Anto: Shirtmaker to Hollywood, on and off screen

Monday, December 12th 2022
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I can imagine a reader walking past Anto Shirts in Beverly Hills and not stopping in. There’s quite a range of styles, and not all of them are the kind of classic look PS normally covers. 

The readers that have mentioned the shirtmaker to me have come in through other routes: seeing Anto mentioned in the press, or perhaps more often, seeing a shirt in a movie they liked and tracking down who made it. 

Anto does so much film work that there’s a decent chance they’ll be the maker you want - and that was my connection. I already knew Jack Sepetjian from our Shirtmakers Symposium, and when I was interested in a shirt made for Ryan Gosling in La La Land, I asked whether he made it. 

He did, and I covered the shirt I had made in its image here

I think this is likely to be the most interesting angle for readers. Anto makes quality shirts from my experience, but they are expensive (mostly $425+) compared to most we cover. What no other maker offers is the ability to use Harrison Ford’s shirt pattern from the latest Indiana Jones film, or Leonardo DiCaprio’s, and make their own version. 

Anto also acquired the archive of another Hollywood shirtmaker which goes back to the 1940s and 50s, containing the patterns of many of the Rat Pack, such as Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. 

If you’re at all interested in period clothing, that is a treasure trove. “Most often our work comes from costume designers approaching us to make shirts from a particular decade, when the film is set,” Jack (above) told me, when I spoke to him on a Zoom call earlier this year. 

“Any shirtmaker could make a go at creating those styles from photos or from a vintage piece, but no one has the pattern archive we do.” 

Given how often brands draw on military shirts from the same era, you feel there must be some useful civilian designs in there - though as Jack says, not necessarily from the performers of the day, or at least not what they wore to perform. 

Keen to get some first-hand experience of Anto - as well as some original photography - I asked LA local Robert Spangle (@ThousandYardStyle) to act as our roving reporter and go visit.

“I found it interesting that every aspect of the bespoke process, except for cutting and attaching the sleeves and collar, can be automated in the atelier in Studio City,” Robert says. 

“They still offer fully handmade, hand-cut shirts, but the automation allows them to cater to Hollywood. They can run out finished bespoke garments from a proven customer pattern the same day for a red-carpet event, or do small-scale production for wardrobe.”

This machinery is pretty new - when I spoke to Jack a few months earlier, it was something he was hoping to get up and running soon. The lack of it (and just as importantly, the staff required) was the major reason Anto had so few ready-made shirts available. 

"We’ve been so busy with film work the past couple of years that it’s been hard to get that going,” Jack said. "But that's what the business needs - people have been asking for it for so long.”

The atelier - a twenty-minute drive over the hill from the Beverley Hills shop - is also where the archive is held. Robert spent a happy half hour browsing through the old patterns. 

There were some technical innovations in there that I admired,” he says. “For example, they developed a special collar for Sinatra that is extremely canted, high in the back but with almost no collar stand in the front. It allowed him to sing without the shirt and tie disrupting his vocal cords.”

Many tailors around the world have patterns from famous customers, but they’re usually reticent about taking inspiration from them - and have less reason to do so, having no ready-to-wear. 

Also, those archives rarely contain a mix clothes that actors wore both on and off screen. There are exceptions, and some stars wore their own clothes in their film roles. But I don’t think anyone has this mix of civilian and costume clothing, from such a variety of actors, over such a long period - Anto was founded in 1955.

Anto has also been family owned for that whole period, with Jack its third generation. Anto Sepetjian, the founder, immigrated to California with his family from Beirut, Lebanon in the fifties.

I guess that’s one more thing that makes it a Permanent Style kind of maker, even if that’s a little hidden behind the Hollywood glamour.

And Anto joins a lengthening list of places in Los Angeles that I'd love to go and visit. We covered Ghiaia recently of course, but there’s also makers we’ve covered like Wellema, Chester Mox and Good Art, and LA-specific shops alongside vintage haunts like the Rose Bowl Flea Market. Perhaps I'll get to go again in 2023. 

Any readers out there, it would be great to see you too. 

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Phil

Simon. Im curious to know how you feel about your Anto silk shirt after wearing it for a couple of months? The size of the collar, the material, durability and ease of wear? 

Peter Hall

I think my favourite shirt on PS was the Anto La la land shirt. Do you still get much use out of it or was it a little too different for regular wear?
Since casual days arrived, I’ve spent much more time considering shirting as the centrepiece of an outfit, rather than just something to hang a tie on. I am seeing more pattern and colour variety in shirts now. I wonder if this is a trend .

Gary Mitchell

I agree that there does exist a real need for flouncy pirate shirts….. right place, right time, cool shirt.

JL

So nice to see you write about Anto, Simon. I’m English but have family in Bev Hills and Anto really stands out amidst the shiny brands in the vicinity. The big problem with LA in respect of what you focus on is that the city is just so much more casual in its style. And weirdly, those people who do wear jackets / formal trousers, for some reason tend to go high end Italian ready to wear (eg Battistoni have a store next to the Wilshire). Rose Bowl market is good but the clothes tend to be more slanted to Nike sneakers from the 90s, less formal. Two shops you may want to visit near Anto: -Carroll Custom – great styling and quality but mainly Italian made and -Self Edge – great selection of both American and Japanese jeans.
The ultimate is when someone in Bev Hills or Bel Air does an ‘estate sale’. It’s like an English car boot sale on style steroids – I found five 1960s Brioni ties in a 1970s Gucci ties case for $100 just before Covid. But sadly you can’t predict when they happen.
There is one other US shirt maker that I’ve heard people in LA talk about but weirdly it’s based in Texas – name is Hamilton…

Bryan

Hamilton is the oldest and possibly the best (in addition to various individual craftspeople) shirt maker in the United States. They prefer the traditional non-fused construction.

Dan

I have a few made to measure Hamilton Dress Shirts. They are pretty good, and I have enjoyed wearing them Plus, I get to support USA manufacture.

Josh

Thanks for this blog post on Anto! Love their shirts.

Tim

Nice looking shirts, I especially like that maroon shirt with palm trees in the bottom pic.

BTW, have you seen Frank Foster’s Instagram account?

Tim

It’s just about the best intagram account you will see on shirts.

Aodhán

Understandable considering the context of a collar cut specifically to facilitate singing, but “vocal chords” should be “vocal cords”.

Jason Sexton

Come to LA!

Joseph M

Greetings,
This is one of my few posts in the comments. I have gotten a university degree in style from everyone here. You all have my thanks.
I’m 65, just finishing my first divorce, after three decades of marriage, and I have let myself go. I’m exercising again but my waist is huge and I can’t bring myself to accept wearing an untucked shirt to try and disguise my colossal girth.
I need advice, don’t hold back be as honest as you can. I’m hoping that you can recommend approaches for dress to look sharp in the interim.
A million thanks!

Dominic Kivni

Simon, how would you compare the shirt from Anto against the bespoke options in London (both local bespoke makers as well as traveling Italians)?

Dominic Kivni

Glad to hear it compares well against the Europeans. I saw that article, it read as you were quite happy with the shirt but the focus seemed more on the style of the shirt and wearing it tucked vs untucked, so I wanted to check on the point vs European makers directly. Particularly for US west coast readers such as myself, Anto might be the most easily accessible option for high quality bespoke shirts, but I think others, as I am, would be debating more local options like Anto vs New York local / traveling options vs London options, particularly if they find themselves traveling a lot (as I would guess readers considering ~$400 bespoke shirts would). At that price point, I think it’s similar to where T&A or D’Avino are now, how would you think about which to go to between three?

Jim

Nice to see some recent articles about Anto. I have been a client for over twenty years now. Yes, you are correct, they are expensive. However, the quality, attention to detail, and customer service, are all absolutely first rate. Very much worth every cent. At least to me.
On another note, the gentleman in the photo working the machinery appears (correct me if I’m wrong) to be Anthony. He is a son of either Jack or Ken (I can’t remember which.)
The last couple times in Beverly Hills he conducted my appointments. A fine and competent young man who is carrying on the family business.
Always enjoy your website Simon. Keep up the good work.