2023-05-04 16:06:14
Simon Cundey, royal supplier: «With King Charles we recover everything: the buttons of the tailcoats are those of 150 years ago. Many requests in tailoring also for the dress to present to the King, the coronation and the royal party season
FROM OUR REPORTER IN LONDON — Outside, along Savile Row, flags fly in the colors of the British Union Jack, made of wool, as the Campaign for Wool of Prince Charles, advocate of natural fibers. Inside the tailor’s shop for real suppliers, the work started at Christmas because «we had many new liveries to make and even the old ones had to be adapted with the new Cypher anyway, instead of Elizabeth’s EII horizontally, we applied the new digits, in vertical, those of King Charles III. Now waiting for May 6th, our liveries are already parading through the streets of London at night as it will be on Coronation Day, for general rehearsals, because everything in London is tried and tried again for a result without imperfections”, he explains Simon Cundey, 7th Generation Royal Manufacturer Henry Poole & Co I learn by Courier the doors of the family shop in Savile Row near Piccadilly: from the time of Queen Victoria she has a Royal warrant (supplier to the royal house).
In fact, this is where the gaudy liveries worn by lackeys, pages and coachmen on coronation day come from. «We also make the solemn clothes of the ceremony of the Order of the Garter of the Royal Household. And with Charles King the coronation will perhaps be slightly different in terms of protocol but without detracting from the institutional sense, the historical solemnity of the rite, the importance of the clothes», points out Cundey who recalls his great-grandfather telling of Sir Winston another historic customer, on the eve of the Queen’s coronation in 1953: «Churchill was very old, the queen’s coronation clothes needed a lot of adjustments. Sir Winston who considered the young Elizabeth as a daughter of hers, to reassure her in her new role he said that everything had to be perfect, even her clothes ».
How many uniforms and liveries have you developed now for the coronation procession 2023? “Let’s say a little less than a hundred and we always produce a couple more just in case… then the number of liveries required is linked to the number of carriages that will lead the Windsors in the royal procession for the Coronation
». A coronation in the name of sustainability, with the Chairs of Estate of the King and Queen during the rite will be “recovered”, in short, those of Elizabeth and Philip. Even the liveries that parade in the coronation procession are sustainable. The golden buttons of the coats are still those of 150 years ago, we clean, polish and reuse them to dress new lackeys and coachmen of the royal carriages and… in recent years they are often women. Then all our liveries are 100% made in Britain with local raw materials, and we reuse everything. From the buttons to… even the gold of the bands of the uniforms, when the jackets are discarded it is melted down and returned to the Royal Household which reuses it».
The Royal Household commissioned these liveriesevery new hire at the palace «is presented by the Royal household, we take the measurements and proceed with various tests. Then aesthetically the uniform is the same, technically however it is different in the cuts for women. As for the raw materials, they remain English wool, velvet and silver with 9 carat gold. All our suppliers of raw materials are here, we don’t have import problems, rather the cost of labor is growing a lot after Brexit». From here, in 1865, the first tuxedo made for King Edward VII, a personal friend of Cundey’s ancestor, Henry Poole, came out. «The prince and future king wanted a comfortable jacket for dinners with friends: so Henry imagined for him a rounded jacket in a color he called Celestial blue: and we are making several jackets like this in view of the celebrations at court for the Coronation and then… for the summer season of parties at Buckingham Palace which will return with great splendor with King Charles», reveals Cundey.
Yesterday’s Garden Party given by King Charles it will only be the beginning of an intense spring of festivities. “The coronation will be just the beginning of a great season of events in London: after the coronation there will be many opportunities in the London summer to dress up – says Cundey -. The King loves to entertain his guests and in addition he has a genuine passion for the garden, the flowers of the royal palace which has just been renovated in these pandemic years, as well as his Highgrove estate. So months await us in which the Royal Garden Parties at Buckingham Palace but also at Holyrood House in Scotland will be back in great shape ». One coronation, many summer parties – a real throwback in style to London’s socialite season as it’s called, from days gone by. And many commissions for formal wear. Result: can we say that the new King will also “support” the country’s economy? «Ascot and all the appointments of the Season in this coronation spring will have a special importance in London. Because for King Charles the pomp and circumstance of major royal events are in fact also a driving force for social sustainability. They keep the work of generations of craftsmen, as in our case», observes Cundey.
Have you received orders from clients for the dress code for royal receptions and parties? «Well yes, British but also international clients who have turned to us for the right suit and dress code to present themselves before the King». So? «For banquets, receptions you need a tail coat, White Tie outfit. While for lunch parties you arrive in a morning coat, with striped trousers. In the evening, a dinner suit is perfect, which has become famous as a smoking or tuxedo, our specialty». And how much does it cost to dress for a Royal date? «An evening suit, dinner suit, around 6,000 pounds, a tail coat 7,000 and the morning coast around 6,500. Then if you need to add a top hat, well it’s at least a thousand pounds but for the most beautiful silk ones you get to 3 thousand. Money well spent, considering that a garment like this lasts a lifetime». A dress that lasts a lifetime, just the way Carlo likes it.
May 4, 2023 (change May 4, 2023 | 16:06)
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