1. What made you decide to pursue a career in men's fashion in particular?

My Dad and I would shop together from primary school age. He’d set me a budget each season and encourage me to purchase investment pieces. It was our time to bond and rather than concentrate on my own purchases, I would encourage him to buy expensive quality clothing and shoes that I thought would look cool on him.

After a few years working in luxury retail establishments; such as Harvey Nichols and Harrods, I eventually started my career in women’s tailoring at the age of 21 at Shanghai Tang, where I was the youngest and first female bespoke manager ever hired there which was thrilling. However, I quickly turned my eye to men’s tailoring after a lady requested that I make something for her husband. From then on I loved it. I enjoy the simplicity of a man’s wardrobe, yet there’s so much scope for an innovative, classic and classy wardrobe that I still feel is very unexplored.

2. What makes you different from other tailors?

I love making people feel good inside and out. I love beautiful clothing but I also love people. Hearing our clients stories and what’s important to them all forms important information about how we choose to design for our clients. Clothing has the capability of transforming how men look and feel and is massively under-utilised. It’s only when they know the difference that they can truly understand and appreciate it.

As well as making clothes that transform, I wanted to create an experience, a feeling and energy that I felt lacked from luxury as we know it. Luxury has prehistorically been hierarchical, snooty and intimidating. I’ve seen a big shift that I’m grateful for towards a more engaging, relaxed and informative way to offer a luxury experience.

My grandparents were very wealthy, and had two homes; one of which was on Jermyn street. They’d take us to the Waldorf for dinners and shop at luxury boutiques, yet I didn’t enjoy it because they were intimidating and it made it uncomfortable for everyone. All of these memories formed my beliefs about how I wanted my business to be run.

Now, clients leave our design home saying- “That was the best fun they’ve had spending thousands of pounds.” That to me is a total joy. I created a tagline ‘Be seen the way you deserve’ which has multiple layers of meaning. Looking good is both an inside and outside job and I want our clients to feel liberated, energised and to look incredible.

We’ve also created our own exclusive style system which takes our clients through a fun process, which takes a deep dive into their lifestyle and where they’re spending their time, along with their natural personality, skin type and body shape, so that we can create a unique wardrobe they'll feel proud to own. We also like to reintroduce our clients to their waist lines with our secret, flattering cut. All has to flow in absolute harmony for someone to truly make a subtle, yet impactful transformation that’s why we take every stitch, detail, shade and tone into consideration for each client.

3. What experience do you have with tailoring?

Like everything in life, I love to understand all about my subject. I’ve studied textiles, professional pattern cutting and have been taught imperial tailoring yet nothing compares to having a natural eye and vision for making a man look more stylish, attractive and confident.

I see in pictures, so as soon as our client starts talking, I know what colours and styles will suit them. Now my new style system allows for this to be replicated through the team to be able to help more men internationally.

4. What skills do you have that are most critical to this job?

Being able to empathise with our clients. It’s a big deal for a man to put their hands up and say - I don’t look as good as I could. Help! And that level of vulnerability needs care, listening skills and a bit (lot of) fun to lighten the tone. We’re designing wardrobes, not saving lives, so fun is paramount!

Naturally you have to have vision alongside tailoring skills to be able to create pieces that men will really enjoy, feel comfortable in and ultimately come back for more.

5. What is your experience in working with different fabrics ?

When I first started all I had to offer was navy and grey, grey and navy and back round again. Since the pandemic the range of fabrics has broadened massively.

I personally refuse to work with anything other than pure fabrics, without synthetics, both for sustainability reasons but also because luxury fabrics drape far more elegantly and also allows the body to breathe. My personal favourite is a mesh which is a pure wool by Holland and sherry. If there’s one blazer every man needs, it’s one made from this. Also linen, but not the crisp linen most know to look like a crumpled heap of pjs, the more it’s treated the softer it gets and that’s my fave type of linen.

6. What are some common mistakes people make when they get their clothes tailored? How would working with you be different ?

Where do I start?! Our style system methodically takes men through a process so that any mistakes are eradicated across the board.
My personal ones are colour. Most men seem to be terrified of colour, therefore stick to the basics for fear of messing it up. You only have to go to Wimbledon to see a sea of navy and beige. My mission in life is to see men really exploring their style more at these events, that’s still in keeping with traditions. That’s always the fine balance that we fully understand. Colour doesn’t mean bright and bold. Even a shade of blue with more interest is a good start.

Cut. This is crucial. There’s the golden ratio that I feel also applies to clothing. What we deem as attractive is down to how much legs vs torso we see. Also a flatteringly cut waistline is a massively missed opportunity. A lot of tailoring even when cut well can be too shapeless. I add a feminine touch that is seen in womenswear, yet I apply it to menswear and every client asks what I’ve done and if I’m a magician; so the secret shall remain a mystery.

Finally, style personality. When men look awkward, it’s to do with not wearing clothes that are in line with their natural personality that causes the problem. We work with our clients to make sure all is working in perfect, style harmony. We effectively are our clients stylist, image consultant, tailor and designer in one. We also advise on accessories, shoes… even haircut if asked.

7. What challenges have you faced? How have you overcome them?

I’ve been running my business for 16 years and have faced multiple challenges. It’s tough, but my unrelenting optimism keeps me excited for the future and enables me to navigate stress. I have a vision and I’m not going to let up until it’s fulfilled.

I began my business after not wishing to go back to the 9-5 grind and was due with my first born (who is now my very tall 16 year old daughter) so thought- I’ll start my own business - as you do! Initially I thought of it as a hobby but fell in love with it. It was after a friend said to me- “How did you make that man look so hot?! I wouldn’t have given him a second glance, but now…” At that point I realised that I really had something special, that this was more than tailoring. This was transformative. To change how a man feels and holds themselves with the power of tailored clothing to me is really exciting and since; I’ve constantly asked myself how we can make their experience even greater. That’s how the style system was created.

A man wants clothes that fit, feel comfortable but who doesn’t want to look more attractive and incredible if they can? We simply show them how in a way that’s fun and enjoyable.

When I made the decision to take my business from hobby to brand, I very quickly realised how different it is. I think optimistically which can be a real bonus, but can also have many downsides, when you realise things aren’t quite as easy as you’d first anticipated. For years I’d run the business on my own and it did get lonely. The frustrations of a business owner can be pretty dull to someone to hear that’s not in business. That in itself can be a huge weight to bear.

I’ve also been through two, now three financial downturns and not to mention the pandemic, which I decided to take as an opportunity to say, well if men aren’t wearing suits anymore what are they wearing and how can we make this work, rather than think catastrophically. It was tough at first but then I was excited, as it meant I could extend my design knowledge and create an entire vision for our clients' wardrobes. In fact, now I would be bored to make suits day in and day out. Our main offering is now to design, tailor and design for our clients lifestyle which takes their image from beach to boardroom and are finding that our clients are really enjoying both the process and the result.

We now have a design home in the Hertfordshire countryside of Much Hadham vs a shop. We’ve had clients arrive by helicopter and Ferrari, so there’s been a huge change! I also now have an incredible team, a business partner who is a magical Yang to my yin and it’s all clicked into place. An important thing to acknowledge is that you simply can’t do it all alone. You need a great team who share the same core values and vision. It’s taken some time but we’re now steady and set to scale up to new, international proportions.

8. What do you enjoy most about being a tailor? What does a normal day look like for you ?

Where once I considered myself as a tailor, I now see myself as a visionary. I look at the entire picture. I want to revolutionise menswear. I see inklings of men being allowed to talk more about style, skin care, hair and their feelings but it’s still very limited. I want to fully explore and create a really fun environment where men can talk about these things, which in turn make them feel more incredible in life, which can only be a positive move.

I can’t stand being tied to a desk. I like to be out and about meeting people. I love finding out about people’s interests, so if I’m not in meetings, I’m letting my creative brain flow, as that’s when my great ideas are released.

9. What are your future plans for the next 3 years?

I’m very excited to announce that we are taking the brand global. We’re in the process of hiring our new team of style superstars to help busy successful men look more incredible around the world. We often get requests about when we will visit the US, China and more so we’re responding. We will also host quarterly parties for our clients around the world, in order to bring our like minded clients together. I can’t wait!

www.alexandrawoodbespoke.co.uk

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