Go for a browse in the Paul Smith shop in Mayfair, London, on any given Saturday and you\u2019ll likely find an older shop assistant, straight-backed in fine tailoring, approaching to help you with a new shirt, or a suit for a special occasion, perhaps a jaunty pair of socks. There aren\u2019t many global fashion brands, Paul Smith points out, perhaps unnecessarily, \u201cwhere the owner is a Saturday boy\u201d. But working in his shop, one of more than 130 around the world, is probably Smith\u2019s favourite part of the job. \u201cIt\u2019s fantastic, you meet so many interesting people,\u201d he says, smiling broadly. Smith\u2019s whole career, he says, has always been about doing things in a different way. He\u2019s the untrained fashion designer who created a global British brand, who put a bright lining or some stripes into classic tailoring, and who has turned down multiple substantial offers to buy his company, in order to remain in control.<\/p>\n
Sir Paul Smith has just turned 80 \u2013 and he has the enviable energy of someone more than half his age, swimming each day before 6am. He\u2019s about to publish his memoir, Threads: My Life in Style. It\u2019s been a good opportunity to do a stocktake. His has undoubtedly been a lucky life \u2013 right place, right time, right people (not least his wife, Pauline, whom he met at the age of 21 and who has been integral to his success) \u2013 but it\u2019s also a story of hard work, integrity and modesty. We\u2019ll get to whether those values are still relevant in a harsher, more competitive world, and whether Paul Smith can survive.<\/p>\n
Fast fashion \u2026 Smith aged 11, practising a sprint on his first racing bike. Photograph: \u00a9 Paul Smith\/Paul Smith Archive<\/p>\n
Smith is wonderfully warm and likes to chat. We\u2019re sitting at a table in the basement of his Mayfair shop, surrounded by beautiful and expensive mid-century furniture (he has always sold interesting objects alongside his clothes). Every so often, a staff member walks by and he\u2019ll break off to catch up (\u201cYou all right? You had a nice time?\u201d). Online shopping is all very well, I tell him, but I love real-life shops too, or at least those with character. Will they survive? \u201cI hope that the 12 and 14-year-olds today will realise that there\u2019s so much falseness out there,\u201d and that they can find joy and surprise in \u201can individually owned shop, or a conversation you can have [there]\u201d.<\/p>\n
Smith didn\u2019t intend to become a designer. Born in 1946, he grew up in Nottingham and wanted to be a racing cyclist until he was hospitalised for eight weeks in a bad accident that ended his dream. \u201cI suppose the nearest link with creativity was my father being an amateur photographer,\u201d he says. Harold Smith worked as a credit draper \u2013 people would buy clothing from him in instalments \u2013 and Smith got his first job with the same company at the age of 15. Harold also co-founded a local camera club. \u201cI used to go and listen to people talking about something called composition and lighting, and then spent time in the dark room with my father.\u201d Funny, creative, a bit of an inventor, his father seems to have a stronger presence in his book than his mother. Was he more of an influence? \u201cI think so, yes. The photography really taught me to look and see. So I suppose that helped me look at things carefully. And he was a very good communicator.\u201d Harold died at 92, still inventing fun contraptions (\u201cI suppose a lot of that was creativity or lateral thinking\u201d) and keeping a lot of young friends, which Smith does too. His mother, Marjorie, was loving and stable, which did a lot for Smith\u2019s self-assurance. \u201cI suppose the security of having a mum like that was really nice.\u201d Later, he says, explaining his approach: \u201cI think it\u2019s just I\u2019m so at ease with life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Early days \u2026 Smith in his first shop in the 70s. Photograph: \u00a9 Paul Smith\/Paul Smith Archive<\/p>\n
A 21-year-old Smith was still living at home when he met Pauline, who is six years older than him and already had two children and a dog. \u201cIt was instant family,\u201d says Smith. Pauline had trained at the Royal College of Art, had worked in London at a fashion company and was then teaching art in Nottingham. She introduced Smith to art, creativity and interesting people. All of it \u2013 this new world, and being a stepfather to two young children \u2013 was \u201creal big stuff\u201d, he says.<\/p>\n
In 1970, Smith was working at a Nottingham boutique. After he took some courses in clothes construction, Pauline encouraged him to open his own \u201cshop\u201d \u2013 a tiny back room of a building on a little lane in the city centre \u2013 which he called, with hilarious fanciness, Paul Smith V\u00eatements Pour Homme. \u201cI know, that was a bit pretentious,\u201d he says, laughing. From there, Smith gradually built a business with more than 1,200 employees, about 130 shops around the world (the brand is huge in Japan) and, at its peak, a turnover north of \u00a3200m a year.<\/p>\n
The 70s were an exciting time to be building a fashion brand. After opening a shop in New York, Smith and friends would go to Studio 54, pushing glamorous Pauline to the front and following in her slipstream. Smith remembers seeing Liza Minnelli there, among others. \u201c[There was] Andy Warhol, there was Karl Lagerfeld, Issey Miyake, Woody Allen,\u201d he says. \u201cWe became nocturnal for a week. At the same time there were great art galleries, and openings \u2013 [art dealer] Leo Castelli, and people like [Robert] Rauschenberg, and artists that were hot kids on the block.\u201d<\/p>\n
Smith with David Bowie and GQ editor Dylan Jones at the 2002 GQ men of the year awards. Photograph: Dave Benett\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
It was special, he says, \u201cbecause it was a time of blank paper, being able to try things out. There was nobody to say you couldn\u2019t do it. I think the problem we all have now is that everything\u2019s so homogenised, everything\u2019s so available. We\u2019re overburdened with information, with opinions, with everything.\u201d Back then, he says, even the smallest things could feel like a huge discovery \u2013 the rag rugs he found on a Greek holiday and brought back for the shop, a penknife from an obscure fishing store. Smith discovered the Filofax, the essential 80s yuppie organiser, made by an old east London military supplies company; he popularised it by stocking it in his shop.<\/p>\n
In the 90s, Paul Smith the brand hit its fashionable peak, worn by royalty, film stars, rock stars and anyone who\u2019d saved up a bit of money for a wedding or to look good on a Saturday night. Smith became friends with many icons, including David Bowie, Jack Nicholson and Paul McCartney. Did he ever feel out of his depth or intimidated by them? \u201cI suppose [it\u2019s] lack of education,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m hopeless at reading, I\u2019m dyslexic, I\u2019m lousy at history.\u201d He left school at 15, but then, he adds, many rock stars left school around then too. And with rock stars and royalty, \u201cyou should never assume that they don\u2019t feel the same. My company motto is \u2018never assume\u2019, and that\u2019s helped me enormously over the years.\u201d<\/p>\n
The company has struggled in recent times. \u201cWe\u2019re definitely not as relevant as we used to be,\u201d says Smith. But longevity \u201cis very much about hard work, continuity, reassessing, never thinking you\u2019ve \u2018made it\u2019 because nobody cares how good you used to be\u201d. The world may have changed, but there is still a market for beautiful clothes, says Smith. \u201cIf you were here last Saturday, [we sold] at least 10 suits for weddings, for instance. It\u2019s my job to understand the world and how it\u2019s changing, and the wishes and demands of the public.\u201d<\/p>\n
Smith is surrounded by young people in the company, he says, which helps to keep him in touch. \u201cYes, a lot of our customers are older, but 20-odd% are not, they\u2019re quite young, which is really exciting.\u201d But what he has noticed, when he looks at younger people, is less individuality. \u201cThey\u2019re not as \u2026 brave is the wrong word, but the creativity in terms of dressing is not as it used to be. I think there\u2019s a lot of nervousness about standing out and peer pressure, and what you think you should look like. Whereas we just did whatever was part of our personality.\u201d I think he\u2019s getting at the idea that a slight eccentric and unique Britishness has been lost in globalisation. Remembering his own youth, \u201cI had very long hair, I had velvet trousers.\u201d It was silly, but fun, he says.<\/p>\n
Paul and Pauline at some friends\u2019 wedding, Nottingham, 1969. Photograph: \u00a9 Paul Smith\/Paul Smith Archive<\/p>\n
The company has never quite recovered after the pandemic \u2013 there\u2019s not much need for workwear when many people work from home in the comfort of a tracksuit. Meanwhile, Brexit, he says, \u201cwas a nightmare\u201d. Last year, Paul Smith made a loss of more than \u00a322m and, Smith says, \u201cwe\u2019ll lose again this year, but luckily I\u2019ve got enough [to cover it]\u201d. But he adds, \u201cwe\u2019re going down the right route now. We\u2019re on the verge of breaking even again.\u201d The world is tough: \u201cwars everywhere\u201d. And unlike the energy and optimism of the 70s, 80s and 90s, it feels as if the general mood among people, he says, is worry. Smith has survived recessions and the 2008 financial crash. Does this period feel more difficult? \u201cTo me, it does. I\u2019m not sure whether it is, but to me it does.\u201d One reason is that independent shops are struggling \u2013 Smith has always sold to other boutiques, and they\u2019re closing rapidly, hit by high costs and fading high streets. Is he an optimist? \u201cI personally am, because I\u2019m so full of joy the whole time \u2013 and positivity.\u201d<\/p>\n
As the majority owner, Smith runs the company as he wants. \u201cThe good thing is that your expectations are your expectations, they\u2019re not the shareholders\u2019 expectations,\u201d he says. \u201cAs soon as you\u2019re in a commercial situation, it\u2019s all about the profit, the expansion, and I\u2019ve seen so many lovely companies die because of financial takeovers.\u201d When he says \u201cdie\u201d, I realise he doesn\u2019t mean they collapse, but lose their soul \u2013 which I think, to him, is the same thing. In his book, though, he writes about feeling a pang of envy if he heard about Prada, say, opening a new shop. Less so now, though. \u201cOver the years you make comparisons and you think: \u2018Oh, should I be doing that?\u2019 In the last two or three years I\u2019ve grown out of that.\u201d<\/p>\n
The man behind the name \u2026 Smith in his Mayfair shop on Albemarle Street, London, June 2026. Photograph: Suki Dhanda and Hannah Weinstein\/The Guardian<\/p>\n
Smith received many big offers to sell throughout his career. Why didn\u2019t he? \u201cI like my job, I love going into work. I love the fact that you can have an idea and turn it into reality, I think that\u2019s really exciting.\u201d Although he certainly is rich, there\u2019s also a modesty to him. He drives his Mini to work, and while he and Pauline live in a swanky part of west London, it\u2019s in the same home they\u2019ve owned since 1980. He was never motivated by money, he says. \u201cWe don\u2019t desire jets, we don\u2019t desire grand things, and that was always it, right from the beginning.\u201d What did he want to achieve when he set out? \u201cThis sounds crass and stupid, but just a nice life, a nice day. Pauline and I were in love, we are in love still. And luckily we\u2019ve done well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The DNA of the brand is so wrapped up in Smith, will it survive without him? \u201cI don\u2019t know. I think so, because there\u2019s enough key people who understand it. It will change, of course it will change, but the basic DNA should stay the same. [It] should be a company that\u2019s modest, down to earth, gives good service, respects people.\u201d It does, sadly, sound a little old-fashioned and idealistic in our brazen capitalist age. Smith points out they have new executives, including a new managing director, who \u201ccome from very commercial backgrounds, so the wish for me is getting the balance right. I think I probably am such an oddball in today\u2019s world that you\u2019ve got to make sure that you\u2019ve got a team behind you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Paul Smith in his attic office. Photograph: \u00a9 Paul Smith\/Paul Smith Archive<\/p>\n
Smith has no intention of retiring. \u201cI don\u2019t think Pauline would want me at home,\u201d he says. His latest passion is Paul Smith\u2019s Foundation, passing on knowledge and skills \u2013 and eventually bursaries \u2013 to young designers and entrepreneurs. \u201cAll the things I didn\u2019t know at 20 is what I\u2019m trying to help them with.\u201d Not just the sexy stuff like design, but essential things such as VAT and contracts. He intends to leave all his money to the foundation. \u201cLiterally everything,\u201d he says. (Pauline has her own wealth from selling her stake in the company and will look after the family, he says.) \u201cMy wish is to just help future generations.\u201d He is appalled at big fashion brands who employ young designers straight out of college, \u201cdraining the ideas from them\u201d and then putting them out of a job within a few years.<\/p>\n
Smith wrote his book with these young designers in mind. \u201cI wanted a book that helps people in the creative industry realise that you can do it a different way,\u201d he says. But lots of us could do with being reminded, from Smith\u2019s account, about what makes a good life \u2013 curiosity, creativity, humour, looking after people, and ambition but not greed. In a challenging world, he stays upbeat, he says, with \u201chumour, a lovely team, not taking myself too seriously\u201d. Plus, working in his shops, chatting to customers, taking delight in the art on the walls and the beautiful things he helps to create or find. He isn\u2019t so different from the young man who opened his first shop 56 years ago. \u201cI definitely think I\u2019m still a shopkeeper.\u201d<\/p>\n
Threads: My Life in Style by Paul Smith is published on 10 September by Macmillan, in hardback, ebook and audio, read by Bill Nighy. To support the Guardian and the Observer, order your copy at guardianbookshop.com<\/a><\/p>\n Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters<\/a> section, please click here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Go for a browse in the Paul Smith shop in Mayfair, London, on any given Saturday and you\u2019ll…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":762629,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[59,86,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-762628","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-gb","tag-technology","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/762628","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=762628"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/762628\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/762629"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=762628"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=762628"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=762628"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}