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ON SAVILE ROW NOW?
OU: I have seen some suits from very famous Savile Row tailors that I would be embarrassed to put my name to. Some of them are literally like a factory made suit, but some produce exquisite works of art where you have to get a magnifying glass to see the stitching. It depends what you are after and what you want. Half of the tailors don’t deserve to be on that street. A quarter of them maybe, and the other quarter definitely do. Savile Row is still viewed as the traditional home of suits, but just because it was done that way in the past, doesn’t mean that it should be done that way |
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“ I have sixty year old men who come into the shop and do not know how to tie a bow tie. Things like that which are obvious to me, you realise people have forgotten ”
in the present. The new boys on the block have injected some fresh colour into Savile Row, and have admitted they are designers, not tailors. Some are trying to get away with a glued together fashion suit, which is diluting the experience of Savile Row.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO MEN WHO ARE LOOKING TO PURCHASE A NEW SUIT BUT ARE NOT TOO SURE WHAT TO LOOK FOR?
OU: Take somebody with you who you respect and trust. They don’t need to know anything about suits, they just need to know how to be honest with you. Whatever the salesman says, ignore it most of the time. You have to feel comfortable in it and the person with you has to say that you look good in it. Go to as many places as you can and you want to. Never feel
“ I have seen some suits from very famous Savile Row tailors that I would be embarrassed to put my name to ”
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pressured into buying anything, because if you are, that’s the wrong place. If somebody is pushy or aggressive, then walk out. Try and inform yourself as much about it as possible. You don’t go and buy a house without having a survey done on it, you don’t go and buy a car without having a test drive. If you look at a Savile Row suit, that is two thousand pounds plus, which is more than the average monthly mortgage payment here in the UK. Find somebody you can build a relationship with, and take somebody that you can trust and try on as much as you can. Through time and experience, you will see what works for you.
WHAT ABOUT YOUR OWN PERSONAL STYLE?
OU: I am probably wearing something very busy today because normally I just wear white shirts, plain suits and ties, I almost look like a mortician. When I go to a mill, I usually wear a white shirt and a pair of jeans. With the absence of colour in white, you can appreciate all of the other colours and shades. I know that I have more than sixty white shirts. Most men, like myself, want to wake up in the morning and put on a uniform, because it just works. I sometimes don’t have the time to think. I wear cocktail cuffs a lot, one button collar, the same collar shape, same pattern. Usually not overly textured, because I like to appreciate the other things.
DO YOU THINK MEN ARE RETURNING TO A STRICTER, MORE TAILORED STYLE?
OU: It is going to go both ways, which is not really an answer. The ones who are casual, and don’t need to dress up feel the need to dress up. Clothing in the whole history of mankind has never been so cheap, and people will buy t-shirts from H&M, Primark etc. Others will rebel to the norm and say ‘no, I don’t want to look like everyone else’. Men’s clothing will probably end up in three very distinct camps - one very casual low end, one being very high end tailored clothing and a smaller part in the middle, depending on the country. We have clients who save up to get a bespoke suit for their wedding, and they may never own one again in their lifetime. I was at a bad nightclub the other night and I saw twenty two year olds wearing suits, shirts and ties which you would never have seen five years ago. It is a state of mind - what’s tailored will be more tailored, more traditional and then you will have casual. The casual is unfortunately here to stay but Savile Row is experiencing a renaissance. Some people feel more comfortable in a suit than they do in a t-shirt and jeans - I am one of those. |
— October 2009
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