Thomas Harvey, Aquascutum
Aquascutum is a brand with an enviable heritage and renown for its understated elegance. A cornerstone of the British fashion industry for over 160 years. Playing an intrinsic role in the history of waterproof garments, the Aquascutum brand has been lauded for fine craftsmanship, designer fabrics, and attention to detail in their pursuit of being the pinnacle of style.
The brand’s evolution began in 1853, John Emary, owner of a tailor shop in Regent Street, invented a revolutionary waterproof cloth. The cloth proved to be such a success that the company was aptly renamed Aquascutum – ‘aqua’ meaning water and ‘scutum’, which translates as ‘shield’ in Latin. Talking of Shields, Aquascutum supplied trench coats (hence the name) to our boys during both World Wars.
Now it wasn’t long before the chic and sophisticated nature of this protective piece of clothing caught the eye of many a Hollywood star and starlet, Greta Garbo and Sophia Loren parading their Aquascutum raincoats to great effect.
So with a history that encompasses clothing the likes of the Queen Mother, Winston Churchill and Humphrey Bogart, the stalwart legacy of Aquascutum continues to influence its fashion collections today
Enough about the History of the brand, we wanna know what’s going on now in the 21st Century. Well, for Autumn we see an iconic Ad campaign(see images below) Shot by renowned fashion photographer Alasdair McLellan and featuring award winning British actor Damian Lewis, yes, aka Nick Brody !!!and enigmatic British supermodel Eliza Cummings. McLellan photographs the couple in elegant black and white portraits under the atmospheric iron arches of Macclesfield bridge on London’s Regent’s Canal. The romantic and cinematic environment captures the two in intimate stolen moments.
The gentleman in charge of helming the contemporary and creative output of this historic house has a resume that covers diverse brands including Marc Jacobs, Duckie Brown, Reiss plus of course Aquacutum, the house is in safe and protective hands with Thomas Harvey. So lets learn a little more about this man.
The Flagship Menswear Store on London’s, Jermyn Street
If you could only wear the clothes of one brand for the rest of your life who would it be ?
If I was to be restricted to buying from just one place, I would go bespoke and use Richie Charlton, who cuts the suits I currently wear when I’m not wearing Aquascutum. The key to building a good wardrobe is buying staple pieces from different brands, as depending on which category you’re shopping for, your go-to brand should change.
If you only had one day to live what would be your biggest regret ?
I try not to live my life with regrets, if there’s something I want to do then I generally try to find a way to make it happen.
What inspires you ?
People, travelling – we try to design clothes at Aquascutum for real people so we always ask ourselves when designing whether your average gentleman on the street would feel comfortable in what we offer.
What would be the one thing you would rescue if your house was on fire ?
My Grandfather’s war medals and uniform
Who is your style icon ?
Douglas Hayward – he’s the person I looked up to in the early stages of my career and helped dress many inspirational people over the years
What style advice do you live by ?
Don’t take yourself too seriously. Be comfortable in your own appearance, where you can, buy quality staples pieces over fast fashion items that won’t last.
If you could collaborate with one brand who would it be?
We collaborated with Anthony Gormley and Esquire to create an electroplated suit in 2009 when I was at the brand previously. It would be interesting to do more projects like this, where the boundaries of art and fashion collide. I also really admire Andreas Gursky’s work – I like his photography and it would be interesting to see what influence or twist he could give on Aquascutum
If you could give your teenage self advice, what would it be ?
Travel more, see the world when young and do as much as you can to gain as much vaired experience as possible.
What piece of clothing should everyman have in his wardrobe ?
A well cut navy suit dressed up or down, it works for all occasions.
Tell us what your favourite hotel in the world is ?
Blackberry Farm in Tennessee – I spent last New Year’s here. It’s the perfect place to forget about the world – from time to time I like to get out of London, and immerse myself in country life.
What piece of clothing would you relegate to Room 101 ?
Club check baseball caps!
PREVIEW OF THE AUTUMN AD CAMPAIGN
