An interesting Aero leather conversation I had today...

[Kt Templar]

Really! I wandered in there we..must have been early Feb. Had no idea it was going. That IS a shame.

They should have tried to sell me an Eastman at discount then!!

As for advertising, there seems to be a huge amount of product placement going on, even on the BBC where you are not supposed to get it. A big guilty party is Belstaff. They have had jackets in Primeval, Top Gear, Day of the Triffids, heck even a character on Emmerdale wears one... £1000 jacket on some scruffy oik! David Tennant is shown wearing one in the publicity photo for his new one off drama where he plays a single father.

A2 type jackets are pretty rarely seen here. Trialmaster types much more.

 

[Edward]

That's another reason I think theymight be alowing product placement - it's really hard to tell the difference between pp for Belstaff and iclusion of a Trialmaster cause it fits the character.... I imagine the Beeb will still be limited that way, at least as long as the licence fee survives.

 

[pipvh]

American Classics... I was only there a month and a half ago and I chatted to the owner about this and that... didn't at all get the impression that the place was on the outs - in fact we talked about Red Wing orders that were due in. What a shame! That's pretty much it for the Old Guard in Covent Garden - it's just J. Simon that's left now, really.

 

[Speedbird]

At the risk of repeating myself...



where is the smiley for crying my eyes out? .... I love American Classics of London for what it represents (ed) ... it wasn't always the real deal, and it was pricey, and it was '60's ... but it was an Icon ... I touched glibly much earlier in this thread about King's Road and the move away from high street to cyber space ... I never imagined something like American Classics would disappear ... I mean Ebay and the internet has been beneficial to us all, we get bargains once in a while - but where are you suposed to go to touch and feel and smell and taste the atmosphere and find new stuff to dream of ... www.whatever .com is all well and good but it doesn't feed the soul....

crying again.... give me a crying not-smiley someone please!

Let's all hope the reports of her death are premature.... [huh]

 

[Speedbird]

That's another reason I think theymight be alowing product placement - it's really hard to tell the difference between pp for Belstaff and iclusion of a Trialmaster cause it fits the character.... I imagine the Beeb will still be limited that way, at least as long as the licence fee survives.

That is the black magic of product placement on the Beeb - you dress the character and hope the brand slides under the radar of the establishment but not the audience .... it's tricky 'cos most of the audience don't know what they are looking at anyway ... it's just as likely to spawn a load of cheap market copies anyway. [huh]

 

[JakeHolman]

I know veering off topic but I work 10 mins walk away from American Classics (bad for the wallet) and it looked pretty open to me. I'll walk past on my way to the bus later and confirm.

 

[Papa M]

I know veering off topic but I work 10 mins walk away from American Classics (bad for the wallet) and it looked pretty open to me. I'll walk past on my way to the bus later and confirm.

Please do Jake. I will be in the area tomorrow and would like to visit if they are still alive.

 

[Dudleydoright]

Yeah, what is it with Belstaff and the BBC ?

It's freakin' everywhere 'Top Gear' , 'Long Way 'Round', and pretty much anything else on the Beeb.

A couple of years ago Emilia Fox was wearing a nice Aero on 'Silent Witness'. Mind you, she could wear a J-Cloth and look GORGEOUS, (sigh). First woman I'd seen wearing an Aero. And the last. I'm thinking of getting the current (these last 23 years) Mrs R one in goat for the 'bike. Just need to make sure she's going to be around for long enough to justify the investment

Dave

 

[Navin323i]

I'm quite happy that my post here generated good activity and conversation from you all. Keep it up.... all the posts here are informative to me.

 

[Speedbird]

Please do Jake. I will be in the area tomorrow and would like to visit if they are still alive.

Papa M ... can you look and see if FLIP is still there on Long Acre ... and if it is still retro Americana?

If it isn't and American Classics has gone, I am definitely moving to Japan!

 

[Papa M]

Papa M ... can you look and see if FLIP is still there on Long Acre ... and if it is still retro Americana?

If it isn't and American Classics has gone, I am definitely moving to Japan!

I think Flip disappeared in the early 90s. I'll try and confirm Flip and American Classics after my luncheon trip tomorrow.

 

[JakeHolman]

I can confirm that American Classics is open for business. I spoke to Rachel there who was surprised to hear of rumours of closure. She says they are now in their 29th year of trading and going strong - also that anyone interested should check their Facebook page.

 

[Speedbird]

I can confirm that American Classics is open for business. I spoke to Rachel there who was surprised to hear of rumours of closure. She says they are now in their 29th year of trading and going strong - also that anyone interested should check their Facebook page.

Well that's good news!

 

[Speedbird]

I think Flip disappeared in the early 90s. I'll try and confirm Flip and American Classics after my luncheon trip tomorrow.

Really? I am sure it was still around more recently .... see if it has been subjugated by it's twin "MASH" - the address was 125 Long Acre.

 

[Kt Templar]

There still seems to be a Mash in Oxford Street... AFAIK. Pretty uninspiring last time I was there.

 

[Speedbird]

MASH was the 'teenage' division - dance/streetwear etc - never worked for me even back in the 90's. But it was the daddy of the MASH/FLIP/Cockpit UK concern so it figures that it, if any, is still around.

 

[DBLIII]

I am interrupting just to say that this is a really good thread. I have never heard of American Classics, have never been to the UK, but was upset to hear it closed and happy to hear it did not, just based on Speedbird's commentary. It is nice to sit in the middle of nowhere, USA and hear about such great shops.

Regarding Aero, I have thought for a long time that the non-advertising, exclusivity and word of mouth (type) advertising tended to cultivate exclusivity and quality, and it seems with Aero's work load, they are as busy as they want to be anyway. Whether it's a Colorado Mountain Hat Company hat or a Milt Sparks holster, some of the "little" companies do well in the US with a sort of quiet operation. Maybe it makes the owners of these products feel a bit exclusive, too. Kind of does with me and wearing an Aero jacket, though I have never run across anyone who identified it. Just random thoughts....

Thanks and please continue.

 

[Edward]

I can confirm that American Classics is open for business. I spoke to Rachel there who was surprised to hear of rumours of closure. She says they are now in their 29th year of trading and going strong - also that anyone interested should check their Facebook page.

By any chance have I confused them with another business? THese are the same people as John Simons?

 

[Speedbird]

^^^^^ I think you just made Pip cry ...

 

[Speedbird]

I am interrupting just to say that this is a really good thread. I have never heard of American Classics, have never been to the UK, but was upset to hear it closed and happy to hear it did not, just based on Speedbird's commentary. It is nice to sit in the middle of nowhere, USA and hear about such great shops.

Regarding Aero, I have thought for a long time that the non-advertising, exclusivity and word of mouth (type) advertising tended to cultivate exclusivity and quality, and it seems with Aero's work load, they are as busy as they want to be anyway. Whether it's a Colorado Mountain Hat Company hat or a Milt Sparks holster, some of the "little" companies do well in the US with a sort of quiet operation. Maybe it makes the owners of these products feel a bit exclusive, too. Kind of does with me and wearing an Aero jacket, though I have never run across anyone who identified it. Just random thoughts....

Thanks and please continue.

Hi DB,

I read a few of your posts and followed your link in your signature previously. That touched a chord I have to say. I think you are right about the 'quiet operation' - and I think that is a strength of privately owned companies like Aero - the product is King - they are happy to have order books full enough to make a decent living but aren't looking for flotation on the stock markets ....

As for American Classics back in the day, it was like Bruce Springsteen and Asbury Park rolled into a shop, in London. Only a bit more expensive. I don't know if there was ever an equivalent in New York, but imagine somewhere near Madison Square Gardens in 1992; a shop you walked into and it was wall to wall with Fred Perry and Doc Martens and Harringtons, suits straight from Carnaby Street and it had The Jam playing "That's Entertainment" on the stereo system with photos of Ringo and George on the wall.... sort of the summation of British pop culture.... well, that was what American Classics was in London in the same period - a kind of vision of an idealised American dream in a shop.