The Savile Row community is coming together as one this September to mount a landmark exhibition to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Golden Shears.
Presented in partnership with The Pollen Estate, the showcase event will take place during London Fashion Week 2025. Window displays from Savile Row Bespoke Association (SRBA) members including Henry Poole & Co, Huntsman, Richard James, Dege & Skinner and Gieves & Hawkes will feature work from past Golden Shears winners and entrants, offering a unique opportunity to explore five decades of the best British tailoring talent. The London Academy of Bespoke, the SRBA’s official training partner, will also host a special exhibition at 19 Savile Row charting the competition’s history and legacy.
Founded in 1974, the Golden Shears Awards are held every two years at the historic Merchant Taylors' Hall in the City and bring together apprentice tailors and fashion students from across the UK. The competition is recognised as the foremost platform for showcasing new talent in bespoke tailoring, with many participants going on to forge careers on Savile Row. Pictured (second) are the 2013 Golden Shears winner Emily Bright, who served her apprenticeship at SRBA member Henry Poole, with celebrity judges David Gandy and Joanna Lumley, and (bottom) this year's first-prize winning entry by Joanna Spreadbury of SRBA member Huntsman.
Training and safeguarding the future of handcrafted tailoring on Savile Row is central to the SRBA’s work, and the Golden Shears is a justly celebrated partner in this mission.
Mark Henderson, Chairman of the SRBA, comments: “For fifty years the Golden Shears has been a wonderful showcase for the hard work and talent of so many brilliant tailors – and it is wholly fitting that Savile Row should celebrate when so many past winners have either come from apprenticeships on the Row or have found careers here having won.”
The Golden Shears 50th anniversary exhibition runs from 15th - 27th September ‘25 and is free to attend.
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