The Boys of Summer

Aptronyms don’t come more apt, so to speak, than ‘Sunspel’, a name that conjures up the breezy sartorial yen one feels charmed into adopting when the mercury rises. In fact, the company took on the name only in 1935, which was 75 years after it was founded as an underwear and hosiery business in Nottingham and then named, rather more drily, Thomas A. Hill Ltd.

During the second world war, Sunspel (hitherto providers of underwear to outposts of the British empire) furnished those on the frontline with utility garments. In 1947, John Hill, the great-grandson of its founder, brought boxer shorts across the Atlantic (he’d discovered them during his honeymoon in the U.S.), then honed their design for British wearers.

It was Sunspel who, in the late 19th century, turned the T-shirt from a labourer’s staple into a high-end garment. Sunspel also elevated the polo shirt from a sportswear staple to the luxe casualwear stalwart it is today, the Riviera polo they introduced in 1954 being a piece that hugs Daniel Craig’s impressive pecs in No Time to Die.

Another significant development, in 2005, saw management consultant Nick Brooke spearhead a new chapter that ultimately would alloy the classic-modern aesthetic championed by Creative Director Jonathan Anderson (who joined in 2009) with British style smarts at their coolest — by now, the Rolling Stones had cottoned on to Sunspel’s wares — and aesthetic cues from Sunspel’s archive.

Today, Sunspel boast 250 leading retailers worldwide, including Harrods, Selfridges, and Liberty in the U.K.; Bon Marché in France; Isetan in Japan; and Nordstrom in the U.S. It recently opened its eighth London store, on Covent Garden’s Floral Street; another in Kingston-upon-Thames; and, late last year, a bespoke T-shirt service on Jermyn Street.

So what exactly is Sunspel doing right? Raul Verdicchi, who was named Chief Executive in 2023, tells The Rake that it’s about catering for a modern hunger for “authenticity, versatility and true craftsmanship” over “aesthetics or trend”. “This is especially true nowadays, as global uncertainty and cost-of-living pressures fuel a renewed desire for lasting value and timeless style,” he adds. “That’s precisely where Sunspel resonates.”

Perfecting understated elegance, Verdicchi says, is a sartorial mission Sunspel help consumers achieve. “We bring that same philosophy to a complete wardrobe, from our iconic T-shirts and polos to beautifully crafted knitwear, tailoring and beyond. Every piece reflects our belief in refined simplicity and offers a sense of quiet confidence.”

David Telfer, the Design Director, says that remaining relevant is about transposing the principles established at the brand’s outset to today. “Our founder’s principles were progressive for his time and continue to resonate,” he says, “and this still guides our design philosophy — which is about crafting everyday products from the finest raw materials with unparalleled attention to detail.

“Much of our archive and early products focused on underwear crafted from the finest cottons, wools and silks. This legacy not only shaped the softness of our fabrics but influenced their construction. Comfort remains at the core of everything we do. Our history with jersey fabrics has also inspired us to extend their comfort into outerwear, such as our boiled wool jersey used for contemporary casual winter tailoring.”

Telfer also points towards longstanding in-house fabric expertise — “a long history of developing our own fabrics from fibre to finish, ensuring full traceability and unparalleled quality” — as a major factor in the brand’s rebirth. Lest we forget, Sunspel invented cellular cotton fabric using adapted lace-making machinery in 1914, as well as two-fold long-staple jersey fabric for their classic T-shirts in 1937 and warp-knit mesh in the 1950s.

“Since 1937 our experience running a T-shirt factory in Long Eaton, near Nottingham, has given us invaluable insight into working with specialists,” Telfer says. “This deep knowledge drives us to partner with skilled artisans in the U.K. — such as those working with lambswool and Shetland in Scotland, and our longstanding collaboration with Cheaney in Northampton for shoes. We also look beyond the U.K. to renowned fabric mills in Italy and Japan, as well as exceptional partners in Portugal.

“A prime example is our Sea Island cashmere knitwear,” he continues, “which blends the finest cotton and wool to create versatile, year-round pieces. Even our core pieces, like our T-shirt and Riviera polo shirt, are continually being elevated and are now made from Supima cotton that is fully traceable to the farm where it’s grown, which ensures the quality as well as the sustainable source of the cotton.”

‘Sustainability’ is a word that sums up Sunspel in the environmental sense, yes, but also in terms of their future-proofing a time-honoured philosophy.