Menswear designer Neil
Barrett uses the most rigourous of traditional tailoring standards to make
modern, attractive clothes for the contemporary market. By Daniel Goh
Neil Barrett, 50, is waxing
lyrical about his first denim designs for his eponymous label in the lounge of
Upper House, during the press briefing for Blackbarrett’s Spring collection (Hong Kong, November 2014). He
fairly gushes about his first foray into denim, which he professes to not having worn in the
last 15 years, excitedly, and triumphantly extolling his superior take: It’s
really dark indigo colour, almost black; it’s pristinely non-washed, even and dense;
it stays rigid and creaseless; there’s a stiff body it that gives it that
military bearing. “It’s perfect. I tried to make clean denim. It’s super
lovely. I was trying to work out how to make it so I would wear it. How do I
make it modern? Why would my client wear it? How do I make it relevant to me?”
he enthused with evident pride, swiping at the looks on his iPad. This dressy denim is very much a metaphor of
what Neil Barrett stands for – he’s all about a certain formality in design and
craft, much more about rigour and traditional techniques even though he works
very much in the contemporary market, especially with the trendy men’s label
Blackbarrett. This purist bent can probably be traced to Barrett being born
into a family of English tailors: He’s the fourth generation in his family to
follow in those sartorial footsteps. “My family's business began at the end of
the 19th century and we specialised in military tailoring. That's the root of
my life's passion and inspiration,” he said.
Barrett is a graduate from
London's prestigious Central Saint Martins School of Art and Design as well as
the Royal College of Art. He entered the Italian fashion industry by working
for five years as Gucci's senior men's designer under Tom Ford. Next, he joined
Prada (“Miuccia Prada is the only designer I always look at”), where he
established Prada's minimalist menswear line in 1995. “Spending more than a decade
at both Prada and Gucci moulded me into the designer I am today,” he admits.
Striking out on his own in
1998, Barrett's first stand-alone store opened a year later, in Tokyo. In 2002,
he staged his first runway show, at Men's Fashion Week in Milan. In 2007, he
launched the diffusion label, Blackbarrett.
How would you describe the aesthetics of Blackbarrett and who do
you design for?
I’m just trying to do good,
desirable menswear pieces. I design for myself
always; imagining myself as the client, in different fits, down to the super
skinny – some of the kids over in Asia have snake legs - even our super skinny
looks loose, so we had to start doing extreme skinny. We take into account the
reality of the markets we sell to. I’m very aware of my markets. I’m very aware
and very sensitive to my clients. Colour
blocking is a signature, and the jogging pants. I’m not trying to make
Blackbarrett crazily gimmicky. Many brands do gimmicks, so it’s very seasonal.
My work is recognizable, but not so gimmicky that it cannot be worn in another
season. I want my clothes to have longevity. I don’t design throwaway fashion.
I’ve never been into instant fashion. I’ve always been believed that men buy
garments, they wear them a lot and they become a favourite item, a favorite
jacket, a favourite shirt or jeans. That’s a guy thing.
What qualities keep your customers coming back
for more?
Most of my clients are repeat
clients, which is very stable for us. I’m very attentive to fit and fabric. I
always try to create new interest which is appreciated by the discerning. It’s
not crazy, silly, gimmicky. I do subtle details which people understand and are
happy to wear. I create a balance of wearability and desirability. It’s
striking that balance that makes the difference between a gimmicky designer and
a designer who has longevity.
Your passion for fashion is obvious; What moves you about this
business?
I enjoy the whole wonderful
process of fashion. It’s a fun organic process to make the vision in my mind
into reality. Fashion is a learning process for me. If
you’re a good designer you’re always observing, you’re very discerning about
what you take on board. I listen to people who are astute. I love creating new fabrics – that’s one of my
favourite things. I prefer to create my own fabrics rather than go around
looking. I know what I want in my mind, I go to the best mills and we make it.
I know the best mills to do things at the price point we want.
You define yourself as being a menswear
designer?
I’m a menswear designer who designs womenswear
with a menswear point of view. I accidentally did womenswear. I had so many
people buying small sizes of my menswear.
How would you define a stylish man?
Style should reflect one's
character. To me, style is about knowing how to put together a look with
nonchalant ease. A stylish man could be stylish in a way that I don’t like or
in a style that I do like. A stylish man has enough taste to put something
together in an attractive way. Someone who’s stylish takes care in putting
themselves together and they look at themselves in the mirror in an objective
way and they make an effort. Some people put too much of an effort and they
look ridiculous. I
like men to look like men.
How big is your team?
I have a 6,300sqf headquarters
just outside Milan, with another 6,000 sqf factory. In Milan I employ 65
people; In London I have about five, in the factory I have about 55 people. I
have four designers for Neil Barrett, not a very big design team, but I have a
very big support team.
For Blackbarrett there are four
designers. I basically give the direction for where I want to go in terms of
story and theme and then we go into the designing process, then the
merchandising plan, what I believe in, and expand on the bestsellers, and cover
what you sold well and try to create new fabrics.
What motivates you to keep working?
After more than 15 years in the
industry, I'm still always
trying to improve on everything. I feel like you can never sit on your laurels
and accept that this is the best. There are some things that I feel I can't do
better, but there are products that I could do better, so I focus on those. I
have a huge wardrobe, but I still wake up and feel like I don't have a specific
garment with the right fit. So I'm always creating new stuff. That's why I love
my job. My biggest kick in life is this challenge to keep creating something
new, modern and relevant. I know that if I don’t like it, and I’m not going to
wear it, then it’s not good enough. I could wear all my clothes.
Why do
people still shop in this age when there’s just so much fashion?
The whole point of clothes is to make you feel
psychologically more confident. Because when you feel you look good and you go
out smiling in the morning you get compliments. I
try to recreate interest and desire for fashion season in and season out. But
for the whole digital era that we're living in, I decided that it was important
to make things easier and recognizable from a distance, which has been very
successful. I'm expanding the brand by adding these more graphic options. I’m applying
that graphic everywhere, but in a way that I would wear it. As for myself, I
don’t really have time to shop fashion. I buy furniture, I buy objects. I love
interiors so that’s where I spend my money. The problem is I have too many
things and I need to edit!
How do you
differentiate Neil Barrett and Blackbarrett?
Blackbarrett is a contemporary
line that is accessible, but designed. They are original works – not watered
down versions of the first line. It’s accessible fashion – not just clothing.
There’s lots of clothing companies out there but they are not fashion. Neil
Barrett is made in Italy, (95 per cent is made in Italy – knitwear is made
abroad), basically using all the new technologies to push new boundaries. It’s
entirely owned by me, and the prices are quite high. Blackbarrett is made in
Asia, to be sold in Asia. If you start exporting, the prices go crazy because
of taxes, that’s why all the first lines from Europe costs so much here. Over
the years, I’ve seen so many people who wanted to wear Neil Barrett but they
couldn’t afford to buy the clothes, so it was a natural progression to start
Blackbarrett. It was to be made available to a wider audience. I wanted
Blacbarrett to be sold alongside Neil Barrett, as one concept. Two types of
people wear Blackbarrett: People who are attracted to the product, the fit and
image, and then there’s the younger ones who have just started their first job who
are not interested in spending that money on clothing. It can be any age group.
What are your other obsessions? How do you unwind?
I try to eat well and I try and
exercise three times a week at 7.30 in the morning before work. We are all
attracted to youth obviously because it’s when we have most vitality, energy
and beauty. It’s natural that people are going to be anxious to keep their
youth. But I think that as long as you look young for your age, that’s all that
counts. I believe I have a young spirit, so however old I become, I will always
have a young spirit which keeps me going and keeps me smiling.
My friend are my other passion.
Walking in the countryside. I love extreme, isolated places. I was born by the
sea in Devon. I’m always trying to get back to the sea. We are always taking
weekends away.
Are there plans
to do a bags and accessories line?
For Blackbarrett we’ve just put in a jewellery
collection this season. Shoes and accessories are in the works for both
Blackbarrett and Neil Barrett. The usual reason for making shoes and
accessories are when you have more standalone shops. It’s one of those areas
that I’ve studied over the years – I designed a Prada men’s bag that I still
see now after 20 years. When you have a good bag, you don’t need another. You
can change the fabrication but that bag is good. Men are creatures of habit,
unlike women. Once you get something that really works you can carry on and
carry on. I’m looking forward to expanding into that area. For shoes it’s more
about guaranteeing a minimum quantity for production so once there are enough
stores then that’s when the shoes will be launched.
What is this
obsession with bags?
Bags are objects, like a vase or any object that
you have in your home – they are collectible. Clothing seems more expendable.
Shoes are also small objects, easy to store and so they are a dream for
selling.
It was plain sailing (and very plain clothes) at Louis
Vuitton. Inspired by sea sports, Kim Jones was all at sea in
his third collection for Vuitton (right). The most successful looks were actually the
most traditional, like the deluxe double-breasted tailoring which were sharp
yet relaxed. Pyjama-pants, sailor-style flares and wide shorts (micro to
knee-length) were shown with scuba tops and patchwork shirts; Yellow
hoodie slickers, T-shirts and sweaters, though undoubtedly luxe in fabric, looked
predictable and safe. It was the accessories that saved the day: Unfussy and
practical bags, shoes and sandals, looked utterly
desirable. 
The archetypal sailor of Jean Cocteau and Jean Genet is something
of a house icon at Jean Paul
Gaultier and this collection was completely dedicated to this figure (left). The sailor theme sharply clarified the designs at
this collection which previously suffered from a wild heterogeneity of ideas
and inspirations. Forthwith, Gaultier’s classic suitings shone — sharp jackets (some
with short sleeves) and gilets were shown with high-waisted sailor's pants, a
couple of precisely-pleated kilts, and a few overalls that looked elegant, not
louche. Sailor stripes, a bold slicker red and sporty yellow supported the
seafaring theme, which looked modern and chic, not clichéd or lazy. 
Kris Van Assche used a strict palette of regimental blue and grey at Dior
Homme (right). This superbly un-hyperbolic collection was anything but boring, serving
up a clean-cut military discipline (the models looked like cadets with cropped,
shellacked heads) in classic jacket in every variation: some cropped, some
sleeveless, some boxy. These were paired with sweaters and shirts that were
buttoned all the way up, and easy-fit pants, or shorts that had the look of a
schoolboy. The military theme was subtly hinted at in the brass buttons that
never looked costumey. Everything unnecessary was edited away, so that the
cutting and construction of the jackets were brought to the fore, especially in
a passage where the cutting lines were traced in a contrast piping. This
collection presents discipline as charm, perhaps an antidote to an age of
excess.
The collection Veronique Nichanian showed for Hermès (left)was colour blocked in
monochrome outfits of blue, griege, tomato, absinthe and black but the effect
was a youthful, unambiguous masculinity. The collection has a brisk, breezy
feel that mirrored the season’s general vibe of ease and simplicity. These were
simply elegant clothes that you can stride out in with great confidence on a
sunny untroubled day. The high luxury of the label and its fabrics was made
fresh and light by subtle design and tweaking of the proportions, so that the
menswear classics like blazers, windbreakers, parkas, and coats looked athletic,
clean and cool without looking staid or boring. There were shorts here too, but
these, sensibly, reached the knee.
Perhaps the collection that best crystallises the season’s key
messages was presented by Lucas Ossendrijver for Lanvin (right). Ease is in the generous
fit of the tailoring: the jackets have a softness and movement and the pants
have fluidity and waft. Shirts with wide sleeves, and wide necklines, were cut
big, so that they drooped a little at the shoulders, and bloused at the belt. The
volume is anchored at the (very) high-waisted, for some shape and sensuality. The
silhouette is admirably clean, as every item seemed reduced and precise, shorn
of details and embellishments. The palette too is reduced to a monochrome black
and white, with a passage of futuristic shine right at the end, a pinch of
florals, and sparks of blue as accents. The athletic sandals, which owes
something to traditional Tevas, have a space-age shine and elegance. The
pleated pants do not look back to any era past, thankfully. Instead, this fiercely modern, forward-looking collection gives the
new austerity a positive spin.
The first-ever menswear fashion week in London has concluded last Sunday. Clicking over the videos and runway pictures of The London Collections: Men quickly, you'll surely ask "why?". Why would anyone bother? Do we need another fashion week? Of any sort? Do we need to stretch the traditonal semi-annual seasonal fashion circus even longer?
Chinese model Zhao Lei is my new obsession; He's studying for a medical degree and his ambition is to have his own fashion brand. Hobbies include basketball, swimming and music.
I like him for his essential 'niceness': he just seems so nice!
