It’s no secret that we Brits often struggle with dressing for summer weather. In fairness, we aren’t blessed with the same balmy Mediterranean climate and late-night gelato on the piazza culture of our European cousins. On those glorious few-and-far-between summer days when the skies are blue and temperatures rise – when parks and beaches fill with factor 50-slathered sun-worshippers – we tend to rely on a uniform of polo shirts (or – shudder – football strips), baggy shorts and sandals. While we can’t all look like Tom Ripley swanning around 1950s Italy in linen, tortoiseshell sunnies and crisp button-down Oxford shirts, it’s fair to say that we, as a nation, could make more of an effort, sartorially speaking, during the summer months.

It comes as little surprise that Huntsman’s summer collection is just as refined, elegant and beautifully crafted as any other season’s. The British tailoring house is a Savile Row stalwart founded in 1849 by Henry Huntsman, who would – rather fittingly – go on to dress the hunting and riding aristocracy of Europe throughout the 19th century. One hundred and seventy-five years later, Huntsman maintains its reputation as a maker of the world’s finest handcrafted clothes, offering refined ready-to-wear pieces and a bespoke service. Cinephiles may recognise number 11 Savile Row from the film Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014), where the Huntsman boutique serves as the Kingsman storefront and interiors in the film. The company’s head cutter and creative director, Campbell Carey, was also responsible for creating a number of bespoke period garments for the film and more recently took on an advisory role for the American crime drama The Outfit.

Away from the Hollywood limelight, Carey has woven his 20-plus years’ experience in the tailoring industry into every piece of Huntsman’s new spring/summer collection. The rich history and quintessentially British tradition of bespoke plays an important role in Carey’s work and how he has taken on the Huntsman mantle. The designer studied fashion and textiles at the Scottish College of Textiles before becoming head cutter at Kilgour, where he fell in love with the discipline of bespoke tailoring. Joining Huntsman in 2015, he follows a great legacy of creative directors in guiding and nurturing the vision of the iconic Savile Row house.

‘The very heart of Huntsman is the precision of our cut, the quality of our construction and our investment in cloth,’ Carey says. ‘This same principle, I’ve applied to every garment in this [new] collection, be it a pair of tailored shorts or a three-piece suit. The result, I feel, is a wardrobe that our client can relax in, can play in and be at ease in, with a guarantee they’ll still look their best.’

Craftsmanship and the principles of bespoke form the backbone of the spring/summer 2024 offering. An elevated yet versatile collection, it is based on ‘listening to the needs of Huntsman’s modern clientele’, explains Carey. ‘People desire versatility, and that same sense of sophistication, even if it’s just heading to the beach or enjoying lunch on the terrace.’

Having said that, the collection is a cut above your average summer wardrobe, with tailoring traditions at the heart of every piece. Standout garments include striking linen and seersucker safari jackets, inspired by Italian marble and made by French linen house Maison Hellard; Riviera collar shirts reminiscent of the relaxed glamour of luxury European coastal resorts (just because we can’t all look like Tom Ripley doesn’t mean we can’t nab his impeccable style) and lightweight two- and three-piece suits that are perfect for summer weddings. Forget socks and sandals, summer 2024 sees the return of dressing up for the occasion. About time, too.

hunstmansavilerow.com