Clothesville: John Simons’ London

Original, independent and unwavering, John Simons is among the most important figures in British menswear. For seventy years he has stayed true to the influences that first moved him as a teenager -- jazz, modernism and Ivy League clothes.

That vision has never been about standing still. Simons designed his own ranges while still a teenager, began travelling to the United States for clothing in the 1960s, sourced export-only lines from British manufacturers, and presented it all with clarity, care and wit. His shops have always reflected that same sense of purpose, inspiring generations of customers and shaping the look of modern British style.

This guide maps his journey -- from Dalston to Marylebone and points between. It charts coffee bars and jazz clubs, encounters with beatniks and bohemians in the Soho of the 1950s, and the rehearsal rooms, markets and cinemas that formed the wider backdrop. But always, it follows the sequence of shops that expressed his vision, from the earliest ventures to the celebrated Covent Garden store.

Drawn from interviews with John Simons, Clothesville captures the world he created and sustained, one that endures today in the shop run by his son, Paul, which still bears the family name.

Part map, part history, and part tribute, Clothesville is both a guide to the city and a portrait of a singular shopkeeper whose influence runs through more than half a century of London style.