Tag: savile

'Clothes have to combine style with sustainability,' writes Prince Charles in GQ magazine. Photograph: Getty Images

He may not be monarch for a while yet, but for the next four days he is undisputed king of the front row. With the first ever week of men's catwalk shows in London falling hot on the heels of the jubilee, Prince Charles is the man charged with leading the British menswear industry into battle with the titans of France and Italy.

Tonight Prince Charles will host several hundred representatives from the fashion industry at a reception at St James's Palace, in celebration of the menswear shows that begin tomorrow.

Whether the prince will adopt Anna Wintour's trademark sunglasses for the duration is not known; what is certain is that the lure of a gold-embossed palace invitation is a significant coup for the British Fashion Council as they strive to fill the London front rows with the world's most powerful buyers and editors.

Despite stiff competition from parties hosted by Tinie Tempah (featuring crazy golf on the roof of Selfridges) and retailer Mr Porter (with DJ Alexa Chung), the St James's Palace invite the week's hot ticket. Menswear by Margaret Howell and Claire Malcolm of Hardy Amies on display during the reception, alongside designs by Christopher Raeburn, the winner of the emerging talent in menswear award at the most recent British Fashion Awards.

But the prominence of Prince Charles signifies more than simply a wish to capitalise on jubilee fever. The rich Savile Row tradition of British tailoring and a drive to promote quality British craftsmanship are a key part of the message of this fashion week. Those steering the event are keen to move the image of British designer menswear on from the creative-but-crazy label and into more commercial territory.

This is a shift which has been successfully made in womenswear, where the London collections are now a slick and respected element of the global industry rather than the eccentric afterthought they once were.

Writing in Vogue two years ago, Prince Charles demurred from being labelled "fashionable", but acknowledged that "there have been those generous enough to call me 'well dressed'". The Prince is a longtime customer of the shirtmakers Turnbull & Asser, whose shirts are made in a small factory in Gloucestershire, and the distinguished Savile Row tailors Anderson & Sheppard.

"Clothes have to combine style with sustainability," writes the prince in the current issue of GQ magazine, "and I find British-made tailoring more than meets that challenge – much to the amusement of my staff, who are sometimes surprised to find that what I am wearing turns out to be as old as or even older than they are".

This week's showcase for British designer menswear hopes to capitalise on new findings which show that while women are cutting back on luxury fashion and spending more on high street purchases, men are prioritising luxury purchases.

Research by American Express shows that in 2011, men's year-on-year spending on luxury fashion grew slightly by 1%, while spending on mainstream fashion fell by 1.2%. In contrast, women cut back slightly (0.7%) on luxury fashion spending, while increasing spending on mainstream fashion by 5.2%.

Suits designed in 1966 by Aquascutum and Simpson-Daks, members of the British Menswear Guild. Photograph: Keystone/Getty Images

The growing variety in men's clothes has reached a point where the tailoring world talks of rival styles. In Britain, it is the Flare line; in Germany, the Flowerpot line; in America, it is the Ivy League. Named designers of men's clothes are conspicuously absent, particularly in Britain.

Whatever the designer's interpretation of what men (or, as often or not, their womenfolk) want in clothes, it is increasingly apparent that we are fast moving towards an "international" style. Of course, there will be variations: age modifications between, say, the "teenager," the "man about town" and the "professional man", plus national variations.

Just as Paris has had to fight to resist the challenge of Italy and America in women's fashion, so today Savile Row is making a stand to retain some claim for traditional British bespoke tailoring. Hence, the Flare line, London's first major attempt for a decade to introduce a revolutionary new style. Will it succeed?

This spring's version of the Flare line, first introduced a year ago, is modified to the point where it at least becomes a practicable proposition. It is essentially the marriage of a cavalry-type jacket, longish in length and flared, and semi-bell-bottomed trousers with turn-ups.

Combined with it is the growing emphasis on brighter colours, on bold checks for country and Italian-inspired stripes for town wear. Waistcoats pick up a single colour from woollen or worsted suiting and are further enlivened by a novel cut.

Already, Savile Row reports that some of London's bold pioneers are adopting and adapting the Flare line. It will need further modification, however, before the ready-tailored manufacturers attempt to market it on a mass scale. Which is probably why the bespoke tailors have plunged for it.

The continental Flowerpot style is slender-making. The emphasis is on freedom of movement. It appeals as much to the young man on the continent as to those who wish to hide middle-age spread.

The jacket is directly opposed to the British conception. It is short with natural sloping shoulders, narrow lapels and slim sleeves to give the arms more emphasis. The trousers hug the hips and have very narrow bottoms without the turn-ups.

A touch of continental logic: bespoke tailors now cut the trouser knee on slightly fuller lines; this, together with a lining from the knee upwards, prevents bagging.

In America, this same mood of casualness has been developed over the years from what the college students wore into what has become known as the Ivy League line. Extreme forms of the Ivy, popular with younger men, are similar to our Edwardian style.

Already an American version of the Flowerpot has appeared, known as the Continental. No doubt each country will adopt its rival's styles. It becomes harder and harder to spot a man's nationality by his clothes.