In Conversation With… Joe Morgan

Joseph William Morgan, founder of Chittleborough & Morgan, sat down with us and graciously allowed us to spend a day in his workshop. We discussed his journey in bespoke tailoring, which started at the age of 15 with a jacket apprenticeship and evolved through various roles with the most notable of tailors.

He highlights the revolutionary impact of Tommy Nutter and Edward Sexton on Savile Row, emphasising their unique styles and their ability to express individuality. Joe also discusses what it means to create a bespoke suit and stresses the importance of craftsmanship over ready-to-wear products.

Joe has been a close friend and supporter of Gaziano & Girling since the very early days. He is one of the reasons why we are still on Savile Row today. Not to mention he’s one of the most approachable and humble gentlemen we’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing. We were delighted to spend the day with Joe in his workshop at 12 Savile Row and to reminisce with Tony about the early days of the brand.

Hi Joe! Great to see you.

And you, it’s wonderful to see you!

Could you introduce yourself and your tailoring house to our readers?

Certainly. My name is Joseph Morgan from the bespoke tailoring company Chittleborough & Morgan. As a company we try very hard for… can I say perfection? Because that’s what we aim for. We’re trying to get the excellence of bespoke tailoring as high as it can be and compete with France and Italy and the rest of the world.

You’ve been in the industry for many years. Can you tell us a bit about how your journey in bespoke tailoring started?

I left school very early at 15 and I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. But my dad knew someone who worked for Kilgour. So he took me along to see this fellow, this tailor. And he said, ‘at the moment we don’t need anybody, but I do know somebody that does.’ So I started a tailoring jacket apprenticeship, and loved it!

After that I went to train as an assistant cutter with Dennis Wilkinson. They made clothes for Harold Macmillan and all the other MPs of the time, and even for the Kennedys. So I went from being in a workshop environment to being introduced to all these gentlemen.

After that, I went to work at Jarvis & Hamilton, which was also a great experience. For the boy from the East End, going on to meeting all these very distinguished aristocrats – It was just remarkable.

You were a big part of the evolution of style on Savile Row in the 70s, as part of ‘The Nutters’. Can you tell us about how you ended up working with Tommy Nutter and Edward Sexton?

Well, while I was at Jarvis & Hamilton somebody said, ‘Why don’t you go and speak to Tommy Nutter? They’re looking for an assistant cutter, and they’re very progressive, and the world’s changing.’ So I did, and in doing so I went from wearing a stiff collar and a two inch lapel to Tommy and Edward, and at that stage they were creating five inch lapels and a whole different look. They changed the world, they changed Savile Row for the better.

So things were very different with Tommy and Edward, to where you’d worked before?

Yes. At the bespoke companies I’d worked at before, you’d finish the coat, you’d finish the suit, then the customer would pop it on and that’s it, off you go. But with Tom and Edward, unless it read that ‘this is our product’, they would alter it.

You had [the likes of] Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney, Diana Ross having these very different clothes. They gave men the ability to express themselves. But they were accepted on Savile Row primarily because they did the same quality of work as everybody else, but they stylised their model, which they’re still doing today and we are doing today.

Tommy and Edward changed the world. They changed Savile Row for the better, which was very exciting. They revolutionised how men could express themselves with their clothes.

What makes a bespoke suit by Chittleborough & Morgan so special?

When one looks at a Bespoke suit coming from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, style plays a major part, but now we are competing with ready-to-wear where the product is very hanger friendly. It’s good to look at. You look at the fabric and think, ‘well, that fabric is not quite so good, the make isn’t quite so good, but it’s instant I can put it on and walk out the store.’ And it may not fit, it may not look that good, but the brand is what they’re telling everybody it’s all about. We don’t do that.

What we try to do is give a gentleman or lady a product that is handcrafted, that looks the best that we can make it look. We have a very straight shoulder line, very close, high arm holes, a nice long line to the waist. We always cut a side body, which gives flare and makes for a very defined look. The suit we produce is stylised and has lots of presence.

What does it mean to be a Savile Row tailor?

In tailoring, if you want to be the best, you have to work at it. You have to provide a product that people want to be part of.

Savile Row has a heritage that we want to move forward. To do that, it has to have excellence. And this is what we’re driving very hard to create.

Everything is made in house, and this is very important to us. Because you can produce cheaper products elsewhere in the world, but it’s at the sacrifice of your own industry.

People look at the clothes that they’ve had made cheaply abroad and it just doesn’t last. There are suits we made in the 70s that are coming back to us for alterations today, because those customers’ children and grandchildren want to wear them today. How cool is that?

Does Savile Row have a future?

Yes, yes we do!

You know, we have young people that are embracing the culture of what we did in the past and taking it to the next level. And we’re training young people in bespoke tailoring and giving them a future, which I think is also really important.

So yes, I think Savile Row will be here for a long, long time.

In 2006 you welcomed Gaziano & Girling into Chittleborough & Morgan to share your space on Savile Row. Why did you think they made a good fit?

I first met Tony when he was working for another shoe company. One of our clients had asked them to make me a pair of bespoke shoes. Tony didn’t have a lot of influence on it and I was given somebody else to look after me. The shoe that was made for me was bespoke – beautifully made – but the styling wasn’t really what I wanted (and I knew what style was about).

And I’ve never worn those shoes.

When we developed with Tony & Dean, the essence of what we do, they do, and they stylise their shoes. I was very comfortable with that. And they complement our clothes and hopefully our clothes complement their shoes. But with Gaziano & Girling, Tony and Dean have revolutionised the shoe world.

They’ve allowed men to express themselves through their shoes.

Essentially, what we do with our clothes – the craft and the care we apply – they do with their shoes. They stylise their shoes just as we stylise our suits. I was very much onboard with that. So I said why not come and have your showroom here? And we went from there.

It’s been 10 years since Gaziano & Girling were based at Chittleborough & Morgan and in honour of our friendship, and to mark how grateful we are for all the support you’ve given us over the years, we thought it was about time we created a shoe and name it after you.

Wow, that’s very gracious. I’m truly honoured. For me, the energy that you and Dean brought to the brand is what we try to do with ours. And it’s very important that craftsmanship, style and elegance is brought through into shoes and what we do with clothes. I feel honored, actually honored, to be presented with this sort of product. It’s beyond anybody’s expectations.

Thank you.

You can contact Joe and his team on 020 7437 6850

Chittleborough & Morgan, 12 Savile Row, London, W1S 3PQ

You can watch the interview and the chat between Joe and Tony Gaziano below.

If you wish to order the same shoe we presented to Joe in the video, please use the specifications below and then add any of the usual extras we offer through our Made to Order service.

Joe’s model specifications

Model: Morgan

Upper: Black Calf

Lining: Black

Toe Shape: TG73

Sole: Single Oak Bark Leather