Henry Poole & Co is a company founded by James Poole το 1806 and it’s well known for its amazing suits. Back in 1865, the tailoring house was commissioned by the Prince of Wales (and futured King Edward VII), to create an evening blue jacket for him to wear at informal dinners at Sandringham, the Prince’s country pad. This item proved so popular that it began to be adopted by many men in the highest social circles not just on home turf, but also across the Atlantic in America in the late 1800s.

According to legend, Mr James Potter of Tuxedo Park, New York, visited London and was invited by the Prince to spend a weekend at. Not knowing what to wear, he was advised that he could have a smoking jacket made by the Prince’s tailors, Henry Poole & Co, that resembled the one commissioned by the Prince himself. When Potter arrived back in New York, he wore this to the town’s Tuxedo Club where it was adopted by members to wear at their dinners too and the Tuxedo was born.