Smythson

The Classicist: Is the Royal Warrant Losing Its Lustre?

A recent decision by two venerable British brands to drop the Royal Warrants from their packaging has occasioned some hand-wringing in the UK over whether the much-coveted distinction has lost its lustre. The Classicist calls it a tempest in a Royal Doulton teacup; read on to find out why. Only three royals are entitled to grant warrants – the Queen of England, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Prince of Wales – to firms who supply their royal requisites for at least five years, though most warrant holders have ties to Britain's royal family dating back several decades or more. Of course, Prince William will one day be granting his own.

Holders of the Royal Warrant include many of our favorite luxury brands – Asprey, Aston Martin, Bentley, Barbour, Burberry, Fortnum & Mason, Gieves & Hawkes, Holland & Holland, Hunter Boots, Jaguar, John Lobb, Johnnie Walker, Land Rover, Laphroaig, Lock & Co., Swaine Adeney Brigg, Smythson, Tanqueray and Turnbull & Asser – along with a host of lesser names, such as After Eight mints and Jacob's Cream Crackers. It is the latter two that have now decided to do without their warrants – though no insult is intended to the royal family, as it was when former Harrods owner Mohamed al Fayed burned his last year. That coupled with the results of a new survey showing that only 13% of respondents thought that warrants make any difference have called their usefulness into question, the London Guardian reports.

However, "It's hard to say that interest in royal warrants is conclusively on the wane," Vicky Bullen, chief executive of Coley Porter Bell, tells the paper, "because there is no existing data with which to make a comparison. However, consumers' apparent indifference to the royal warrants has surprised us. We can only surmise there could be a number of factors at play." Said factors, Bullen says, include "that we live in a less deferential society in which the royal family enjoys less prestige and political support." That of course is not exactly new, though the upcoming Royal Wedding may give them a boost. [cont'd]

Gallery: Holders of the Royal Warrant

Tags: Asprey, Aston Martin, Barbour, Bentley, British royalty, Burberry, Fortnum and Mason, Harrods, Holland Holland, Hunter Boots, Jaguar, John Lobb, Johnnie Walker, Land Rover, luxury brands, Mohamed al Fayed, Prince of Wales, Prince William, Queen of England, royal family, Royal Warrant, Royal Wedding, royalty, Smythson, Swaine Adeney Brigg, Tanqueray, UK

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EXCLUSIVE: St. Regis Hotels & Resorts Head Paul James' Ten Essential Luxuries

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Timepieces / Watches, Books, Men's Style, 10 Luxuries

Paul James is the Global Brand Leader for St. Regis Hotels & Resorts and The Luxury Collection, Starwood's two world-renowned, luxury hospitality brands. Under this role James is responsible for providing the overall strategic and creative direction for St. Regis, the legendary hotel brand committed to excellence and bespoke service at the best addresses in the world, and The Luxury Collection, a glittering ensemble of one-of-a-kind destinations and indigenous experiences designed for the global explorer. Over the last year, James has been instrumental in creating a long term strategy of meaningful growth for both St. Regis and The Luxury Collection brands in the world's most enviable destinations. Since taking on his current role, St. Regis and The Luxury Collection have successfully debuted properties in new markets including Atlanta, Indonesia, Mexico, Moscow, Peru, and Scotland. Over the next five years, James will oversee their continued expansion with the opening of properties in Abu Dhabi, Bermuda, Buenos Aires, Cairo, China, Japan, Jordan, Peru, and more.

James has more than 20 years experience in hospitality, serving most recently as Starwood's Regional Director of Sales & Marketing, NW Europe. In that role, he was in charge of the sales and marketing teams of 35 hotels in nine countries across seven brands, with revenues in excess of $1 billion. This fall, St. Regis Hotels & Resorts will continue its extraordinary global expansion by opening four world-class properties in Puerto Rico, Osaka, Bangkok and Lhasa, solidifying its position and the leader in luxury hospitality and doubling its footprint in just two years. This global growth will expand the brand's footprint to include the Caribbean with The St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort in Puerto Rico, and continuing its growth in Asia with The St. Regis Osaka, The St. Regis Lhasa Resort and The St. Regis Bangkok. Offering the St. Regis' iconic bespoke services and amenities, unrivalled luxury and refined elegance, the spectacular new properties join the brand's distinguished portfolio of quintessential addresses around the world. In the gallery are images of James' essential luxuries; continued below you'll find his explanations about what makes them a must.

Gallery: Paul James' 10 Essential Luxuries

Tags: Bahia Beach, bespoke, Butler, Cole Haan, Dunhill, hotel, Maserati, polo, resorts, Savile Row, Smythson, St. Regis, St. Regis Bahia Beach, Starwood, stationery, The Luxury Collection

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Smythson Leather Passport Cover

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

People who travel a lot often find that their passport really takes a beating, so whether you want to buy one as a treat for yourself or as a gift for someone special a protective but stylish passport cover can be a solid and worthwhile investment. This one from Smythson is the ultimate in functional but stylish minimalism in solid black with simple silver letters spelling out "Passport" on the front cover. Inside there's a slot for your passport and for a boarding pass, and the whole thing comes packaged in a light blue box for handy gifting and storage between adventures. $120

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Tags: passport, passport cover, PassportCover, smythson, travel, travel accessories, TravelAccessories, traveling

Queen of England's Luxe Stationer Smythson Sold for $29 Million

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Celebrity Shopping

Back in March we broke the news that Smythson of Bond Street, suppliers of luxury stationery and leatherbound diaries to the Queen of England and other toffs, was being put up for sale. Now the famed firm has been has been sold for £18 million or about $29 million to Greenwill SA, the holding company for Tivoli Group, an Italian leather goods manufacturer. Smythson had insisted the sale was motivated not by financial hardship but rather the result of several parties having expressed interest in acquiring the business. However, the sale price is not much of a premium over the £16 million a consortium led by Goldman Sachs banker Mike Sherwood paid for the company in 2005. Founder Frank Smythson opened his first London shop in 1887 offering "First class stationery, leather goods and cabinet work." In addition to its UK shops Smythson now has stores on New York's 57th St. and Beverly Hills' famed Rodeo Drive. Smythson was granted a Royal Warrant to Her Majesty the Queen in 1964. Other warrants followed: HRH The Prince of Wales in 1980, HM The Queen Mother in 1987, and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh in 2002.

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Tags: Italy, leathergoods, London, Queen of England, QueenOfEngland, Royal Warrant, RoyalWarrant, Smythson, stationery, Tivoli Group, TivoliGroup, UK

Queen of England's Luxe Stationer Smythson for Sale

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Smythson of Bond Street, suppliers of luxury stationery and leatherbound diaries to the Queen of England, is being put up for sale. According to the company however this is not a distress sale, rather the result of several parties having expressed interest in acquiring the business, the London Telegraph reports. Smythson was bought for £16 million in 2005 by a consortium led by Goldman Sachs banker Mike Sherwood. Sales have increased considerably since then and are expected to be around £20 million for the previous year-to-date. Nonetheless this seems like an odd time for any investor to pay a premium for a luxury goods company.

Founder Frank Smythson opened his first London shop in 1887. His trade card described his business as "First class stationery, leather goods and cabinet work." In addition to its UK shops Smythson now has stores on New York's 57th St. and Beverly Hills' famed Rodeo Drive. Smythson was granted a Royal Warrant to Her Majesty the Queen in 1964. Other warrants followed: HRH The Prince of Wales in 1980, HM The Queen Mother in 1987, and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh in 2002. Back in September we reported on Smythson's luxurious $6,500 watch cabinet.

Tags: British royalty, BritishRoyalty, Diary, London, Prince of Wales, PrinceOfWales, Queen of England, QueenOfEngland, Rodeo Drive, RodeoDrive, Royal warrant, RoyalWarrant, Smythson, stationery, UK

Smythson Watch Cabinet, Stylish and Sneaky

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Men's Style

It's red, white and blue ... and pigskin leather. It's a Watch and Accessory Cabinet that's coming out this fall (next month) as part of the latest men's collection from Smythson. It features compartments of all shapes and sizes, perfect for storing watches and all kinds of other goodies, plus a perpetual motion watch rocker/winder that pulls out to reveal a secret storage space in the back. The interior is decorated in bright blocks of white alternating with primary colors, while the exterior is simple and classic in black pigskin leather. Get yours (or start your Christmas shopping early) next month for $6,475.

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Tags: accessories, accessory cabinet, AccessoryCabinet, cabinet, gift, gift ideas, GiftIdeas, gifts, smythson, watch cabinet, WatchCabinet

Smythson Nancy Clutch, Handbag of the Day

by Rigel Celeste (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags

Some handbags are meant to go with that one perfect outfit, and others are wonderful 'staple' pieces that you can keep pulling out of the closet over and over again. The Nancy Clutch by Smythson is one of those staples that will look classy not only with more than one outfit, but also probably for more than 1 year or season. Available in a variety of bright and neutral colors consisting of pleated soft leather lined with mauve satin, the Nancy bag comes in a few different shapes but the clutch shown here measures 6.25" x 11" x 3" and goes for $846.

Gallery: Smythson Nancy Handbags

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Tags: clutch, handbag, handbags, nancy, smythson

Smythson Centennial Alligator Diaries

by Laura Malesich (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel, Holiday Guides

Smythson has delivered style, sophistication and function for 100 years in 2008 and to celebrate the company will be releasing two new alligator diaries. The Panama and SoHo diaries are a lifelong investment that can be re-bound each year retailing for $630 and $1960 respectively. The aqua diary is complete with silver and garnet jewel closure for women and the men's is a sublime chocolate brown. Available in stores and online in December these diaries make a great gift for the fashionably functional on your holiday list.

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Tags: alligator-diary, centennial-diaries, centennial-diary, holidash, smythson, smythson-centennial, smythson-diaries, smythson-diary

Smythson Casablanca Travel Bag

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags

Bright yellow seems to be the color of the season this spring. The daffodil bright hue is everywhere. Here we see it on the new Casablanca Bag from Smythson. It's part of Smythson's first travel collection. The bag is linen with a yellow calf leather trim with an ostrich print. The bag is lined in yellow fabric and has a leather base with protective feet. It also has a detachable shoulder strap. The bag sells for £625 but is unfortunately currently out of stock.

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Tags: bag, fashion, luggage, purse, shopping, smythson, travel bag

Smythson Writing Bureau

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Writing Instruments

If you want amazing thank you notes you might want to give someone this writing bureau designed by Smythson of Bond Street as a gift. The old-fashioned set is a nod to the days when people actually took time to sit at their desks and write careful handwritten notes. The bureau has a wooden frame covered in leather and comes with Smythson stationery, ink, an address book and pencils. The bureau is available in red or black with a brass lock and fittings or the pale blue shown here with nickel plated lock and fittings. It sells for around $2,067.

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Tags: correspondence, smythson, thank you notes, writing

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