Antich Fine English Tailors: the Yorkshire weavers of luxury suits for weddings, the races and more

This is proper luxury tailoring, made from start to finish in Yorkshire, and bringing an experience that Savile Row cannot offer (at significantly lower prices, too).

“We are the UK's only weave-to-wear tailor,” says Samantha Steer, retail brand development manager. “We actually weave our own fabric in the factory and we have our own garment production at the end of this hall, which is literally 40 footsteps away. We've got our own pressing and our own cutting department.”

Inside this lovely showroom, which has the atmosphere of a gentleman’s club, Antich guides clients through the bespoke tailoring service from initial appointment to final fittings of suits and one-off tailored garments for men and women. Here it also showcases its off-the-peg menswear tailoring and hirewear.

Parent company Antich & Sons (it is pronounced An-titch) was founded 37 years ago by Chris Antich and his wife, Janet, an accountant. Chris, who sadly died in 2016, was the son of Dimitrije Antich, a weaver who had moved to England from Yugoslavia after the Second World War. The first unit was on Red Doles Lane, Deighton, then the mill moved to the purpose-built Daropeant Buildings on Station Road, Bradley, Huddersfield, in 1996.

Antich started life as a commission weaver of fine worsted cloth. Today, it weaves cloth for itself and for many prestigious fabric houses and brands, including for other Yorkshire weavers, making quality cloth that is sought-after across the world, especially in South Korea, Japan and the Middle East. It also manufactures technical dry fibre 3D composite fabrics and components, for example, for aeroplanes.

This means there are four divisions of the family-owned business: garment production called English Tailoring Company; retail, called Antich Fine English Tailors; textile weaving, which is Antich & Son; and 3D Technical, for the tech fabrics.

David Antich, eldest son of Chris and Janet, is managing director. Janet continues to work in the Finance department, and son, Peter, works in the factory.

“We produce world class cloth,” says Samantha, adding that Antich can also order cloth from the companies it works with, from catalogues in the showroom, so customers have more than 4,000 fabric options.

Samantha takes me on a tour of the mill, where about 90 people work on shifts. They still have mill holidays when both factory and garment production staff take the same week or two weeks off, usually tying in with school half-terms.

There is a large area devoted to recycling, with bales of offcuts and mixed yarns that might be used for wadding or made into different fabrics.

In the garment production studio, around 50 garments a week are made (it takes about five metres for a three-piece suit). As well as the bespoke suits, the team might be working on ceremonial pieces such as a Lord-Lieutenant’s jacket (in collaboration with Haworth’s Wyedean), or Highland wear jackets and waistcoats.

The women’s garments are all made bespoke. Samantha says: “Very few women are off-the-peg size and there are so few retailers that do women's suits now, and everyone wants something different. Here we can provide that service.”

“I love bespoke because we get to use that creative flair of designing that one-off piece for that person.”

The team has also been working on a new casual range, called A by Antich, featuring a shacket, soft-tailored jacket, a bomber jacket and a signature Safari jacket, all made from 100 per cent wool with corozo nut buttons (making a fully compostable range, with the exception of the bomber jacket zipper), and designed and developed by technical designer Graeme Pratt and creative designer Imogen Argyle-Ross, who joined two years ago after studying at Leeds Arts University, and MD David Antich.

Some garments will have a fine wool woven lining, featuring a laser print pattern created by Huddersfield-based illustrator Peter O’Toole; celebrating Yorkshire and the North, with famous names and faces including Judi Dench, Patrick Stewart and Yorkshire Tea - all dreamed up by David Antich, and inspired by the Where’s Wally cartoons. It is hoped that the range will launch early next year.

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All the off-the-peg Antich menswear is also made in the studio. Samantha says: “I do love our Beaumont dinner suit - it fits beautifully and just elevates the style and the gentleman. And the Longley is my favourite (all of our suits are named after areas of Huddersfield), an all-occasion suit in a hopsack plain weave, sleek, long-lasting - what we call ‘bullet-proof’ and mid-weight for all-year round.”

The showroom also stocks other brands because, although the groom might wear bespoke, he might not want to fit out 12 groomsmen in bespoke, too. There are accessories, such as shoes at varying price points, and many ties to choose from. Here is also the formal hire department, handy for groomsmen and for special events, including proms. It’s a comprehensive service for which Antich recently won Best Menswear in the North of England Wedding Awards, for the second year running.

The wedding and events markets bounced back after the pandemic lockdowns ended, and demand continues to grow for tailoring. Antich is right at the forefront of this special occasion wave, with its wide-ranging choice, its service and, of course, its unique weave-to-wear offer.

“The first two years post-Covid were insane. We didn’t stop, we often worked until eight at night,” says Samantha, adding that bespoke was also boosted by lockdown body changes as people put on weight or began going to the gym more and lost weight or their body shape changed.

Some tailors and retailers have not survived, but Antich has thrived, just as, decades ago, the Antich family bucked the trend when it founded its own factory and brand in Huddersfield, at a time when many other British weavers and clothing producers were taking their trade overseas to save costs.

It was a bold move that paid off, as testified by the many proud wearers of Antich’s luxury tailoring, made in Huddersfield, from design drawing to final pressing.

www.antichfinetailors.co.uk