Their story begins in 1836, when Stephen George Holland and Frederick Sherry established a wool and silk fabric merchant shop on London’s Old Bond Street. Fifty years later, the company relocated to Golden Square, the heart of London’s wool trade, before expanding to New York in 1900. In 1968, the company made the first of many acquisitions that would transform it into the fabrics giant it is today, starting with Scottish cloth merchant Lowe Donald. It later established its presence on Savile Row in 1982.
Connect the dots between those years, and you’ll see a timeline of profound evolution in menswear—from long coat-tails and square-cut waistcoats to slim suits and knit ties, with top hats and overcoats along the way. Throughout this journey, Holland & Sherry has been a driving force for excellence. While tailors and designers often receive the spotlight, it’s the purveyors of the finest fabrics, the foundation of every fashionable garment, who remain the quiet champions of style.
Nearly two centuries after the company’s founding, Sarah J. Clare, Holland & Sherry’s Merchandise and Design Director, focuses on two key priorities. First, she ensures the company continues to raise the bar in menswear fabric quality. “We’re constantly researching to develop ever finer, more luxurious fibers and fabrics,” she explains. Second, she aims to uphold the brand’s legacy as a supplier to the world’s most prestigious tailors and luxury labels, balancing a deep respect for fabric heritage with a commitment to innovation at its core.
“Sure, we look at trends, but we also give ourselves the freedom to buy and create fabrics that are different from what’s already out there,” she tells Anatoly & Sons. “You've got to be aware of trends but distance yourself, and never be afraid to do something different.” Cultural shifts often set the tone for how Holland & Sherry charts its creative course, shaping its repertoire of around 2,500 fabrics. These collections span a diverse range of fibers, from cotton and linen to silk, fancy chenille, superfine merino wool, cashmere, and even the rare vicuña. “More and more men are accepting more and more feminine colors,” she says. “We're seeing a lot of pinks, a lot of pastels in menswear now, especially for the wedding market, because men now like to be able to be part of the bridal party.”
This, she says, can mean tinkering with patterns that are as time honored as the gentleman’s suit itself. “The Prince of Wales is a heritage check, and it's steeped in history, but what we can do with that without bastardizing it too much is keep the heritage part of it, but you might put a different window pane on it,” she says. “So, at the moment, it's red and a blue – those are the traditional colors – but you might put a pink element in it, or even green. A lot more weddings are happening abroad now, so these pink lavender shades, pastel blues, lime greens, mint greens – colors that are all really popular for a warm climate – are an increasing part of our collections. We're not afraid to gamble.”
Purposely bucking trends, Sarah says, is also a key part of Holland And Sherry’s quest. “Orange isn't present in the market – so I'm going to put something that’s orange in there, because what's what sets you apart from the rest,” she says. That said, classic, traditional cloths also remain crucial to the Holland And Sherry canon (for a perfect example, check out our Navy Birdseye Suit in “Royal Mile,” Super 140's Merino Wool). “The patterns that always sell are your naval blues, your greys and your blacks,” Sarah points out.
Regular visitors to bespoke tailors may recognize the phrase “Makes up well.” It’s a term cutters use to describe how obediently cloth behaves in achieving the kind of elegant, refined silhouette and drape that defines the clothing at Anatoly’s. Generally speaking, the heavier the fabric, the better—but today’s discerning consumers have a growing appetite for lighter cloth. “People now want ultra-fine tailoring because it’s comfortable, non-restrictive, and very relaxed,” explains Sarah. In response, like other top fabric purveyors, Holland & Sherry is continually striving to develop finer, lighter fabrics that, despite their delicate structure, still “make up well.”
“When I first joined Holland and Sherry in 1999, your average cloth weight was round about 310 grams. And a lot of the British tailors still like that weight. But that doesn't stop us from trying to find the finest fabric, the lightest weight fabric. The lightest weight that we produce is round about 190 grams. Twenty years ago, it wouldn't have been possible to make something like that up, but we create these fabrics now.”
Interestingly, Sarah notes that, much like weight, the weaving method is becoming an increasingly important factor in the extent to which a fabric will behave at a tailor’s behest. “With a lot of Italian fabrics, in order to get this lightweight look that lots of people rave about, a mill will use a two-ply warp with a single weft, which limits the lifespan of that fabric. What Holland And Sherry do – and we pride ourselves on this – is a two-ply warp and two-ply weft, so that the warp and weft are balanced. It makes the fabric stronger, more robust, gives a better drape and a fuller handle, and it makes it easier to tailor. We want to give fabric, and the garments made from our fabrics, longevity, so that if the tailored garment is rested, looked after and cared for, it will last a lifetime.”
Readers won’t be surprised to hear that Sarah considers fabric not just a job but a life calling. “I live and breathe textiles,” she says. “It's a passion, it's a hobby. It's my life.”
-----
[The header image featured in this article is courtesy of Holland & Sherry Ltd and is © Holland & Sherry Ltd. All rights reserved.]
