Not sure when I first got interested in Adaptor. I think someone bought be an MA1 or something and I noticed the distinctive crosshair logo on the label and thought “hmm”.
Anyway, for some reason I visited the website, faffed around a bit and, because my old work suit was looking a bit tired, I bought a new black suit.
Frankly, I was blown away - Adaptor suits are fucking great. I genuinely thought the one I bought looked better than the one I’d had tailor made only five years before. Okay so this might be because I was still a noob at the time. It was essentially based on a Merc suit.
But still. With covered buttons, a very short “bumfreezer” jacket and a great-feeling material, Adaptor suits are fab. I might even go as far as to say they’re the best I’ve bought. I liked them so much I bought a second one. Within six months.
Plus they’re only £220.
Anyway, continuing this saga, the guys from Adaptor invited me up to their showroom for a more general look.
And in summary, the place is epic.
It took me a while to find, being hidden in Unit 13 (un/lucky for some?) on the Mead industrial estate, but once I did find it, Phil and Paul gave me a tour.
If you’ve ever seen the film of the Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, there’s a scene where Arthur Dent gets shown around the planet factory. It felt like that. Like “this is where the magic happens”.
The place is choc-full of Mod goodies. Shelves of shoes, rows of suits, as well as pegs of all kinds, covered in a vast array of multicoloured scarves, ties, jumpers and shirts.
Anyway, for some reason I visited the website, faffed around a bit and, because my old work suit was looking a bit tired, I bought a new black suit.
Frankly, I was blown away - Adaptor suits are fucking great. I genuinely thought the one I bought looked better than the one I’d had tailor made only five years before. Okay so this might be because I was still a noob at the time. It was essentially based on a Merc suit.
But still. With covered buttons, a very short “bumfreezer” jacket and a great-feeling material, Adaptor suits are fab. I might even go as far as to say they’re the best I’ve bought. I liked them so much I bought a second one. Within six months.
Plus they’re only £220.
Anyway, continuing this saga, the guys from Adaptor invited me up to their showroom for a more general look.
And in summary, the place is epic.
It took me a while to find, being hidden in Unit 13 (un/lucky for some?) on the Mead industrial estate, but once I did find it, Phil and Paul gave me a tour.
If you’ve ever seen the film of the Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, there’s a scene where Arthur Dent gets shown around the planet factory. It felt like that. Like “this is where the magic happens”.
The place is choc-full of Mod goodies. Shelves of shoes, rows of suits, as well as pegs of all kinds, covered in a vast array of multicoloured scarves, ties, jumpers and shirts.
So far, so much what you’d expect from a clothes shop.
But there is something striking about Phil and Paul’s attitudes to the business.
Of course they were all into the 1960s style clothes. But, Paul was adamant that Adaptor was not a vintage shop. Having worked in the more mainstream fashion world, Paul’s plan at Adaptor is to run it like any other modern menswear brand.
Everything is new. It’s not used or second-hand. The guys work hard putting together new looks and styles to keep things fresh. Paul himself takes a role in designing some of the stuff, always striving to emulate the essence of Mod, rather than literally replicate. The business looks forward, not backward, taking the spirit of Mod to new heights.
And, while this may not be to everyone’s taste, it was totally in line with what I and many others think about how Mod ought to be. As Paul himself said, the style has always been open to new concepts and it seems like Adaptor reflects that well.
I’ll continue my story in the next few posts!
But there is something striking about Phil and Paul’s attitudes to the business.
Of course they were all into the 1960s style clothes. But, Paul was adamant that Adaptor was not a vintage shop. Having worked in the more mainstream fashion world, Paul’s plan at Adaptor is to run it like any other modern menswear brand.
Everything is new. It’s not used or second-hand. The guys work hard putting together new looks and styles to keep things fresh. Paul himself takes a role in designing some of the stuff, always striving to emulate the essence of Mod, rather than literally replicate. The business looks forward, not backward, taking the spirit of Mod to new heights.
And, while this may not be to everyone’s taste, it was totally in line with what I and many others think about how Mod ought to be. As Paul himself said, the style has always been open to new concepts and it seems like Adaptor reflects that well.
I’ll continue my story in the next few posts!
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