RM Williams: An interview with Paul Grosmann
March 14th 2025The CEO of RM Williams was over recently, as part of a company focus on the UK – they recently opened shops in Marlow and Cambridge, and are planning others. I took the opportunity to interview the CEO Paul Grosmann, as I was interested to hea...
RM Williams: An interview with Paul Grosmann
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Thanks Nick, but we are not RM Williams. We are a menswear magazine....
August Special coming to UK for first time (and A...
February 21st 2025The thing I was most excited about doing with our new PS Showroom (other than picking carpet colours, obviously) was helping brands come to London. Doing a pop-up is not cheap or easy, so helping someone do so affordably and with local advice is app...
August Special coming to UK for first time (and A...
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I'm not that much of a fan of the City Loafer to be honest, the silhouette isn't quite my style. I think the make is also similar to the City Moc that we talked about recently here, which is very unstructured and so a li...
Learning lessons: Light-grey overcoat and horsebi...
December 16th 2024I had this overcoat made earlier in the year by Sartoria Ciardi from Naples, but have only had a chance to wear it consistently the past few months. The cloth is CT17 from Fox - a 20/21oz wool in their overcoatings bunch. I was confident of the sty...
Learning lessons: Light-grey overcoat and horsebi...
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I may have been lucky, but the only time I bought a pair of second hand shoes I didn't have any problems with this....
August Special: Innovative, rugged boots and loafers
December 9th 2024August Special is a new shoe brand - they launched online back in May - and it’s an interesting proposition I think. Comfortable versions of traditional shoes that have more style than most in that combination, and rugged styles that are actua...
August Special: Innovative, rugged boots and loafers
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I'd go for the style you liked most as the priority, unless you're going to wear them very heavily...
The unique shoe tradition of Austro-Hungary ̵...
November 18th 2024The Austro-Hungarian tradition of shoemaking is a significant one - until fairly recently it was the most influential in Europe, after the English. It is also a type of shoe (rounder, larger, more comfortable) that is perhaps a little more fashionab...
The unique shoe tradition of Austro-Hungary ̵...
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Thanks a lot, this kind of strengthens the impression I had and also the preference I was having....
August Special, Besnard, Haversack: Autumn highli...
October 25th 20241. Snow Peak Boa Fleece jacket £220, Large If a Permanent Style reader wanted a good fleece - for park wear as much as mountain wear - this Snow Peak one ticks most of the boxes. It’s a nice style, in a good fleece, without any obvious b...
August Special, Besnard, Haversack: Autumn highli...
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Black, but the taupe would be nice and I don't think get dirty over time....
What I’m looking forward to wearing this winter
September 13th 2024By Jamie Ferguson. Hey there Permanent Stylers. Longtime contributor, first time writer so go easy on me. Now I may be in the minority here but I LOVE summer dressing. I enjoy the feeling of a cool breeze betwixt my nethers, brazenly unclasping that...
What I’m looking forward to wearing this winter
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And what quality are those shirts in terms of materials? Are they MOP buttons? Hand stitching?...
Seven boat shoes compared: Quoddy, Yuketen, Parab...
July 31st 2024Boat shoes and their ilk (deck, moc, canoe etc) have become a bit of a trend in the past year. Miu Miu, Bally and Loro Piana launched styles in the fashion world, while the likes of Ghiaia, Crockett & Jones and Saman Amel have introduced mor...
Seven boat shoes compared: Quoddy, Yuketen, Parab...
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The deerskin is smarter and finer - I like the look of it, but to honest I find it hard to wear because it is so soft, there isn't much support. If you haven't had them before I'd recommend starting with a plain leather...
La Botte Gardiane: Searching for my perfect black...
June 24th 2024By Lucas Nicholson. The idea of black boots has been obsessing me for much of the past year. It must be a fairly common menswear preoccupation, given the inspiration: Marlon Brando in his black leather and bad-boy persona, most obviously. Which as a...
La Botte Gardiane: Searching for my perfect black...
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I have owned these boots for about a year now. I am generally very pleased with them and the style is perfect for me. On the downside the glued part of the outsole has already come off on both shoes. There is a sometimes...
Reader profile: Tetsuya
June 19th 2024Tetsuya Yamashita is a reader that Lucas knows rather than me. Back in the days when he ran the Drake’s pop-up in the old Beige shop in Paris, Tetsuya was a regular visitor, and is still a friend of Beige today. In fact we used their shop as a...
Reader profile: Tetsuya
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I think it's unlikely to be honest Matthew, so many people we want to do! But maybe...
Which office are you? A cold, current 2024 update
May 22nd 2024The article ‘Which office are you?’ in 2016 was one of the most popular we have ever done on PS. I think largely because it showed clearly how outfits could be adjusted to different levels of formality, at a time when office attire was a...
Which office are you? A cold, current 2024 update
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Yes I'd say so...
Making shoes for King Charles: Tony Gaziano video
May 15th 2024Forgive me for leading with the story of the shoes Gaziano & Girling made for His Majesty Charles III. It isn't the main thing we discussed in this interview with Tony Gaziano, but I know it will be the one that gets the most attention. That...
Making shoes for King Charles: Tony Gaziano video
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I second Simon here, I checked several UK and IT balance sheets, none are making more money that before, quite the opposite....
Beige, Paris: The best kind of multi-brand shop
May 6th 2024A lot of music fans don’t see the point of covers albums. They want the originals, not a bunch of copies. But I’ve always liked them, whether it’s Johnny Cash’s American IV or Rage Against The Machine’s Renegades , beca...
Beige, Paris: The best kind of multi-brand shop
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We can certainly look to at some point, PF. It's hard to cover everyone and we would always focus on the ones we liked the style of particularly, but a round-up article or similar on great independent shops in Europe mig...
Reader profile: Niyi
April 26th 2024By André Larnyoh I’ve known Niyi for three or four years and he’s always someone I’ve learnt from. His style is eclectic: classic menswear brands alongside contemporary fashion, bursts of colour with subdued tones. Yet someh...
Reader profile: Niyi
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A great example of someone not trying to be anything other than himself...and maybe that's the point of everything....
Buck Mason, Novesta, New & Lingwood: Spring ‘...
April 24th 2024Our seasonal summary of things I’ve seen and liked rolls around again, and as ever is a good mechanism to answer questions about new products from established brands, such as the City Moc from Saman Amel (above). But it’s also, by design...
Buck Mason, Novesta, New & Lingwood: Spring ‘...
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Old Armoury ones, no longer available I'm afraid...
Yuketen, Crescent Down Works, Big Rock Candy Moun...
March 25th 2024Last week I wrote about visiting the Paris trade shows for the first time, and being able to interview some new brands as a result. Today I’m going to highlight three that we found particularly interesting. The first is Yuketen, the craft-bas...
Yuketen, Crescent Down Works, Big Rock Candy Moun...
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The August Specials, definitely...
How does Paris compare to Pitti? Pendleton, Frizm...
March 15th 2024Boots on display at Viberg, at Man/Woman; above, Welcome Edition This past January, after Pitti, I went to see the equivalent shows in Paris for the first time. I’d never been before and was interested to see how it compared to Pitti in terms ...
How does Paris compare to Pitti? Pendleton, Frizm...
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No, sorry Avi...
Bespoke loafers with Seiji McCarthy: Commissionin...
December 15th 2023In Japan earlier this year I started the process of commissioning a pair of bespoke loafers from Seiji McCarthy. Loafers are often tricky to make bespoke, and bespoke as a whole I’ve found a little inconsistent, so why did I take this leap wi...
Bespoke loafers with Seiji McCarthy: Commissionin...
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Working on a fitting pair I've received Matt - I'll cover those soon...
Seoul: A menswear shopping guide
December 13th 2023Earlier this month I visited Seoul, to see some of the tailors I had been intrigued by but mostly seen from afar, and to visit some of the shops and brands. My impression was of a dynamic city – new development, new retail, every shop with a di...
Seoul: A menswear shopping guide
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Just answering my own question re footwear sizing here as a public service as am currently travelling in Seoul. Parlour's friendly staff sadly advised that their entire shoe range (including JM Weston, Alden, C&J) is...
Roberto Ugolini bespoke boots: Review
November 22nd 2023I recently had these boots made bespoke by Roberto Ugolini in Florence, and they have turned out very well. I have two reflections about bespoke shoes off the back of them. One is that I am increasingly specific about what I need in terms of fit, an...
Roberto Ugolini bespoke boots: Review
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I can see how that could be confusing Shannon. I meant that the challenge of bespoke isn't whether you know the customer's foot shape or not - that's a fairly minor thing. So scans that show you the foot shape aren't muc...
Wythe, Bally, P Johnson: A/W 2023 highlights
November 3rd 2023Some old, some new in this year’s round-up of Autumn/Winter products. These articles are a nice way to mention brands on the edge of our radar (Bally) as well as to discuss new releases from favourites that wouldn’t otherwise get a full ...
Wythe, Bally, P Johnson: A/W 2023 highlights
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Yes. Trees make less of a difference, but I still would if they were worn regularly. Worth a brush down after wear just like suede as well...
Arthur Sleep, Aimé Leon Dore and Acme/Mori: Three...
October 16th 2023We probably spend a little too much time talking about how great products are on PS (even though we're more critical than most) and not enough talking about ones that didn't work out. Here's a summary of three I've tried recently, which for various ...
Arthur Sleep, Aimé Leon Dore and Acme/Mori: Three...
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Cotton sweaters are near-on essential in the subtropics, or there's nearly no opportunity to wear knitwear....
Questions about unlined loafers – with my B...
August 18th 2023There have been quite a few queries about unlined shoes, particularly loafers, in recent months. Ones about longevity and fit specifically have come up multiple times. I thought it would be good therefore to do a post summarising answers to them, in...
Questions about unlined loafers – with my B...
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I'd say you probably want unlined if you can. Belgians would be great but a slimmer, different style. My favourite are unlined Piccadilly from Edward Green but the Harvard from Crocketts is also good - black unlined cord...
Reader profile: Ian
August 14th 2023Ian is retired, and got into luxury menswear late in life. But he always had an interest in clothes, from his early days in Ivy clothing to the forties and fifties influences that came with learning jive dancing. It could be easy to see him as bein...
Sandals: Slides and huaraches, open-toe and closed
August 7th 2023Espadrilles are my preferred, casual summer shoe. I’ve always liked their clean lines and simplicity, which make them more elegant than pretty much any other option. I also quite like the massage-like feeling of walking on rope. They’re ...
Sandals: Slides and huaraches, open-toe and closed
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Not with that texture, no...
