Hardy Amies (fashion house)
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| Company type | Privately Held |
|---|---|
| Industry | Luxury goods |
| Founded | 1946 |
| Founder | Sir Edwin Hardy Amies |
| Headquarters | Savile Row, London, England |
Key people | Claire Malcolm (CD), Tony Yusuf (MD) |
| Website | Hardy Amies Official |
Hardy Amies, Ltd. is a British-based fashion house established in 1946, specializing in traditional men's bespoke tailoring.
History
Throughout World War II, the brands founder Sir Edwin Hardy Amies designed clothes for the British Board of Trade under the government Utility Scheme, which complied with the ration book standard. As Lachasse had closed at the start of the war, he also designed ready-made clothes for Worth.
In 1946 he established his own couture fashion house business, Hardy Amies Ltd, after buying the bombed out shell of a house that was №14 Savile Row. Although Savile Row is the home of English bespoke tailoring, the Hardy Amies brand developed to become known for its classic and beautifully tailored clothes for both men and women. Amies was vice-chairman of the Incorporated Society of London Fashion Designers from 1954 to 56, and chairman from 1959 to 60.
Commercial Success
Amies was successful in business by being able to commercially extract value from his designs, while not replicating his brand to the point of exploitation. Amies was one of the first European designers to venture into the ready-to-wear market when he teamed up with Hepworths in 1959 to design a range of menswear. In 1961, Amies made fashion history by staging the first men's ready-to-wear catwalk shows, at the Ritz Hotel in London.
Amies also undertook design for in-house work wear, which developed from designing special clothes for the England 1966 World Cup team, the 1972 British Olympic squad;[1] and groups such as the Oxford University Boat Club and London Stock Exchange.
2001: A Space Odyssey
In 1967, Sir Edwin Hardy Amies was commissioned by director Stanley Kubrick to design the costumes for his film 2001: A Space Odyssey.[2] An epic science fiction film, it demonstrated the immense range in Amies' design ability, and was unsurprisingly nominated for four Academy Awards - receiving one for visual effects. In 1991, it was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.
Hardy Amies' Growth
In May 1973, Amies sold the business to Debenhams, which had already purchased Hepworths which distributed the Hardy Amies line. Amies purchased the business back in 1981. In May 2001, Amies sold his business to the Luxury Brands Group. He retired at the end of the year, when Moroccan-born designer Jacques Azagury became head of couture. In November 2008, after going bankrupt,[1] the Hardy Amies brand was acquired by Fung Capital, the private investment arm of Victor and William Fung, who together control the Li & Fung Group.[3]
Hardy Amies Today
Further Reading
- Here Lived…, Cambridge, 1948.
- Just So Far, London, 1954.
- The ABC of Men's Fashion, London, 1964.
- Still Here, London, 1984.
- The Englishman's Suit, London, 1994.
References
- ^ a b "No rescue for Hardy Amies company". BBC News. October 10, 2008. Retrieved October 8, 2009.
- ^ Hardy Amies at IMDb
- ^ "Hardy Amies UK stores to close following sale to Fung Capital". Retail Week. November 11, 2008. Retrieved October 8, 2009.
External Links
- Hardy Amies Official Website
- Hardy Amies designer profile at [Vogue]
- Hardy Amies Style Advice article at [The Guardian]
- Hardy Amies abandons to its heritage article at [The Telegraph]
- Hardy Amies Guide Mens Fashion reviewed inside [The Guardian]
- Hardy Amies at the Victoria & Albert Museum
- The Hardy Amies Exhibition review at [The Independent]
- Hardy Amies profile at [Famous Why]
- Hardy Amies designer profile at [New York Times]
- Hardy Amies obituary at [The Times]
- Hardy Amies at IMDb