Judge Nick Tentis’ new Savile Row store by its metaphorical front cover, and you could be forgiven for thinking it just another tailor’s on a street already full of the buggers. To be sure the frontage is unassuming enough – as sharp and sleek as befits its address. Scratch beyond that surface of the ordinary, however, and you’ll spy something rather different stirring…
In a week or two there should be a pair of slender benches with matching lemon trees out front to help differentiate it from the very beginning. But for now, just beyond the entrance, three gents in some of the sharpest summer suits you’ve ever laid your eyes upon are perched on bar stools at the marble bar. They look like one of those adverts for Italian coffee or aftershave, all smiles and charm and elegant comfort. Nick Tentis, proprietor of this humble store, is playing barista in an open white shirt and a blue blazer exactly the hue of a spring morning sky off the Med. A rich scent of fresh coffee swirls around the bar. The men laugh as they down their espressos and shake hands before heading back to their work. Nick has promised to set up a weekly tab to better manage one of his guest’s weekly espresso habit. There’s a promise too of a bottle of grappa at some point.
It’s hard to believe that this is the store’s first week of business. All that polish and shine aside it could easily have been around for years, collecting the kind of loyal regulars that usually only come with generation-old family establishments. It’s even harder to believe that this is ‘just another suit shop on Savile Row.’ But that’s because it isn’t. Even here – the virtual Mecca of tailoring – there’s a little more going on than meets the eye.
Step beyond the black-tiled entrance-cum-espresso bar and suddenly you’re on the film set of a 1950s Bertolucci version of 2001. A clean white, classically alcoved, circular wall encloses an under-lit floor of blue-white glass. A huge, gleaming cold-cathode halo in the ceiling encircles an original 70s French chandelier suspended over a 50s Italian table. A pair of 1920s and turn-of-the-century cabinets guard an array of accessories, while between them a stuffed ostrich stands proud with its golden beak and red leather saddle.
“I like the sense of being disoriented,” explains Nick simply. “Many people in London are lacking a sense of enjoying their day. I want people to walk in and wonder: What is that? Is that old? Is that new?”
Get past the architecture, and the next thing to grab you is the selection of products on offer. There really is everything that the modern gentleman could possibly need here. You could hop of your plane – a connection from New York, say, or Rome – your Globetrotter lost to the outer circles of Hell reserved for by Heathrow baggage-handlers, and Nick Tentis would be your salvation. A sharp two-piece for dinner, boutique skincare and aftershaves, shoes, socks, a casual overcoat to fend off the British autumn. And did we mention the barber’s in the basement? With its Fornasetti Ex Libris wallpaper, Italian porcelain tiles, leather chairs and huge mirrors straight from The Dorchester it feels incredibly members’ club.
And of course, then there are the clothes… First of all, everything is his own label – which, when you’re in the store, surrounded by the neatly-curated variety, brings back a tangible sense of personality and wholeness. And those few items that aren’t actually their own are almost all exclusive to the store. Naturally the tailoring is of course gorgeous. (With a store on Savile Row and the last five years spent earning the brand a name for consultancy and bespoke, you would certainly hope so.) But with the new flagship store there comes a more accessible range of off-the-peg and made-to-measure that is the real treat. And it’s another example of his anti-elitist philosophy.
“When you eat in a good restaurant, you know you’re not paying for the food. Especially when it arrives, a saucer-sized serving on a huge plate. You pay for the people, the expertise, the sommelier, the chef, for being entertained. It’s surprisingly possible to deliver a high quality product at a fair price.”
Spend a little time with Nick and the pride and excitement that he holds for his new baby are tangible. The boyish grin when he talks about the first edition of Len Deighton’s Action Cook Book is contagious. And the excitement with which he tells the story of his tie collection is a delight – especially when ‘sartorial cool’ in this neck of the proverbial woods can so often translate to chilly arrogance. It’s a bonus that almost everything here carries a story (simply ask and ye shall receive). And similarly, every aspect of the store reeks of attention to detail (that’s a nice way of saying OCD. But a charming, self-aware sort of OCD). Question Nick about how he’s settling in with his sleek coffee machine on the bar and there’s a glint in his eye as he waxes lyrical about the thick crema on the espressos, the freshness of the beans, his choice of crystal clear espresso cups and matching saucers. Compliment the incredible floor tiling throughout the store and you’ll be lucky to get out of there before dinner.
But the most unique aspect of Nick and his store isn’t the flecked black marble. Nor is it the stunning lime green brogues or the barber’s. Nor the repro 50s ties or first edition Wodehouses. It’s a simple thing really. It’s his openness and his desire to “remove the purely transactional” for his customers. Step into the store and its hard not to yield to the charm, to be sucked into the overall Tentis ambience and relish in it.
“Isn’t that the point of fashion?” he wonders aloud, espresso cup in hand. “It’s creative and it’s also accessible. Look, I’m not sticking too fingers up at Savile Row – I just want to make shopping the way it should be. Which is enjoyable.”
Originally published in Glass Magazine