Product Review 13:
The Looks, The Gadgets, The Ladies …And A Polo Shirt Or Two

Sunspel specialises in classic men’s t-shirts, polo shirts and underwear. Its products can be found in a variety of stores including Selfridges, Harrods, Barneys (New York) as well as a number of exclusive menswear stores as far afield as Australia, New Zealand and Japan.

Established in 1850, the Long Eaton based label provided some of the clothes worn by Daniel Craig in the movie, Casino Royale. “Classic, timeless and beautifully made” is how Lindy Hemming, costume designer for Craig in the movie, described the company’s clothes. “I thought that it would be a perfect collaboration of quality and Britishness to ask Sunspel to create all his t-shirts, polo shirts and underwear, which they duly did so excellently.”

Sunpel’s clothes are created with meticulous attention to detail. Made from Egyptian cotton, its fabrics are treated to achieve maximum softness, and built with longevity in mind. “The customer base is amazing. They literally wear them out and then send them to us, marvelling at its durability”, said Dominic Hazlehurst, one of the company’s owners.

With fans including Prince Charles and Johnny Depp, the label was also worn by Christian Bale in the blockbuster movie, Batman.

Not only did Sunspel introduce the first boxer shorts to the UK in 1947, it also provided the boxers used in the infamous 1980s Levis jeans advert in which the guy in the launderette (actor, Nick Kamen) stripped down to his smalls.

Initially a traditionally-run family business, the company was sold to its current owners, Dominic Hazlehurst and Nick Brooke, four years’ ago. As it would happen, both men had grown up on Sunspel’s clothes, having worn them since they were schoolboys.

Apart from working under its own label, Sunspel has also collaborated with a number of designers including Margaret Howell, Richard James and Paul Smith. In December last year, it opened its first retail outlet, a trial Christmas store in Covent Garden, London.

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