LLOYD BROS. LTD.: CUSTOM TAILORS

Alexandra Palmer

Lloyd Bros. Ltd, 1904-1988, was one of the most prestigious be­ spoke gentleman's tailoring firms in Canada. Begun by the brothers Charles J. Levy and William J. Levy, it continued under the direction of their sons, Charles ("Chuck") W. Lloyd and W. Edward ("Ted") Lloyd until late February 1988. The family name was changed from Levy to Lloyd in 1941, and the business name was changed to Lloyd Brothers Ltd. in 1948. [1941 City Directory 820; 1948 City Directory 933]

Lloyds was a family firm built upon the principles of the English tailoring tradition in cut, atmosphere and attitude. Lloyds catered to the elite; they dressed established people conservatively and impeccably. A Lloyd client was part of a club, that for some took on aspects of a family relationship. Gwenneth MacDonald, the bookkeeper for twelve years, remarked, "We dealt in service. We dealt in service in spades. We really waited on them hand and foot."

This paper will examine the firm's evolution, structure, clientele, as well as a few garments, in an endeavor to document the Lloyd's business as an example of the custom tailoring tradition as practiced in Toronto. Custom tailoring, stemming from the Middle Ages, is quickly disappear­ ing in the late twentieth century, along with the clientele and lifestyle that supported it, and the skills of workers who produced such carefully and specifically designed garments. The normal difficulties of researching a small, private firm are compounded by the reverential and discreet atti­ tude held towards the business and clients. This is an integral aspect of Lloyds and part of the heritage of an elite tailoring practice.

The bulk of the information presented is based upon interviews with those associated with the firm. This type of documentation is the most primary though selective, as it is dependent upon the discernment, co­ operation, and memory of the person interviewed. Public records pro-

ARS TEXTRINA 10 (1988), pp. 167-194

vide minimal information other than chronology for the various loca­ tions of the business. The few magazine articles written about Lloyds attest to the prestige and prominence of the firm in its own day. A tele­ vision documentary made by TV Ontario, the public television network, recorded the stages of processing wool and included a segment filmed at Lloyds in order to demonstrate the steps from cloth to finished garment. The rights on this programme have expired and the footage is destroyed leaving no copy. Had the programme been aired in the 1980s, it is likely that a home video tape would be available through the family; however, none exists. The actual clothes document the type of garments made and assist in an understanding of the craft of cutting and sewing that made Lloyds such a distinguished firm amongst the elite profession of bench tailoring.

William J. Levy ST., the father of the founding brothers, Charles and William Levy, was the President and Superintendent of The Bradley, Ley and Weston Machinery Co. [1903 City Directory 589]; he was not a tailor. The earliest records of the sons show Charles J. Levy in 1897 as an apprentice with Ed. Mack, a Toronto merchant tailor. His brother, William J., is listed as a clerk at the firm of Thompson & Thompson, probably the brokerage firm [City Directory 919]. By 1900 Charles, still with Ed. Mack, had progressed to the title of cutter [City Directory 593]. In 1901, his brother joined him there as the bookkeeper [City Directory 593] and progressed, in 1903, to a cashier [City Directory 589]. By 1904, William J. was recorded as "salesman" at Macks [City Directory 620]; Charles was simply listed as "cutter" without any firm association, and was probably no longer with Ed Mack.

The 1905 Toronto City Directory [635] listing was the first for Levy Brothers, Merchant Tailors run by William and Charles, at 47 Scott Street. Family history dates the opening of the firm in 1904, most likely after the City Directory was prepared. By 1907, the business had ex­ panded into 47 Scott and 21 Colborne Street [City Directory 714]. Dur­ ing this time, the two brothers lodged with their father, W.J. Levy, until 1909 [City Directory 766] when each set up his own private residence, indicating that the five year old business was quickly prospering.

The first of the business' many moves occurred in 1914. The new shop at 32 King Street West was in Dr. Jaeger's Sanitary Woolen System Co. building. Levy Brothers had one of the three store fronts; the oth-

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ers were occupied by a barber and a woolen merchant [City Directory 1047]. The business moved again in 1921 to 69 King Street West [City Directory 1009]. This shop was fitted with large, polished, dark wooden cabinets to hold the suit lengths. Sporting prints and fashion plates dec­ orated the walls, and burled walnut tables accompanied by leather chairs completed the gentleman's club atmosphere. The shop front had a large bowed glass window that, after a fire, could only be replaced by glass ordered from Belgium. It is these premises that are best remembered and that flourished when the business was in its heyday in the 1920s to 1950s. [Lloyd, Simon]

William J. Levy died in 1932 of a heart attack. His son Charles had graduated in 1931 from McMaster University in Political Economy, his father not wishing his son to learn tailoring as "he didn't see any future in it" [Lloyd]. However, Chuck Lloyd was asked by his uncle to join the firm, and did so in 1932. "So I started to work and did everything from shining the brass to sweeping the sidewalk, and I gradually picked up de­ signing" [Lloyd]. Chuck Lloyd's advancement can be followed with the Toronto City Directory, In 1933 he was recorded as "employee" [898], in 1939 as "cutter" [823], and in 1944 as "designer" [811], marking an apprenticeship of over eleven years.

During World War II, Levy Brothers retained a brisk business even with wartime restrictions on the amount of fabric to be used in a suit. Ex­ traneous details like pants cuffs could not be made even if, as there often was, left over fabric. Levy's clients became officers and began to request uniforms. They were referred to another Toronto firm, Beauchamp and Howe, until Levys realized that they were loosing a good trade and so began to make them. Manuals on patterns and regulations were obtained easily from the armed services. [Lloyd]

In 1948, after World War II, Edward "Ted" Lloyd joined the firm and the name was changed to Lloyd Bros. Ltd. The cousins were made Vice-Presidents and full partners [City Directory 933]. At this time, coupons for a suit were issued to men returning from the War and the uni­ form business reverted to civilian dress, and business picked up. Lloyds did continue to make uniforms for clients who remained in the services [Lloyd]. The firm moved again several times, but always stayed within a few blocks of the business community they served. These moves were in 1964, 1970, 1983, and finally in 1985 when they located at 100 Uni-

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versity Avenue. The last two locations were in a modern office tower as Lloyds did not rely upon, nor anticipate, off-the-street business and foresaw the closure of the firm.

None of the two generations of Lloyds were able to sew or tailor a garment. In fact it is with great pride that I was informed by Chuck Lloyd that they could not thread a needle. The business always hinged upon a pool of skilled sewers and tailors to realize the orders.

After Charles and William Levy left Ed. Mack, they relied upon their own ingenuity and skill to create patterns. They sought additional infor­ mation from a variety of sources; they had some books and literature, and Chuck Lloyd recalled them "[... ] sending to England to a friend who was in the woolen business and getting a dress coat, a white tie and morning coat. They ripped these apart... . They weren't happy, evi­ dently, with the way they were cutting theirs. We call them 'body fitting coats' " [Lloyd]. This technique of taking apart clothes was one that was traditionally utilized by dressmakers and tailors alike for centuries. It is easier to achieve a new well fitting garment from a good existing model, and one does not need to be so expert a pattern maker.

Chuck Lloyd also recalled that they had help from a New York tailor. "There was one man who taught tailoring in New York, and I used to hear his name quite a lot." Whether this man sent literature, travelled to Toronto, or they visited him is not known. However, he seems to have had an influence upon their craft as the tools for measuring were derived from a system he used. These will be discussed later.

When Chuck Lloyd started in 1932, he began by learning to draft trousers. " My uncle did the coats, vests, and so on... . He used block patterns, some which I believe they bought.... They were made from thick cardboard. Then he also made patterns that he used to keep un­ der the cutting table in the shop, patterns that had turned out well for some customer .... If another customer would come in with the same dimensions around, he would use them, and make some changes. But he taught me to draft right from drawing a line on the paper to start with, and with your cross line."

"I kept changing things right from the start when I began drafting" continued Chuck Lloyd. "One tailor can't tell another tailor very much, because even in the designing you may end up with the same pattern but it won't be done in the same way.... I got so that after my uncle died

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I thought the patterns got much better by drafting than by doing little changes. Better than block patterns. So any time I got a customer who had been using my uncle's pattern, I'd scrap it and do a new one." It was these patterns which were the basis of the business, giving the fit and style for which the client returned.

The individuality of a cutter's methods is as distinct as handwrit­ ing. Skills are perfected and improved upon, tricks from other tailors, employees, and literature are only assimilated if that individual finds it useful and logical for himself. Thus the methods that Chuck Lloyd's uncle used were his own, though he taught his nephew to draft as he had been taught.

The individuality of cutting is further demonstrated by the buying and using of other tailor's patterns. Clark & Eunson was another Toronto firm with the same prestige as Lloyds. When they closed in 1970, Lloyds purchased their patterns "[... ] just for the sake of saying we had them" [Lloyd], and informed Clark & Eunson clients, many of whom began to patronize Lloyds. However, new Lloyd patterns were made for those clients. Chuck Lloyd explained that "[... ] they were a guide, but our shop was different from theirs, so they weren't very useful." When Lloyds closed, their patterns where disposed of to a Montreal bench tai­ lor, Logan's Ltd., who in turn is attracting Lloyd's clientele. [Logan]

The Lloyds ordered and sold the cloth to the client. It was purchased in 3 1/2 yard suit lengths that were either in the shop or were available to examine in sample books and could be ordered upon request. Woolen merchant Casey Newlands, whose family has owned woolen mills in Yorkshire since 1796, recalled Lloyds ordering one hundred suit lengths at a time in the 1950s.

Gwenneth MacDonald, Lloyd's bookkeeper, reminisced that she used to help, in the 1980s, by updating the sample books once a week. She removed cloth that had already been ordered by a client, thus retaining the exclusivity of the suit cloth. She said, "We had every style, and ev­ ery kind of cloth and combination. We had such a variety of customers. Most were very conservative. We would find almost anything that any­ body wanted." Donald Simon was one of Lloyd's clients who appreci­ ated the fabric selection and the assistance of the Lloyds in guiding his decision. "Chuck's ability to pick fabrics was without peer. He could put things together in a way no one else could that I've ever run into... .

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They would take you through the books and show you something that really suited you... . They could dress up blue and make it beautiful." [Simon]

Chuck Lloyd remembered fondly the woolen merchants in the 1930s and 1940s. "The woolen men in those days were a little bit like the tailors, they were individual characters and very, very interesting. They used to come over twice a year from England with sample books... . One man came up from New York. He represented an English firm, Wain, Schiell & Son. He had a Packard car with a great big trunk on the back that the sample trunk fit into and he had a driver in a uniform and it was quite a production. Eventually after he died his son came up." The long standing relationships between the tailors and woolen merchants were similar to the type of relationship that were ongoing with the customer: both were based upon a mutual respect and dependence upon the other persons' skills and product.

In 1969, Wain, Scheill & Sons, the same English woolen company, produced a new tropical wool mohair cloth called "Gigantic" claiming it was very good at keeping its shape. Chuck Lloyd ,who was planning a six week trip around the world, ordered a suit length and had it made up. He wore his suit almost exclusively and did not have it pressed. Once Mr. Lloyd reached London, he visited Wain Schiell, who were delighted with his experiment and took a photograph of him in the suit. This was published in The Custom Tailor, and the Lloyds also included it in their Fall promotion folder along with the following comments:

"On the basis of our research we have ordered a good supply of this material in a range of over forty different colours and patterns... . Even if you don't feel you need anything right now, come in and shake the hand of a man who braved the terror of luxury hotels all through the Far East, the Middle East and Europe [... ] in a suit that was worn, packed, unpacked and worn again for over six weeks without pressing!"

[Oct. Nov. Dec. 1969: 11]

Lloyds continued to order this cloth for customers until they closed, a period of over twenty years. The constant availability of a particular

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cloth is an example of the service that is not always possible outside a merchant tailor.

Assurance of quality cloth and cut were a favoured privilege of the clients. Innovations would usually be in a fabric, for instance 'Gigantic', and not found in a radical pattern, colour, or styling of the garment. The British Savile Row tailor Eric Joy substantiates this, "When I first started cutting in the early fifties, my biggest seller was single-breasted, button- three in grey or dark blue; ten years later, it was the same; today it's the same; in 1980, it'll be the same." [Cohen 2]

Once a customer had picked a fabric and decided upon a style, he was measured. Records were kept of those measurements, along with a swatch of the cloth ordered, for each garment. The Lloyds took nineteen coat measures, five vest measures, and eight to ten trouser measures. [Hillen 2, Lloyd]

The measuring was based upon the process the Levy brothers had learned. There were two distinct devices that the Lloyds used and both were custom made to their specifications. These tools were unique to Lloyds. The creation of such devices may account for the numerous drafting devices extant, many of which are not properly comprehended. The first one that was used was a leather T with a tape measure from 0" - 22" attached to it (ROM 988.86.8) that was devised by the Levy broth­ ers. The T was placed under the armpit and the measuring tape taken to centre back to determine the blade measure. Then a chalk mark was placed at the neck and the shoulder and the second device, a measuring stick with sliding brass fitting and attached 45" tape measure was used (ROM 988.86.7). This device was also custom made for the Levys in Toronto and based upon a system they learnt from the New York tailor. The sliding brass mount was placed at the waist with the tape at 0"; then measures were taken up to the chalk marks at the back to the shoulders. This gave the waist length and the "attitude of the person, whether he was erect or stooping, his posture". The measuring was repeated on the front and on both sides of the body. [Lloyd]

An individual pattern would then be drafted for each client and de­ signed to their specifications. "We had an envelope with each customer's pattern that we kept indexed. We would add to the pattern if he wanted a double breasted jacket or if a man took off or put on twenty pounds we'd use the old draft." [Lloyd]

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An unfinished navy blue Douglas wool pinstripe suit (ROM 988.86. 3.1-10) demonstrates the characteristic cut and construction of a Lloyd Bros. suit. It was made in 1973 for a client, Nelson Davis, who died before it was completed. Mr. Davis was described by Chuck Lloyd as "[... ] a very good customer, and a very wealthy man, a millionaire. I used to go to his house .... It was almost like a castle and he turned it into his office and built a house on the Rosedale Golf Club. He used to buy 3-5 suits at a time."

The suit has had one fitting [Lloyd]. Customers stood on a 15" high and 20" square podium for this in order to keep them still [Newlands]. The jacket is basted together (fig. 1), the vest is complete (fig. 2), and the trousers have only begun to be marked on the cloth (fig. 3).

The single breasted jacket is cut with 2 fronts, 2 back pieces, and a pair of 2 piece sleeves. A ticket is sewn to the jacket and has all the information needed for the shop. It identifies the name of the client, and specifications for pockets and trims as well as the date scheduled for the fitting. The jacket is basted together with the inside and the. The canvas, an interlining of several fabrics of various weights, is the supple armature and foundation for the outer woolen jacket.

Tailor Carlo Mongrandi, in "A Treatise on Canvas Fronts", explained the importance of this. "The effect of a well constructed canvas front will enhance the contour of the shoulder and forepart. Problems arising from a poorly cut or improperly installed canvas front may be impossi­ ble to alter or re-adjust after the garment is completed." The canvas is made from several layers of various cloths, all hand sewn in a variety of basting and tacking stitches.

This canvas is composed of hymo, an interfacing that is rough and resistant to shrinking and stretching. It is placed next to the wool, darted and shaped to the jacket front. The darts are cut out and joined by a rayon fabric, eliminating any bulk and creating a carefully modeled three di­ mensional basis. Haircloth, a combination weave of cotton and horse­ hair that rubs into the hymo, [Hostek "Tailor's Logic" 44] is placed over the chest area and sewn to the hymo to reinforce a smooth front. White cotton flannel, wigan, is also shaped and sewn over this to smooth the line, and prevents the haircloth from being scratchy and irritable. These layers are hand sewn together loosely in a padding stitch that allows them to remain in place without distorting the thickness.

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Black Bemberg, a rayon lining fabric, is sewn to the break line of the lapel and acts as a transition fabric for the thicknesses of the inside edges and facing. The lapel lies absolutely flat against the jacket. The base for the under collar is in place and is made of linen cut on the bias. Black tape has been sewn onto the wool at the neckline to prevent stretching prior to the placement of the collar. The pockets are set into the jacket and finished. Mr. di Biagio, Lloyd's last foreman, remarked that in Italy the pocket placement would be marked at the try-on stage and not cut or attached previously.

The two-piece sleeve is only joined on the inner seam with ma­ chine stitches as preparation for basting it into the armscye for the fitting (fig. 3). The jacket would be prepared with the collar, sleeves and lapels sewn by hand, and these would be in place before the last fitting (fig. 3). The final addition of buttons and buttonholes, and the lining, were not made until after the final fitting in order to ensure the correct fit, sleeve length and placement.

Underpressing at every stage is time consuming and a vital part of the building of a suit that should be done throughout the construction. Hostek explains the procedure, "In fine custom tailoring, pressing in­ volves opening seams; shaping (stretching and shrinking); achieving a smooth, wrinkle-free surface; creasing; and flattening edges. All these require heat, water (steam), and pressure." ["A tailor on pressing" 43]

The use of these many materials shaped into a subtle inner construc­ tion, and the application of this to the woolen jacket body distinguishes a suit in the way it hangs, retains its shape, and wears. Lloyd's paid very careful attention to these inner details, resulting in long wearing suits that retained a very polished appearance.

The workshop was always on the premises and run by a foreman who was responsible for the production and quality. The jackets and coats were all made in house by the workers who were paid by the hour; and vestmakers were paid by the piece, as were trousermakers. This system was instituted with the business, as Mr. Chuck Lloyd recollected. "On King Street we had a room upstairs on the third floor and had a bushel man, who did alterations and a couple of trouser makers, some of whom worked at home and some of the vest makers worked at home.... It was always that way when I started, and I remember having to take work to them." [Lloyd]

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Lloyd's last foreman, Archimedes di Biagio, apprenticed for eleven years to a tailor in Rome before coming to Canada in 1956. His first job in Toronto was with the tailoring firm of Clark & Eunson. Upon their closure, at Mr. Eunson's death, he went to work for Lloyd's in 1970. There he supervised Polish, Finnish, Italian and French sewers and said, "Everybody spoke one language, but nobody spoke English" [di Biagio]. The universal language of sewing and tailoring made this possible, and gave new emigrants employment in the Canadian work­ place.

When Mr. di Biagio began at Lloyds there were 20 sewers in the workshop. As those people retired or left they were not replaced, until they were down to 7 people in the shop, and 2 outside pant makers. This led to the jacket production being kept in fewer hands which was the way Mr. di Biagio preferred it and the way he was trained. He also told me that the clothes made towards the latter years were the best Lloyds had made.

Mr. di Biagio slowly changed the way some things were executed at Lloyds. At Clark & Eunson the tailor was given the jacket cut out. That tailor was responsible for the "try-on", the initial basted jacket ready for the first fitting. That same tailor did the fitting and then finished the jacket,"[... ] from the first stitch to the last stitch" [di Biagio]. Mr. Eun­ son was Scottish in origin and was brought up in this "complete garment method". This was a method typically used by merchant tailors who had a small skilled staff to produce orders. [Wilson 74]

The Lloyd's system was different. "They started like this in 1904, you do the front, another guy does the pocket, and other guy does the side, or makes the top collar, and another bastes the sleeve" [di Bia­ gio]. This means of production permits less skilled hands to perform basic sewing functions, for instance sewing straight seams and tacking the canvas pieces together. Piece work is also the system used in mass production as it requires less skilled labour.

Lloyds was founded at the same time that the clothing industry was becoming highly organized and factory oriented with a high standard of quality and a wide range of prices that challenged merchant tailors. The shop was perhaps organized upon a blending of new and old systems. In 1904 when Levy Bros, opened, apprentices and skilled labour were still available but were beginning to be lost to factories who could train

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"[... ] youngsters [... ] to perform specialized tasks within a few weeks, by staff who are expert in the methods of sectional manufacturing. No long period of learnership, but definite production within a few weeks or months; no more the long years of learning a craft with thorough­ ness of detail, but a short intensive training in one or two specialized operations." [British Factory 39]

By the 1920s there was a definite division between the skilled and the factory worker. "In the earlier stages of wholesale clothing the be­ spoke tailor was not greatly affected; he continued to make garments for his customers, while the factories created a new market for their "slop" products among workers who had hitherto passed their lives in a suit of corduroy, or moleskin, or in second-hand clothes" [British Factory 8]. Lloyds experienced the repercussions of the growing industrial clothing industry. "In the late 1920s before the Crash, they (Lloyds) were turning out about 50 garments a week... . We were the biggest (tailoring firm). In the 30s, 40s and in the 50s it started to go down." [Lloyd]

The founding Levy brothers did not continue a family tradition, they created one. They apprenticed and learned traditional ways of tailoring but were young and new enough in the profession to be able to adapt to ways that made their business easier and faster. This is reflected in the combination of drafting systems that they created and the structure of the workshop. It was the second generation of Lloyds who were re­ ally caught between continuing the traditions established by the Levys, which resulted in the closure of the firm; or competing with expensive, well produced factory suits and designer labels that necessitated pursu­ ing a new market and techniques of production. This was attempted dur­ ing the last ten years of business by the introduction of "factory suits".

"Factory suits" are commonly called "made-to-measure". Lloyds sold these suits in an attempt to increase sales in the late 1970s and early 1980s, at a time of dwindling trade and to attract a younger and less established clientele. The suits sold for around $600.00, bespoke selling at that time for about $900-1000, depending upon the cloth. The client still selected the cloth and had his measurements taken, but then that package was sent to a factory. The factory cut and sewed the suit and sent it back to Lloyds who fitted it and returned it to the factory to be finished. These suits were given a black and white Lloyd label but not the gold and black woven one, that was reserved for the 'real' Lloyd suit

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which had been custom drafted and sewn (fig. 4). [Lloyd, MacDonald] Made-to-measure suits are commonly available through numerous

mens clothiers. This aspect of the business at Lloyds was never seri­ ously pushed or widely advertised though it would have been the logical way to continue in business. In 1983 Dennis McCloskey interviewed the nine most prominent Toronto tailors and Lloyds was not among them, an indication of their declining prominence and trade. Some of the firms interviewed had several shops, and all dealt in made-to-measure factory suits as an aspect of their businesses. Some, for instance Studio 267, offered the made-to-measure as a small part of an off-the-rack business. President Albert Morton stated that only seventeen percent of the busi­ ness was custom made. The reason for having the service at all seems to be to identify the company as a classic, traditional tailoring establish­ ment.

In September of 1988, Studio 267 advertised in the window of their shops in Toronto made-to-measure suits from $479.97. The price de­ pended upon the cloth selected and the entire venture was marked as a promotion for the business, and geared to attract customers into the shops. The selling of made-to-measure suits was not expected to bring in a high revenue. The regular price for their made-to-measure began at $600.00. A choice of two styles was offered with some options for de­ tails, pleats, pockets, and the suit would be ready in six to eight weeks. The suits are made in a Toronto factory. The measuring for such a suit is performed by the sales staff who have attended seminars put on by the firm that include this instruction. [Holden]

The use of specific custom measures results in a suit usually more accurately proportioned to the client than something off-the-rack. How­ ever, the factory process of cutting and sewing generalizes the client's quirks and individual details. This is illustrated by the instructions in British Factory Production of Men's Clothes. "Measures supplied by the shops are, more often than not, taken loosely and not infrequently over an inflated chest. [... ] Upon receipt of order, the complete set of mea­ sures should be "vetted" by an experienced person; any vague details should be clarified, and the whole set out upon a clearly-detailed cutting sheet... It is no concern of the cutter, when dealing with the trousers, that the client wears "spats" —he is only concerned with the measure provided" [103-4].

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Lloyds did concern themselves with details and prided themselves on personalized and individual service (fig. 5). They were intimately involved with the client, and his suit, from the measuring, drafting and sewing to the final fitting. The factory suits they made were a practi­ cal solution to declining business but were not seriously pursued as the means of continuing the firm.

Lloyd's tailor, Archimedes di Biagio influenced the cut of Lloyd clothes. He discussed with Chuck Lloyd the cut of the jackets. The main problem area for fit was at the armscye. Mr. di Biagio said the sleeve had to be cut higher and closer to the arm to prevent distorting the jacket when the arm moved. This he explained to Chuck Lloyd who said, "I've been doing it like this for thirty-five years and now you want me to change?" Mr. di Biagio said, "hi your time when you started no­ body was going to the moon: now people are going to the moon" [di Biagio]. Mr. Lloyd did understand and changed the patterns though it was done gradually, not all of a sudden. [Lloyd]

The continual experience of learning new drafting tricks and per­ fecting patterns was the nature of the business. A custom tailor deals constantly with the irregularities of the individual human body. Bow- legged customers presented a special challenge for trousers. At Lloyds the trouser crease would be moved over the knee and adjustments made at the back or side. "We had one customer for whom we used to cut a new trouser pattern practically every time he came in because we could never get one that he was happy with. We would cut the trouser out of a piece of anything that was around and baste it up and try it on and see if we couldn't improve on it. We finally got a pattern, it could have been as long as ten years with fussing. But he was quite happy and it was helpful if we got someone else in with a similar problem. You can tell when a man is standing if his knees would be four fingers apart he'd be bowlegged and you'd make a note of it; but you wouldn't let him know." [Lloyd]

The notion of custom tailoring being associated with physical defor­ mity or abnormality is one that is long standing. Most people have small irregularities, one shoulder higher than the other or one side more mus­ cular. The skill of the tailor is to disguise these defects and enhance the appearance of the client and present an image that conforms to the taste of the day. Chuck Lloyd recalled his father having to fit hunchbacks,

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which, he noted, is quite a difficult task. His own experience did not encompass this particular problem though he did make suits for a few clients who were quite misshapen through age or birth defects. [Lloyd]

The vests were made in the workshop by the vest makers. At one time there were four women vest makers. The best vest maker was a German man called Sigmund Miesenberger who retired at age eighty. : He learned in Germany, as Mr. di Biagio said "[... ] he just made vests and is no good for anything else. But he made the best I've ever seen". He had worked for Charlie Callow, another tailor on King Street [di Biagio]. When he retired all the vests were sent out to be made up.

The vest on the Davis suit is completely finished. It was made by Sigmund Meisenburger [Lloyd]. The facings at the armscye, hem and collar are turned from the body and cut in one called "growed-on" [Hostek "Tailor's Logic" 46] thus eliminating bulky seams. The front facing is added in order to strengthen the front. The buttons have been sewn on and the handmade keyhole buttonholes cut. A small dart is sewn into the armscye eliminating any gaping that can occur at this rounded chest area. There is no back tie or buckle for adjustment, the vest is cut to fit correctly. The lining is put in with lot of ease and tacked in place. Inside or outside the vest is beautifully finished and subtly detailed for fit.

The trousers at Lloyds were always sent out to be made up [Lloyd]. In the Davis suit the length for the trousers has been cut off from the original 31/2 yard suit length. "That goes back to the days of my father. We had two other people do the cutting. We had one chap cut the coat, vest and trousers and it was on a long table, 3 1/2-4 yds long [... ] he'd lay in the jacket and vest [... ] and just cut that off, as it is there, and that would be passed onto my father who cut the trousers. The coat and vest were put into the shop and basted for fitting." [Lloyd]

An examination of another suit (ROM 988.86.2.1-2) that is com­ plete shows the trouser construction. The extraneous pieces of cloth left over from the main suit would be used for pockets or for the two-piece triangular gusset that is placed in the crotch at the back pant for ease and comfort. All the seams are overcast by hand in order to finish the inside

'Mr. Meisenberger declined to be interviewed about his training and work at Lloyd Brothers. [Letter 8 June, 1988. Telephone interview 8 July, 1988]

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and prevent fraying. The waist is stiffened with a heavy waist band to ensure that it does not roll. The centre back seam has a generous seam allowance so that it can be let out in the future, if needed. As with the vest, the trousers are neatly finished inside, and tailored to allow for ease and comfort of fit.

Jodhpurs were also made at Lloyds though over the years they ceased to produce them. "You couldn't get anybody in later years who knew how to make the britches or jodhpurs, a trouser maker wouldn't know how to make one... . When I first started we were making a few jodh­ purs because we had a man who could make them but he wanted more money to make them than trousers so we stopped.... He ended up just making trousers" [Lloyd]. Customers sometimes complained about creases in the front when the client was standing up. This additional length in the crotch was necessary in order to ensure comfort when astride. "[... ] There is a picture in the Royal York Hotel on one of the landings of the Prince of Wales [... ] my uncle saw this [... ] and the Prince of Wales' britches were all creased, and so we got the picture and had it copied and had it in the store. We showed it to the customers" [Lloyd]. This photograph verified the Lloyd's jodhpurs and discretely informed the customer that the Lloyds were correct in the cut and hang of the garment.

A tuxedo made for Ted Lloyd displays additional fine points of tai­ loring (ROM 988.86.1-3). The jacket is made of Maple Leaf Tartan, a design developed in celebration of Canada's centennial in 1967. The wool jacket is lined with a red Bemberg woven with maple leaves. The dark green satin on the lapels is repeated in the stripe on the black gab­ erdine trousers, and as the bow tie. It is precisely such details that are the prerogative of the bespoke tailoring business.

The planning layout needed prior to cutting a garment is of greater importance in a plaid, or stripe which is always a challenge as the re­ sulting garment can be radically altered by the use of the pattern. The tartan in this jacket is beautifully matched. The jacket is composed of 2 fronts, 2 side fronts, 2 side backs and 2 centre back pieces. The back is matched to the side back and to the fronts, and the sleeves are inset with the plaid matching horizontally across the chest. Two small darts in the back at the shoulder ensure that the neck and collar lie flat and also continue the vertical lines of the plaid to the shoulder, thus visually

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elongating the back.Lloyds began in 1904 by only providing tailoring services. When a

tailor and haberdashery firm across the street from their shop on King Street closed Lloyds added ties and then hats, gloves and handkerchiefs. However, as Chuck Lloyd said "[... ] gradually we found it a nuisance and stopped, all but the ties which we still had when we closed." Lloyds did continue to sell custom made shirt and carried shirtings. Lloyds took the measurements of the sleeve, chest and neck and gave it to the shirtmaker, Anthony Bauer, to cut and sew (fig. 5). [Lloyd, Bauer]

Lloyd's clients were business executives, chief executive officers for large companies as well as old established Canadian families. At one time Lloyds had as clients the presidents of four Canadian banks, and always the financiers, judges, lawyers, and stockbrokers ["They don't have Customers"] "[... ] they came from all across Canada, from Van­ couver to St. Johns. They would come to a director's meeting [... ] and would select 2-3 suits at a time and would be back in another month for another director's meeting and have a fitting" [MacDonald]. Time spent on fittings was considered part of their lives, as was the wait for the suit. A Lloyd Bros, suit presented a conservative and immaculate image. The clothes had a distinct cut which Casey Newlands described as "[...] an English cut, rounded waists and flared skirts in the jacket. Comfort was uppermost." When Lloyds was about to close they received many calls from clients wanting to know where to have clothes made that were as comfortable [MacDonald]. One of Lloyd's clients who went to Logans in Montreal and asked them to "[... ] give me that English look that Lloyds have given me" [Logan]. Mrs. MacDonald put it another way, "They were very arrogant suits, the way they were loose and the hand stitching, the way they would hang on a hangar".

Lloyd's customers were not only assured of a well fitting and crafted suit, but also a calm atmosphere removed from their business world and that respected and understood their lifestyle. The premises was a hushed sanctum where the Lloyds never talked above a whisper. "When people came in they knew they were going to have a really nice time and choose a lovely new suit and have a visit and talk about trips [... ] they seemed to enjoy themselves [... ] a friend to friend relationship." [MacDonald]

Clients were assured of the Lloyd's time and patience, as in the case of one client, a general, who laid cloth out all over the shop with his

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medals and ribbons on it, in order to select his cloth [Simon]. Chuck Lloyd recalled another client. "He and his wife would come in and they used to fight about which cloth he should have and which he shouldn't. She would walk out on him, or he on her and it was quite a show... . She brought him in as her first husband had been a client. We made suits for his sons. "

The analogy of Lloyds to a family or club is a valid one and is re­ flected by the generations of families they served, and by the continuing patronage of Lloyds by clients when other aspects of their personal or professional life were in turmoil. Donald Simon one of Lloyd's younger and newer clients remarked upon how he valued the constancy and sta­ bility of Lloyds. He changed his job and was divorced but kept his tailor. "They seemed almost uncanny. They knew when you were last in and kept track of conversations. It really was like an extension of your fam­ ily after a while." [Simon]

New clients came in from referrals and a few from direct mail ad­ vertising (fig. 6). Brochures were made in the spring and fall with in­ formation on new cloth, and sent to notify customers of the spring and fall sales with ten percent off the price of the cloth. New names were taken from such places as The Book of Directors, Ted Lloyd's Rotary Club, as well as the members list of The Cambridge Club, a health club in the Sheraton Centre which catered to the Bay Street business men. [MacDonald]

Nonetheless, new clients were not actively pursued or particularly welcomed: they were inspected and reviewed. Donald Simon recalls his own experience in the 1950s. "Their approach to a new customer was rather unique [... ] it was a fairly cool sales pitch, if you can call it a sales pitch.... I offered to pay a deposit and that went on for twenty- three years and then one day I guess they had made up their mind that I was acceptable, and they said 'Oh no, that won't be necessary. We will simply bill you when its ready.'"

Lloyd's service extended to answering inquiries concerning appro­ priate attire, often for formal occasions. Weddings that were held around six p.m. Chuck Lloyd found to be particularly problematical. If one wore a directors suit or a morning suit, clients wanted to know what they should wear to the reception. He recommended that they should wear whatever they had worn to the wedding [Lloyd]. One client wanted to

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order a burgundy dinner jacket but wanted to know if it might preclude him from admittance to his club. Lloyds assured him it would be per­ fectly correct if he wished to order it. [MacDonald]

However, fewer and fewer of the sons of Lloyd's clients came in for their business or private clothes. Occasionally an older client brought in a son to be fitted for evening dress, but even that became more in­ frequent. Just as Chuck Lloyd's son did not continue the business, (Ted Lloyd had daughters), the sons of Lloyd's clients did not want Lloyd's type of service or look. "Before the war, sons had automatically gone to the same tailor as their fathers but now, even at this social level, the pa­ triarchy wasn't what it had been and young men began to defect. They thought Savile Row humbug, all those fittings and adjustments, all that obsequience and, at the end of it, what? Another dark grey suit" [Cohen 37]. The emergence, in the 1960s, of youth oriented clothing with nov­ elty of styling and prestige conferred in a label also contributed to the loss of interest in the conservative custom suit.

The closure of Lloyd Bros, is indicative of the imminent end of the profession of custom tailoring. Charles Weatherill was a prominent New York tailor and colleague of the Lloyds who commented in 1969 on the demise of the custom tailor. "My father told me custom tailoring was a dying industry and I still hear it today. But there will always be tai­ lors because there will always be cranks, cripples and gentlemen" fMc- Closkey, J. 9]. Unfortunately, Mr. Weatherill was incorrect. Though there may continue to be cranks, cripples and even gentlemen, the re­ maining numbers of custom tailors, and the cutters and sewers who sup­ port the trade, are few and rapidly dwindling.

Chuck Lloyd said, "When I first started on King Street there must have been at least a dozen tailors and they all died off, so eventually if you are still in business you are going to pick up customers." Lloyds was the last of such business in Toronto. In England, on Savile Row, those tailors that survive rely upon the continued patronage of the American tourist trade that kept them in business during the 1950s and 60s [Cohen 164]. Today, many North Americans who do not have a personal tailor, or whose tailor has closed, can afford both the time and finances to travel to Savile Row and experience the ambience and skills of the English tailoring tradition.

The modern alternative, and competition to custom tailoring, is a

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purchased suit produced by a name designer. These designers, such as Ralph Lauren, offer products that assume the tradition of fine tailoring through their advertising campaigns that promote an image of landed gentry and aristocratic taste. Satisfaction is obtained through the vicar­ ious purchasing of the image; the actual suits are mass-produced and mass-marketed.

Chuck Lloyd admitted that they did not really get as much money for their clothes as they warranted. " I don't know whether we were afraid to charge more or not" [Lloyd]. The cost of $1000.00 in the late 1980s for a bench tailored suit was not at all exorbitant. The average Lloyd client was long established and it was inconceivable for the Lloyds to suddenly raise prices by a large margin, even if their prices were on par, or under, imported ready-to-wear European designer models. The retention of clients was a matter of honour; to upset their clientele was to undermine the tradition and foundation of the business.

Lloyd's unwillingness to change to a factory-based business was largely because they were not interested in producing clothes that they were not involved in making, for a clientele who did not have the time, understanding or appreciation of the work involved in constructing fine clothes. Lloyds considered it preferable to close the firm leaving its prin­ ciples intact, rather than to alter their services and clients that they had built up and enjoyed.

The intertwined lifestyles of the client, skilled apprentices and sew­ ers that produces quality custom clothes is quickly being lost and places such clothes on an endangered species list. Pittsburgh tailor, P. Bergman stated; "There are plenty of men willing to pay the price of a tailor-made suit—if they can find a custom tailor. Unfortunately the ranks of men who make a career of designing, cutting and making men's handmade clothing has dwindled... . There's no place in America to study tailor­ ing and young men aren't willing to spend the time it takes to become a master tailor—it's a lifetime job" (qtd. in "Past President Paul Bergman Was Quoted By Miami Herald." The Custom Tailor July-Aug. 1955: 16). This decrease is reflected by the membership of The Custom Tailors and Designers Association that was founded in 1881 as the Ohio Cus­ tom Cutters Association with 13 members. In 1919 it changed its name to The Merchant Tailors Designers Association with Charles J. Lloyd as president. 1940 to The Merchant Tailors and Designers Association of

185

America, Inc. Its membership in the 1950s numbered over 800 mem­ bers, today there are about 300. Most of the current members only make made-to-measure suits. [Lipkin]

When Mr. di Biagio, Lloyd's tailor and foreman, was looking for a new job the union could not find him a situation where he was able to do the same work. He was offered a job by another Toronto tailoring firm who wanted him to sit in the window of their shop on King Street and sew, in order to demonstrate that they really made their clothes by hand. Mr. di Biagio did not accept the offer as he did not wish to be relegated to the role of an actor in a side show. Some of Lloyd's clients called Mr. di Biagio at his house in an attempt to have him make suits for them privately. He declined all offers because he felt even if he made a beautiful suit, it would not be satisfactory because those clients wanted not only a fine suit, which he could make, but also a Lloyd's suit and the experience of getting a Lloyd suit. This, he not being a Lloyd, was unable to provide, [di Biagio]

Lloyd Bros. Limited business and success was based not only on the large selection of cloth they made available, nor solely on the cut and construction of the suits, but on a combination of these services as well as the atmosphere they provided in the shop. This was dominated by their discrete personalities that elicited the trust placed upon them by clients in terms of both correct dress and friendship.

The closure of the firm marks the loss of traditions and skills from several social levels. Custom tailoring relies upon a client with the ap­ preciation, time and money to invest in the ordering of a custom suit. The realization of this one suit requires numerous skills from many indi­ viduals for the measuring, cutting, sewing and finishing the components to the requirements of the client. The demise of tailoring establishments such as Lloyds marks the disappearance of these lifestyles.

186

References

Bauer, Anthony. Telephone interview 10 June, 1988.

British Factory Production of Men's Clothes. London: George Reynolds Limited, 1950.

Cohen, Nik. Today there are no Gentlemen. London: Weidenfeld and Nicholson, 1971.

Di Biagio, Archimedes. Interview 8 May, 1988.

Hillen, Ernest "Three-piece perfection." The Financial Post Maga- zine, May 1982, pp. 1-3.

Holden, Stephen. Interview 27 September, 1988.

Hostek, Stanley. "A tailor on pressing." Threads, April-May 1987, p. 43.

Hostek, Stanley. "Tailor's Logic." Threads, Dec. 1987-Jan. 1988, pp.42-47.

Lipkin, Irma. Telephone interview 29 April, 1988.

Lloyd, Charles William. Interview 31 May, 1988.

Logan, Don. Telephone interview 7 June, 1988.

MacDonald, Gwenneth. Interview 15 March, 1988.

McCloskey, Dennis. "Sartorial Splendor. Who dresses Toronto's Busi­ nessmen?" Business Journal, July-Aug. 1983, pp. 28-32.

McCloskey, Jason. "The Pashionate Shopper: The Persistance of A Gentlemanly Custom." New York, Vol. 2. 36(8 Sept. 1969), pp. 58- 61.

Miller, John. "A Cut Above Everybody. The amazing grace of a tailor- made suit." The Canadian Magazine, Mar. 1976, pp. 15-16.

Mongrandi, Carlo. "A Treatise On Canvas Fronts." The Custom Tailor, Fall-Winter 1981, p. 17.

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"Mr. and Mrs. 'Chuck' Lloyd of Toronto Spent Six Weeks On 'Round the World Trip'." The Custom Tailor, Oct.-Nov.-Dec. 1969,p. 11.

Newlands, Casey. Interview 27 April, 1988.

"Past President Paul Bergman Was Quoted by Miami Herald." The Custom Tailor, July-Aug. 1955, p. 16.

Simon, Donald. Interview 24 March, 1988.

"They don't Have Customers—They Have Clientele." The Canadian Magazine, 14 Aug. 1971, p. 13.

Toronto City Directory 1895-1988.

Tuhy, Carrie. "How—and why—to Buy Custom Clothes." Money, Vol. 12. 10 (Oct. 1983), pp. 159+.

Wilson, Elizabeth. Adorned in Dreams. Fashion and Modernity. Lon­ don: Virago Press Ltd., 1985.

Young, Sybil. "Suits that suit." En Route, Sept. 1979, pp. 54-63+.

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Fig. 1. Half-made jacket (ROM 988.86.3.1). [Gift of Mrs. Eleanor Lloyd in memory of her husband, W.E. (Ted) Lloyd; photograph courtesy of the Royal On­ tario Museum, Toronto, Canada.]

189

Fig. 2. Completed vest (ROM 988.86.3.9). [Gift of Mrs. Eleanor Lloyd in memory of her husband, W.E. (Ted) Lloyd; photograph courtesy of the Royal On­ tario Museum, Toronto, Canada.]

190

Fig. 3.Top left: jacket collar (ROM 988.86.3.6). Bottom left: fabric for trousers (ROM 988.86.3.8). Top right: jacket lapel (ROM 988.86.3.2). Bottom right: 2 piece sleeve, joined at outside seam (ROM 988.86.3.4).Centre right: scrap for welts or gusset in trouser crotch (ROM 988.86.3.7). [Gift of Mrs. Eleanor Lloyd in mem­ ory of her husband, W.E. (Ted) Lloyd; photograph cour­ tesy of the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada.]

191

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