Baron Pierre de Coubertin (the founder of the Olympics) said, “It’s not the winning but the taking part that counts.” Utter tosh. These are the words of the loser, the also-ran, the dud, the deadbeat, the defeated. In battle there is no prize for runner-up. Coming first is everything. One day, like Brian Clough, I…
“The Laziest Tailor in Leeds” has been at it again folks. Last week I hung my tape-measure over my dummy and left the showroom for a week’s holiday in Portugal. In truth, I do put the hours in, and whilst bespoke tailoring and running my own business is something I love, six day weeks, tight…
Out for lunch with a customer last Friday, I felt the sun’s warmth on my cheek for the first time in ages. The restaurant was buzzing, people were smiling and one duck pappardelle later I left, ready to cast the dark, dank, cloak of winter from my shoulders. From a cloth point of view, the…
Another year, another dollar, and after what has been a highly indulgent Christmas, it seems another chin. For ten gloriously gluttonous days I put my feet up, except for an enjoyable trip to Helmsley for a photo-shoot with two new customers. Introducing brothers George and James Craig, from the band, ‘One Night Only.’ They knocked…
Last Sunday I enjoyed a perfect quiet moment to myself. Wallowing by the log fire with a belly full of lamb shanks, I raised a glass of Chianti to the newly installed Christmas tree in the corner and looked forward to my favourite time of the year. To me, Christmas is all about the build-up,…
As I staggered into the coat-makers with half a dozen fittings in each hand, my bag over my shoulder and a length of cloth and lining under my arm, I recalled the words of Thomas Edison: “Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration.” I raised my eyes to the sky, thanked the Lord for…
It’s four hours before my flight home and I’m closeted in the cigar bar of the JC Mandarin Hotel, a bottle of Tsing Tao beer in my left hand, a knock off Montblanc pen in my right, trying to find words that do justice to the incredible city that is Shanghai. Here for a mixture…
Damn that Zuckerberg bloke. I’ve resisted Facebook for years, but I’ve had yet another customer extolling the virtues of ‘social networking’ and how it could benefit my business, so I’ve decided to take a shaky step towards the dark-side and start a Facebook page for Michelsberg Tailoring. I’m still not entirely convinced. I’ve always thought…
It’s Monday morning and there is a spring in the Michelsberg step. On Thursday night I downed tools and headed off with my family for a long weekend in Runswick Bay on the East Coast. What a spot. Gobsmackingly beautiful. It’s straight out of an Enid Blyton book where kids with beautiful manners eat picnics,…
Six years ago, I was a headhunter in the technology sector. Fast forward to last Thursday evening and I’m playing the piano at 9.30pm outside my own bespoke tailoring shop in the Victoria Quarter, drinking Champagne and enjoying the adrenalin buzz that came with throwing a truly wonderful opening party. My family were in attendance…