As I turned down Savile Row, just a minute’s walk from Regent Street, it was immediately clear that I was entering a world famous street, dedicated to the art of traditional bespoke tailoring. The doorbell chimed as I stepped through the door to Huntsman, No. 11 Savile Row, London. A man with long hair and broad shoulders turned to greet me. This man, I thought to myself, must be Pierre Lagrange, owner of the centuries-old family business, Huntsman.
Upon seeing the Stylist logo printed across the canvas bag I was sporting that day, Pierre delightedly told me that he happened to be an investor of the Stylist and Shortlist Media. For those who don’t know, Pierre Lagrange is a hedge fund manager, so buying and selling businesses takes up most of his time. In 2013, Huntsman became the latest addition—and a rather unusual one—to his investment portfolio, which sparked some attention at the time. Before Pierre took on the business, a syndicate of 15 investors had been running Huntsman for years.
As the new gatekeeper, bringing something new to Huntsman without damaging the brand’s long-standing reputation for traditional style and exceptional quality, is Pierre’s number one priority. Before addressing any questions about business strategy or management, he was most enthusiastic about showing off a hunting jacket adjusted to fit his measurements: “The design details are not just decorative. These are for practical purposes.” Laid out in front of us was a flap jacket made by Huntsman for Eric Clapton in 2008. Pierre explained that the extra layer of leather on the pocket is waterproofing and that the padding in the right shoulder is useful when hunting. Pierre now plans to wear it: “We [Eric Clapton and I] are virtually the same size. Few adjustments are needed.”
Let’s revise the history of Huntsman and how the business reached its current position. Founded in 1849, the first shop was established at No. 126 New Bond Street when Henry Huntsman purchased a company that made gaiters and breeches dating back to 1809. The business moved to its present location along Savile Row 110 years later in 1919. Early on, Huntsman quickly gained a reputation for dressing the hunting and riding aristocracy of Europe, which was maintained for much of the nineteenth century. Henry Huntsman’s very own breeches are in fact on display at the company’s Savile Row shop. Huntsman continues to make equestrian and tailoring today, as well as formal wear and other bespoke clothing.
At its peak around 1981, Huntsman had the largest custom tailor factory in the UK with more than 130 professional tailors. The company served distinguished clientele, including Queen Victoria, Gregory Peck and Charlie Watts. Today Huntsman still attracts many high calibre customers; the Savile Row shop was even used as a key location for the filming of Kingsman: The Secret Service by Matthew Vaughn. As the story goes, the fictional tailors at Kingsman acted as a front for a secret service, of which the agents of course were all impeccably dressed. Thomas Egerton as secret agent “Eggsy” looked particularly dapper dressed up in his Kingsman suit. As for the story’s origin, director Matthew Vaughn’s mother took 18 year old Matthew to Huntsman on Savile Row, to be measured up for his first suit. It is clear how this experience stuck with Vaughn throughout his life, inspiring his work 25 years later.
There are now over one thousand suit styles to choose, crafted from textiles supplied by Huntsman’s own exclusive cloth merchants. A bespoke suit costs at least £4400 and 80 man-hours to produce; clients are required to meet 3-4 times with a Huntsman tailor for consultation and measure-ups. If prospective clients are not able to visit the shop in person, there is no need to worry as Huntsman still has something to offer. The company has an online shop where customers are able to purchase ready-to-wear collections remotely. Additionally, trunk shows are periodically held in the USA, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. At these events, clients can be measured up by expert Huntsman cutters, in many major cities around the world including Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu.
Pierre Lagrange was not familiar with the Huntsman brand before the takeover. With a personal net-worth of £500 million, he has a longstanding love for expensive cars, guns and jewellery. It was not until some close encounters with Huntsman that he discovered a new world. He told me that although some items on display may look new, they are in fact many years old, some dating back to 1925. Because Huntsman clothing is of such high quality and prestige, it is common for families to pass it down through the generations as a precious heirloom; this would explain the well-preserved condition of Huntsman archives. “People don’t buy Huntsman because it’s fashionable. They buy it because they want to look good and feel powerful, in a subtle way. It’s like a good painting: You don’t really know why it’s so much better but there’s something about it”.
Pierre explained the principle by which he abides when investing in a new company: “I like a business where its competitors have difficulty keeping up. You need to train, you need to invest for the long term, you need to find passion and take the time. You need long term commitments to stay ahead of the game”. He spoke about a childhood friend of his, Juan van Wassenhove, who is a banker residing in Beijing for the restoration of the 600-year-old Zhizhu Temple, close to the Palace Museum. The temple is now an integrated clubhouse with restaurants, conference rooms and boutique hotels, all together under one roof. Both reviving traditions within a modern context, Pierre believes their projects are almost identical, only with different names.
“What Huntsman is making is men’s qipao.” Pierre sees a parallel between the qipao tailors of the Street of Eternal Happiness in Shanghai, and the bespoke suit makers of Savile Row. “These are the two most famous streets in the world for tailoring. How many qipao master tailors are there now?” Pierre pondered. “Young rich people love the qipao because it’s a traditional garment that not only makes women feel good but also look stylish”.
Pierre only visits the shop once a month despite the fact that his own investment management company, GLG Partners, is only a short distance away. As a non-executive director, he is proud of the excellent management team he has put together in order to run the business. Carol Pierce was appointed as general manager and Campbell Carey as creative director. Both have extensive experience of the bespoke tailoring business, and have worked within the field for many years.
Most of the Huntsman family members have left the business, however Pierre found by chance a great-granddaughter of founder Henry Huntsman. An entrepreneur friend living in Zimbabwe told Pierre that his lawyer’s middle name is Huntsman. Pierre then tracked her down and found many photographs, though the family wishes to remain private. “We want to re-trace the genealogy of Henry Huntsman when time permits.” Pierre pointed out that several employees have past connections with Huntsman, which he believes can only have a positive impact like keeping the brand close to its heritage, maintaining consistent high quality and building employee and customer loyalty.
I asked: “Do you think a T-shirt-wearing Silicon Valley entrepreneur such as Mark Zuckerberg could ever become a client of Huntsman?” Pierre replied without any hesitation: “Not necessarily him. But when an internet entrepreneur like Zuckerberg needs formal wear, he will come to us”.
Q&A
Q: We have heard many stories involving conflict between a family business and external investors who are only in it for short-term gains. How do you protect a family business such as Huntsman from a situation like this?
A: This business should not be owned purely by investors. It’s a bit like owning a work of art; beauty and quality cannot be accomplished in a hurry. Even though everything is so fast-paced in this world, building something with care will take time; you simply cannot rush it.
When you come here as a client you will experience first-hand how the staff really take the time to give you their full attention and do their best to make you feel good. For that hour, while they take your measurements and advise on various styles, you are the most important person in the room. By contrast, if you look at ready-to-wear, it is the reverse situation: it is you who must fit the clothes rather than the other way around. At Huntsman, our tailors will create something especially for you based on your measurements, wants and needs. I find this to be a very interesting idea.
As an investor I have invested in a lot of different concepts but I never wanted to invest in fashion. I wanted to invest in style. Much like in eastern philosophies where you must acquire it over the long term, it is serenity rather than simply slow movement. This business is very different to my other investments but in the end it’s all about talent management. I spend a lot of my time considering the best ways to train my staff.
Q: How does Huntsman, as a traditional family brand, stay true its roots while managing to keep up with the pace of innovation?
A: Huntsman was founded nearly 200 years ago during the Victorian era, so how do you make Huntsman’s traditional designs interesting again for the people of today? Many said that we would have to modernise and change. I said no, this brand is unique. I want to do the opposite. I want to build upon the rich history of Huntsman by choosing the aspects most relevant to today, and perhaps adding our own contemporary touch.
I put together an excellent management team to run the company. Our mindset is family-oriented in the sense that we have few shops and that we like to do things discretely. Because we are acting as a family, we can afford a different approach. We stand up against the pressures to compromise. Not only us but our clients would not accept compromise either. We can see this is the case not only here and the USA, but also in China. When we have an opening, guests with trained eyes are able to spot a Huntsman suit immediately by its powerful and attractive silhouette.
We are able to take things at our own pace and still consistently provide the highest quality service. Clients come to us because they trust us to listen, and help them to look and feel their best. There aren’t many of us in the world who can guarantee a bespoke, personal luxury service. Like ours, if a brand can promise a top client experience, deliver quality results in a specified time frame, then the brand will always have clients.
Q: Huntsman has a strong international client base. What were your methods for acquiring these clients?
A: About 18 months ago we went to Asia for the first time for the Asia Trunk Show. This is because we prefer to see our clients in person. We don’t open shops all over the place; because we are a private family business, we can resist the pressure to expand.
Clients often bring others along to see their tailor; this is where client referrals play a big part for us. Everybody who has been to a trunk show in the past has loved it. If one person wants to come, then many times other people will find out about it and come along too.
A lot of men, including myself, don’t know how to dress. We have other priorities and therefore we either have a personal shopper or a tailor who provides honest advice—he doesn’t need to sell you a garment that’s already been made. For these reasons, our business model appeals to people all over the world.
Q: Is there anything you would like to share with us relating to technology and management?
A:From what I have seen and learned from the other companies that I have invested in, productivity improvement has to be the number one priority. This is a 200 year-old business and now we are on Salesforce. It’s amazing how much it has improved the efficiency of production management. As a result we have more time to spend with our clients.
You won’t see tech everywhere on our premises but e-commerce is inevitable. Clients can buy ready-to-wear suits directly from our website and also communicate with us via Skype if they are not able to travel so that we can send it for alteration. Huntsman has seen a steady growth from the online platform.
Q: Huntsman is at the top end of the tailoring spectrum. Do you see any difference in preferences across markets?
A:We were once commissioned by a man from China to tailor an overall for him to wear while racing his classic cars. We designed him a bespoke suit made especially for driving in. Many European clients wear suits for horse riding and playing polo. There are also clients who would like a suit that is easy and comfortable to wear while travelling, and still look good when they get off the plane. Some clients would like to please their wife when they go out, and make her feel like she’s married to James Bond. There’s a market for us everywhere.
If you think about a black tie, it is a uniformly popular garment that men from almost every country own. Nevertheless, men in Singapore or the southern part of China, or people living in a Tropical climate, may dress differently from those who are from California. Our team would therefore go to a specific location with different fabrics and styles, better suited to our client’s preferences.
Q: What are the challenges facing Huntsman for it to continue developing sustainably?
A:There are almost no limits, it seems, in terms of what we can do for our clients; many people don’t know that Huntsman does not only make suits. As mentioned earlier, we made a bespoke suit for a gentleman and his cars. Huntsman also has womenswear; Queen Victoria and Liz Taylor were among our first big-name clientele. Nicole Kidman wore Huntsman for a photo shoot with Vogue—she looked amazing in a 3-piece tweed. She loved the outfit so much that she bought it straight away.
Our quality is even better than it was 30 years ago. This is good news because we can keep improving the meaning of ‘hand-made’. However, with our increasing popularity comes the ever-more difficult challenge: a top-class tailor takes years to finish training. How can we train our tailors fast enough to deal with the growing demand for our services, while still maintaining the best quality?