Lock & Co. Hatters sells a wide range of men’s hats, including bowler hats. Image credit: Horst Friedrichs/Alamy Stock Photo

Boots, Shirts, and Suits

Queens

If you want to take a glimpse into the craftsmanship that London offers, start with a walk around St. James’s. You can’t take more than a few steps without encountering one of the Royal Warrant-holding companies that are the beating heart of this corner of Westminster. Open the door of Lock & Co. Hatters and you might think you’ve stepped back in time, with elegantly besuited hatters (not sales assistants) to welcome you in, shelves stacked high with the company’s signature black and white boxes, and polished wooden cabinets. These show some of the hat shop’s most celebrated designs, such as the bowler hat created for the gamekeepers of Holkham Hall in Norfolk and the black fedora so loved by Oscar Wilde. The millinery section showcases a fine selection of hats for ladies created by head milliner Awon Golding, with personalized versions available. The store’s history goes back to 1676, when hatter Robert Davis opened a shop on St. James’s Street to cater to the burgeoning upper classes of the area. It became Lock & Co. when Robert’s daughter Mary married James Lock, grandson of George Lock – also of St. James’s Street – an importer of coffee, chocolate, and tobacco. It is the oldest hatters in the world. This was where Lord Nelson bought his “cocked hat and cockade” and former British Prime Minister Anthony Eden his Homburg. Intriguingly, the character of the Mad Hatter in Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was said to have been inspired by James Benning, the manager of the shop. “Mad as a hatter” comes from the occupational hazard of hat-making at a time when many inhaled mercury vapors from the felting process.

A few doors down is John Lobb Bootmaker –not to be confused with the John Lobb brand owned by the Hermès group. The original John Lobb opened his eponymous shoe shop on nearby Regent Street, having created a pair of riding boots for The Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) of such quality and distinction they won him a Royal Warrant. He opened a shop on St. James’s Street in 1880 and the company moved into its current premises 63 years ago. It has remained in the same family for five generations and still produces handmade shoes in its on-site workshop. The basement houses row upon row of wooden lasts – the individual models of customers’ feet – including those of many members of the Royal family, past and present. On Bury Street is the bespoke department of Turnbull & Asser, shirtmakers. Its Royal Warrant is handed down personally to James Cook, Bespoke Manager, who is responsible for fitting H.M. The King’s shirts. The brand’s most impressive shirt was made for The King on his Coronation Day – embroidered and sewn by hand, taking more than 40 hours of work. The Savile Row area is renowned around the world for its bespoke tailoring and is still home to more than 20 individual tailors. One of the best known is Henry Poole & Co, which can trace its history back to 1806, when James Poole opened a linen drapers shop nearby and expanded the business into the making of military tunics, including many worn in the Battle of Waterloo of 1815. His son Henry inherited the business and became what we might describe today as a “celebrity tailor,” catering to royalty, aristocracy, and even the Emperor Napoleon from a palatial showroom on Savile Row. At one point, the company employed 300 tailors and 14 cutters. In the 1960s, it relocated to Cork Street, but came home to “the Row” in 1982. Today, it has clients from all over the world who value the highly personal service and bespoke fit that the company offers. On adjacent Old Burlington Street, Anderson & Sheppard boasts a Royal Warrant awarded by His Majesty The King (and first awarded when he was The Prince of Wales). This most British of tailors was established at the turn of the 20th century by two immigrants, Dutchman Frederick Scholte and Swede Peter (Per) Gustav Anderson. Frederick preferred to keep a low profile, so their trouser cutter, Sydney Sheppard, became the third partner and gave his name to the business. The fluid style of their cut found a fan in The Prince of Wales (later to be Edward VIII, The Duke of Windsor), as well as Hollywood stars such as Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Charlie Chaplin, Cole Porter, and Rudolph Valentino.

High-quality globes are handcrafted by Bellerby & Co. Globemakers. Image credit: Euan Myles/Bellerby and Co Globemakers

Helen Chislett highlights some of the many wonderful artisan crafts produced in London, including from family businesses dating back generations

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The iconic Unisphere in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens. Image credit: Shutterstock

James Smith & Sons handmakes umbrellas of all styles and colors. Image credit: Horst Friedrichs/Alamy Stock Photo

Hampton Court Palace houses the studios of the Royal School of Needlework, which celebrated its 150th birthday in 2022. The world-renowned embroidery studio restores historic textiles and creates bespoke new pieces, including the embroidery on H.M. Queen Camilla’s Coronation robe of Estate and on the wedding dress of H.R.H. The Princess of Wales (Catherine Middleton). Running until June 2025, its Tales of Textiles exhibition is open on set days to limited numbers of visitors and offers the opportunity to see key pieces of embroidered textiles collected and donated from all over the world. Of course, craftsmanship is not just about Royal patronage. A short walk from Covent Garden Market is the premises of James Smith & Sons, umbrella makers since 1830, when the original James Smith opened a shop off Regent’s Street. The shop moved to its current premises in the 1850s and has remained largely unchanged, its double-fronted windows crammed with handcrafted umbrellas of every style and color.

Historic Textiles

Happily, modern-day artisans also thrive in London. Bellerby & Co. Globemakers was founded by Peter Bellerby in 2008. The globemakers, cartographers, woodworkers, and painters create the most beautiful globes, which are often personalized – the establishment is a wonderful example of a thriving, 21st-century craft business. If you’re visiting the city in June or November, pay a visit to Cockpit studios, home to more than 170 London makers at sites in Bloomsbury and Deptford. Group visits can also be arranged to these wonderful working studios.

Contemporary Crafters

Bootmaker John Lobb is one of the artisan stores that holds a Royal Warrant. Image credit: Horst Friedrichs/Alamy Stock Photo

Royal Warrants

Royal Warrants can be traced back to medieval times, when competition for royal favor was intense and the monarch chose their best tradespeople. The system was formalized in the 15th century, under the auspices of the Lord Chamberlain (as Head of the Royal Household), and continues today. When Queen Elizabeth II died, all Royal Warrants were voided and in May 2024, H.M. The King and H.M. The Queen granted their first Royal Warrants of the new reign.

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