"There's been too much dishonesty in menswear," according to Dunhill's global marketing director Jason Beckley, and if ever there were a company to right that wrong and reinstate the rule of tried-and-true, his employer might be it. The English label has a hundred-plus years of history and heritage behind it. In the wake of removing its creative director, Kim Jones (who's since landed firmly on his feet at Vuitton), Dunhill repatriated its runway show to London (at Bourdon House, its Georgian mansion, no less) and set about making its claim for traditional English tailoring.
The revival of interest in suiting codes is a boon for a label old enough to remember their very formation. What you lose, of course, is some of the shock of the new. But for a bit of a buzz, you only need take a close look at the offerings, an opportunity facilitated by the brand's return to presentation format after several seasons on the runway. The Camdeboo mohair suiting that, crinkle as much as you like, won't wrinkle—not a bad place to get your jollies. Likewise the outerwear: the double-breasted wool alpaca camel coat for city, the silk parka lined in beaver for country—far country (Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton was an inspiration). Penguin suits for evening? Perish the thought. Think full-on debonair in Dunhill's preferred midnight blue.
