Attention to Detail
The world of hunt coats and hacking jackets seems a million miles away from a busy street in urban Manchester. But Alan and Margaret Little and their two sons, Carl and Mark from Alexander James are at full stretch this summer hand-making and delivering hunt coats, beagling jackets and riding jackets for customers from Surrey to Sarasota USA.
This year 2007 started well for the team when they were awarded the Countryside Alliance’s Best Traditional Business award in recognition of the hard work and skill that sits behind the terraced house façade in Pendlebury. Commissions from both Belvoir and Beaufort hunts to make coats in their own tweed and Blue and Buff respectively, soon followed. This summer, Alan is also starting to design beagling jackets thanks to a request from several packs.
Alan freely admits that the shop’s humble roots and his family’s urban upbringing seem at odds with the hunting scene but as he always says “I may not know much about hunting, but I do know hot to make high quality garments”. This modesty covers up the vast experience that Alan and his team have – he is a Master Tailor and has been passionate about the clothing industry since he started working in the trade at fifteen.
Alan started the business making gentlemens’ suits but it was when a local butcher came into the shop and enquired about carriage driving livery that Alan really found his forte. After exhibiting at country fairs and carriage driving events, people were soon asking Alexander James to make jackets for all equestrian disciplines.
Alan adds “There is currently a demand from the hunts for discreet tweed jackets and as we have excellent links with the remaining Yorkshire and Scottish weavers, we can provide a wide range of colours and patterns. A lot of our work is made-to-measure with people travelling from all over the world to visit us but we do also have stock sizes and off the shelf items. In fact we are expanding the shop in Pendlebury to start selling more accessories like stocks and gloves so that when people and collect their jackets, they will also be able to buy the other accessories too. Having a shop stocked with the tie pins, gloves, socks, and hunting shirts will make a real difference to someone who has travelled from the depths of Cornwall, France or even the USA.”
Key to Alexander James’ success is their attention to detail and their customer service. They make jackets that really last and so customers are happy to pay a decent price (about £250 for a tweed hacking jacket) for an extremely well made and finished garment. The other element is the families desire to make sure every detail, right down to the spacing of the buttons and the inside flaps of the pockets, is accurate for the discipline that they are making it for.
After thirty years in business, Alexander James is now considered to be an expert in country and equestrian tailoring.
Featured in Hounds Magazine
