In fact, as we were speaking he asked if I had Scott “The Sartorialist” Schuman’s book. “Yes,” I replied, and dutifully fetched my copy that Scott was kind enough to sign for me when I interviewed him. Yep – there was Mr. Joseph, resplendent in a bowler hat, elegantly bundled scarf, tailored overcoat and those famous red shoes from his Viennese shoemaker.

The red shoes. “I like red shoes and have many pair, and after a while they became my calling card – it’s how people remember me. ‘Oh, you are the gentleman with the red shoes!’” He also like to wear his trousers on the short side and absolutely insists that Thom Browne copied him, and I don’t doubt him.

The Sartorialist’s shot

But what Ignatious Joseph is really know for are his shirts. Based on shirts from the 1930s, when the soft collar swept the menswear world, Mr. Joseph’s eponymous brand is coveted by bankers and traders from London to New York, Milan to Brussels. Shirts, and only shirts, are what Ignatius Joseph makes. And he makes some darn good shirts. I’ll be reviewing one myself in the near future, but I can say without reservation that his shirts are both noteworthy and noticeable. His signature soft collar and vibrant color schemes are the Ignatious Joseph calling card.

The philosophy behind the his shirts is simple: they are luxury shirts for everyday wear, or to put it another way, a modern sense of spirit derived from traditional craftsmanship. Ignatious Joseph shirts are what might be called semi-handmade and there is a reason for that.

Every worthy craftsman looks for ways to improve the quality and efficiency of his work methods; think of Jon Greene and his fantastic obsession with bespoke or Michael Drakes and his handmade ties. This shirt maker is no different; not necessarily rich, but absolutely passionate about his craft.

In order to guarantee both consistent quality and value for money, even the best shirt makers have chosen how and when to apply machines. The decision of what to do by hand and what to do by machine has to be taken with a view to the product as a whole, based on the skill and experience of the master shirt maker; it’s a blend of economics and craft.

Mr. Joseph’s shirts are made by shirt makers, primarily family businesses, who have refined and improved their craft over generations. “In order to produce shirts of the highest quality, and which are still affordable – meaning that there is a realistic margin for manufacturer and retailer – the critical tasks of cutting the shirts and sewing the non-fused collars are performed entirely by hand,” he says. Meanwhile the shirt’s torso is sewn by machine.

Non-fused collars are the trademark of the Ignatious Joseph shirt and it’s worth noting here that many high-end “handmade” shirts do not have hand sewn collars. This is mostly because of the expense and skill needed for such detailed work.

As far as he is concerned, every one of Ignatious Joseph’s shirt should be of the same high quality. This is only possible when each step of the shirt’s production is performed using the most appropriate method by experts in their craft. As he likes to say, “the whole product is made not only by hand but with brains.”

Sold in more than 80 stores around the world, 35 in the United States, Ignatius Joseph’s shirts may take a little effort to track down but, as he told me, “you won’t be walking ugly in the streets.”

As one of New York’s finest bespoke clothiers, if not the country’s, Jon Green is privy to the wants, demands, preferences, problems and personal trivialities of some of the wealthiest people in the world.

I try not to throw around such dramatic language too often, but in Jon’s case it is simply the truth. Jon’s suits start off at about $7,500 and go straight up from there. Add in some of the more luxurious and rare fabrics to which he has access and you’re looking at something touching $25,000.

Jon Green

Had you asked me a few weeks ago what I thought about dropping the cost of a new car on a single suit, I probably would have said something both unflattering and dismissive. Not only is that a lot of money, what possibly could go into any garment which warrants such a ridiculously high expense?

Then, as fate would have it, I was recently invited by Mr. Green to visit him while on a trip to New York. Let me just cut to the chase: I’ve drunk the Kool-Aid and joined the church of bespoke.

Past the deceiving simple paper sign on the building’s front door, the elevator took me up to an elegant salon and tailor’s workshop. It is a place of business but also of consul; a comfortable lounge filled with mannequin forms sporting suit jackets in various stages of completion and bookcases filled with fabric books. Up front is the tailor’s workshop fronted by a bank of large windows overlooking Madison Avenue and capturing all the natural light.

Jon won me over without even trying. Unfortunately, I won’t be wearing a Jon Green suit anytime soon, but that’s not remotely the point. The world of bespoke – certainly at this level – changes how you think about clothes. As Jon noted, “The price of what we do is directly related to our costs of cloth, workmanship, location and the one-on-one personal attention we prefer to provide our clients. This includes the requisite number of fittings needed to ‘get it right,’ not just ‘get it out the door.’ The real value in bespoke clothing is enhanced by taking the time to get it as good as it can be. But then forgetting about it. After all, it is possible to polish a diamond to dust.”

As an added bonus, I visited Jon at the same time as Dougal Munro and Malcolm Campbell from Holland & Sherry, the Rolls Royce of fabric makers. Dougal is the president of H&S’s North American operation and Malcolm is Managing Director of Joseph H. Clissold, H&S’s premier fabric mill. Our discussion about English fabrics, their role in the world of bespoke, and H&S’s remarkable innovations was fascinating and one that a that I will document separately, along with some excellent H&S material covering fabric education and the impact of color on one’s wardrobe.


Malcolm Campbell (t), Dougal Munro (b)

A formally trained musician and clothing salesman, Jon is every inch the courtly clothier. He is not, however, a “yes man” arbiter to wealthy power players. As he said to me regarding a client whose requests were not representative of a Jon Green suit, “it’s my suit until I hand it over to him.” Translation: we’ll work it out, but I have a reputation to uphold and there is an expectation of what a Jon Green suit means. No animosity, simply a standard of excellence and detail that is not quickly, or easily, bent.

However, Jon rarely needs to take such a stand. His clients are lovers of clothing and dress for themselves. They come to Jon because he is the best and that is what they want; they have found a friend and confidant who will do anything in his power to meet their needs and will also not hesitate to gently redirect an errant choice in fabric or customization.

As he explained on several occasions, Jon is not a tailor – he is a clothier. While the tailor with whom he works is clearly one of the finest, Jon brings to the engagement the vision and execution of a head coach or chief strategist. He has created a brand known to those for whom exceptional service, privacy and collaboration are paramount.

Jon is, at heart, a teacher. While we never really discussed the cost of his clothing (honestly, it just slipped my mind), he indirectly explained why his suits cost so much. Every inch of a Jon Green suit is hand cut and assembled. Pockets are fully fitted into the canvas body which itself is carefully formed to your body’s curves.

The entire jacket is basted until the final assembly – no finishing stitches anywhere. This means that throughout your initial fittings, often six, the suit is completely disassembled and re-cut to match your evolving pattern. And your pattern, hand drawn by the way, is hand updated by the tailor at each step. It will take months and once completed will fit you as well as humanly possible.

Will it be perfect, probably not to Jon. But that is part of the beauty of bespoke – it is hand crafting in every sense of the phrase, not a single shortcut or prefabricated piece of anything. And all that hand stitching! That alone is worth half the cost right there.

Overall, the entire process is so laborious and detailed that I can only describe it as art. Jon and I could have talked for hours; he’s a fascinating and incredibly knowledgeable man.

Jon has been selected to by Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessey North America, as part of a celebration of American craftsman, to create a bespoke suit for its chairman, Renaud Dutreil. I’ll be updating you on this remarkable process as it moves along, the only menswear blog to have such remarkable access.

Msr. Renaud Dutreil

I am also happy to say that I’ll be working with Jon to periodically bring OTC’s readers the kind of insight and expertise normally reserved for captains of industry and the kind of men who hop thier private jet from Houston just to do a suit fitting. Jon is a wealth of information and OTC is both honored, and a little humbled, to call him a friend.

Stay tuned…

While Switzerland is home to the likes of Rolex and Germany to Glashutte, the Steel City is in fact the world headquarters of Kobold Watch Company and the remarkable Michael Kobold.

At all of 30 years old, Kobold has done something most in the luxury industry – heck, any industry – would have thought impossible. Within the insular world of high-end timepieces Michael Kobold has created a boutique watch company from scratch and it’s thriving. His line of watches, anchored by the stunning, and stunningly functional Polar Surveyor, is primarily geared to adventurous types – armchair and genuine alike.

Mike Kobold

Celebrating its 12th anniversary this year, Kobold Watch Company is barely out of diapers when compared to brands like Cartier, Jaeger-LeCoultre or Breguet. But his creations are already being compared to Rolex and Omega – two brands traditionally associated with jet setting, globetrotting and adventure. Often it’s Kobold doing the comparison, but that’s part of his brand’s success: he isn’t afraid to put his products to the test and tell you why they are just as good – if not better – than those other gold plated names.

When I first came across Kobold and his quirky little watch company a few years ago, it intrigued me. Nothing serious mind you, but I heard that the guy wore one of his watches on each wrist and that’s got to count for something. The more I learned, the more the man and brand impressed me.

I’m not alone. His loyal brand ambassadors include former President Bill Clinton, A-list actors like The Sopranos’ James Gandalfini and CSI: New York’s Gary Sinise, legendary adventurer Sir Ranulph Fiennes and global architect Daniel Libeskind.

Ran Fiennes: Brand Ambassador-in-Chief

I recently took receipt of my first Kobold, the Arctic Diver “Swiss.” This is a new model being offered in three versions, the “Swiss” which houses an ETA 2824-A2 movement, and two other variations which primarily sport U.S. components and are run by an in-house manufacture K.2651 movement based on new-old-stock German made movements.


My new Kobold Arctic Diver

The flagship Polar Surveyor

It’s a great watch. And though at 46mm it’s quite big, the Arctic Diver sits very comfortably on my wrist. What really impressed me however, was the emotional connection I developed with this watch almost immediately. It’s unique yet classically inspired design is easy to read which is good because it’s also very much built for someone who plans on wearing it to the ends of the earth. This watch has a purposefulness to it that makes me want to be like Indiana Jones, or Phillipe Cousteau (who, by the way designed his own Kobold watch).

Philippe Cousteau & The Large Soarway Diver

So, after watching this upstart company grow from the offshoot of an MBA project into a legitimate and respected player in the high-end horological business, I was ready to sit down with Mike and find out what makes Kobold tick.

Off The Cuff: Mike, tell me how things are going in the watch business? It’s been a rough year and most high-end brands are down about 30% – does that sound right?

Mike Kobold: Yes, pretty much every brand has seen at least a 30% overall drop from last year. Everyone’s been hit hard, but we have been able to make some adjustments and trim costs without compromising our standards. Still, the market is overheated and some of the larger houses have not been able to react as nimbly as us.

OTC: What has been your approach?

MK: We have cut costs without cutting our customer service. That has meant fewer trips and fewer shows. Fewer dinners and less entertaining; and my staff have worked to identify areas where we can tighten the belt and squeeze out more efficiency. We are still a small operation and have the ability to react a little more quickly than others. We saw what was coming down the road and started to make changes early.

OTC: What about your Internet-based model? How has that helped, or hurt, your overall business?

MK: It has definitely helped in that we are able to focus on watchmaking and keep the business geared toward customer service. It’s also easier for us to keep in direct contact with our customers and potential customers know that if they call us, they are going to be speaking with a real person – could be me. That said, as we have grown it’s just not that easy for me to be in direct contact with all of the customers and that’s been a frustration, albeit a nice one to have. It’s definitely been an organic kind of growth.

One of the main challenges of being an internet-based company is exposure. Since we only have a very small retail presence, Kobold has to do a lot of advertising. And as the founder and face of Kobold, I need to be out networking and making appearances. If you looked at my expense reports, you probably would question my cost cutting claim, but a big part of my job is to be seen, to meet people and to generate interest in and awareness of the brand. Still, it’s getting harder for me to maintain a personal level of customer interaction as we continue to grow.

As a company, having a strong focus on customer contact and service also means that we are better able to anticipate and react to customer needs. For example, the Arctic Diver roll-out was delayed a couple of times (ed: originally scheduled for customer delivery in April 2009, customers who pre-ordered their watches finally started to receive them in August). That really frustrated and embarrassed me, but it was a supplier issue and there wasn’t much I could do at that end.

OTC: So, how did you handle it?

MK: What we did for our customers who had pre-ordered an Arctic Diver was give them a free calfskin strap and make every effort to keep them up to date. We actually called every person and told them what was going on and let them know that they were getting a free strap as a thank you for their patience. It cost us a fair amount of money, but it was the right way to handle an unfortunate situation.

To be continued in Part II…