Men and Menswear: Sartorial Consumption in Britain, 1880-1939

Abstract

The alleged transformation in male consumption of tailored garments resulting from innovations in production and distribution in the first half of the twentieth century has recently been investigated energetically by historians of business, fashion and gender. For the first time, it has been suggested, men of all social groups were able to purchase measured clothing and they came to resemble one another at least superficially in terms of garb. Expanding sartorial choices, especially during the inter-war years, has inevitably raised questions about men's engagement with their clothes, and has challenged the assumption that male interest in appearance in general, and clothing in particular, deviated from contemporary notions of masculinity and manliness. In this fine monograph, Ugolini approaches such issues imaginatively and, using evidence from men's diaries and autobiographies, as well as trade publications and business records, argues convincingly that, far from resisting the act of shopping, consumption formed an integral component of the lives and identities of men. The decision to make a clothing purchase, as well as the process of carrying it through, were important actions in the lives of men whatever their financial circumstances. Men's interaction with their attire is analysed here in three strands, around which Ugolini's rich material is structured: the moment at which the garment was first worn; the process of selling men's clothing; and the act of purchase. Within the first, most substantial, section, Ugolini explores the complex and dynamic notion of masculinity; suggesting that, while clothing might express individuality, this was limited by the conformity in which feelings and behaviour about dress were grounded. In the context of growing sartorial choices during the period under examination, not all styles were equally desirable; and, if an inappropriate selection were made, whether unintentionally or by design, ridicule might follow. The ‘democratisation’ of menswear, often associated with the apparent ubiquity of a standard suit in the inter-war years, is effectively probed and, as a description of contemporary experience, found wanting. Substantial evidence is produced to demonstrate that, even if falling prices in the period encouraged rising expenditure on clothing, and even if the real cost of a suit was lower than ever before, many of the cheaper garments were unmistakably shoddy and shapeless.

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