Bishop of Briggs wrote:

Sad news - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17744983

"Luxury clothing retailer Aquascutum, best known for its trenchcoats, has gone into administration, putting about 250 jobs at risk...

"One drawback in attempts to revive Aquascutum's fortunes has been the fact that its royalty rights for the Asian market, a high growth area for luxury goods, have belonged to Hong Kong's YGM Trading since 2009."

Sadly, it's only Aquascutum's raincoats that are made in Corby. Most of the firm's suits, jackets etc are made in Portugal.

Thatcher used to wear a lot of Aquascutum's stuff.

They used to have a shop in Manchester. Always thought they were a bit stuffy.

Sad to see them go though.

Last time I looked in Regent Street I was not impressed. Their raincoat ranges now offer various qualities - some rather mediocre.

Bishop of Briggs wrote:

Kingston1an wrote:

Last time I looked in Regent Street I was not impressed. Their raincoat ranges now offer various qualities - some rather mediocre.

Austin Reed moved into Aquacutum's Regent Street store a few months ago. The awful Superdry now occupies the old Austin Reed  store.

They're in trouble too.

formby wrote:

Bishop of Briggs wrote:

Kingston1an wrote:

Last time I looked in Regent Street I was not impressed. Their raincoat ranges now offer various qualities - some rather mediocre.

Austin Reed moved into Aquacutum's Regent Street store a few months ago. The awful Superdry now occupies the old Austin Reed  store.

They're in trouble too.

I struggle to believe that.  Every second person I see on the street is wearing Superdry.

Do you mean Austin Reed is in trouble, my old school friend lost his job as they combined the members club store with the regent street shop, he was the manager.

Superdry is an awful thing, it plays completely into a brand meaning something, over the aesthetic of its product, to the point where people don't actually know how crap they look. I suppose this plays into FNB's theories on the education of the masses and how poor it is sartorially.

Last edited by Oo Bop Sh'bam (2012-04-25 11:55:03)

Sal wrote:

formby wrote:

Bishop of Briggs wrote:

Austin Reed moved into Aquacutum's Regent Street store a few months ago. The awful Superdry now occupies the old Austin Reed  store.

They're in trouble too.

I struggle to believe that.  Every second person I see on the street is wearing Superdry.

Literally never heard of them until this thread!

Bishop of Briggs wrote:

Kingston1an wrote:

How many people have you seen wearing a raincoat in the current deluge?

Most probably do not own such a garment, relying on the car and maybe an umbrella to keep dry.

Superdry is awful. I thought it was Japanese though.

It's a British company - http://www.supergroup.co.uk/about-supergroup

Another mass produced, pre-packaged way to be an individual?

Big Tony wrote:

eg wrote:

Sal wrote:

I struggle to believe that.  Every second person I see on the street is wearing Superdry.

Literally never heard of them until this thread! http://serve.mysmiley.net/confused/confused0024.gif

Much crap comes from over there, despite the fantasy that Eurokrustyland is some sort of sartorial nirvana.

Too bad about Aquascutum, but I've been told (and Kingstonian has said it) that the company and its products seemed to lose their way years ago.

Kingstonian is right. IIRC, the company (when under Japanese ownership) hired a woman CEO who tried to turn it another Burberry. I bought a raincoat (made in Corby, Northants) in the sale a few years ago. I should have checked the label first as it is 50% polyester.

From BBC: Luxury clothing brand Aquascutum is sold for £15m to a subsidiary of YGM Trading, which already owns the rights to the brand in Asia.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-18024182#

When I went to college from Puerto Rico my first raincoat was an Aquascutum my uncle gave me. Navy blue, no frills, no belt, have not seen anything so pure since.