TL;DR
The cloth a suit is made from is one of the most consequential decisions in the bespoke process. Holland and Sherry, Scabal, and Dugdale Brothers represent three of the finest sources of suiting cloth in the world, each with a distinct heritage, character, and portfolio. Understanding what each offers helps you make a more informed choice when commissioning a bespoke suit.
Quick Facts
- Holland and Sherry: Considered the world’s finest cloth merchant; vast range, incomparable quality
- Scabal: Belgian mill known for luxury blends, unusual fibres, and exceptional surface quality
- Dugdale Brothers: Founded 1896; classic British heritage mill with excellent worsteds and flannels
- What they have in common: All supply tailors globally; all available through RN Tailoring
- Selection advice: Choose based on the specific cloth rather than the mill brand alone
Holland and Sherry: The Standard of the World
Holland and Sherry was founded in 1836 and has built a reputation over nearly two centuries as the most comprehensive and most prestigious cloth merchant in the world. The company sources and develops cloths from mills across Britain, Europe, and beyond, curating a collection that spans the full range of suiting and tailoring requirements. Their Glenurquhart hall is among the most celebrated cloth sales operations in existence, and their bunches, the sample books in which their range is presented, are as close to a bible of suiting cloth as the trade has produced.
What distinguishes Holland and Sherry is not a single house style but the breadth and depth of the range. Their wools span from the finest Super 150s lightweight fabrics to the most robust country tweeds. Their flannels, woven in Scotland and Yorkshire, are considered by many tailors to be the finest available. Their classic business wools, in the weights and colours appropriate for a working suit, are unmatched in consistency and quality. When clients at RN Tailoring want to be sure they are working with the best, Holland and Sherry is often the natural answer.
Scabal: Luxury, Innovation, and Surface
Scabal was founded in Belgium in 1938 and has developed a reputation for luxury suiting cloth that occupies a particular space in the market: innovative in fibre composition, exceptional in surface quality, and oriented towards the premium end of the dress suit and occasion wear market. Scabal introduced mohair to suiting cloth blends in a way that became widely adopted, and they have continued to develop cloths that combine unusual fibres with sophisticated dyeing and finishing to produce results of great visual distinction.
A Scabal wool-silk blend in a classic navy, for instance, has a surface quality and a depth of colour that is unmistakably different from a standard worsted. Their dress fabrics, including cloths developed specifically for formal and occasion wear, have a lustre and weight that suits a dinner jacket or a suit made for a significant event. For clients who want a cloth that has an immediate visual impact and an exceptional hand-feel, Scabal is often the most compelling option. Their range is also notable for offering some of the finest Super 120s and Super 150s wools available from any merchant.
Dugdale Brothers: British Heritage at Its Best
Dugdale Brothers was founded in Bradford in 1896, at a time when the West Yorkshire textile industry was producing some of the finest woollen cloth in the world. The company has continued to produce cloth in the British tradition, offering a range that is rooted in the classic British suiting vocabulary: fine worsteds in traditional business colours, robust flannels, elegant herringbones, and the particular character of British-made cloth that has served tailors and their clients for generations.
Dugdale Brothers cloths are distinguished by a particular directness of character. There is no novelty for its own sake in the Dugdale range. The cloths are made to do what suiting cloth has always been asked to do: provide a durable, beautiful, appropriately weighted foundation for a well-made jacket or trouser. Their flannels have a softness and warmth that reflects decades of refinement, and their mid-weight worsteds in classic business colours are reliable performers that age well and wear with dignity. For clients whose instinct is for traditional, understated quality rather than fashion or novelty, Dugdale Brothers is often the most resonant choice.
How to Choose Between the Mills
The decision between Holland and Sherry, Scabal, and Dugdale Brothers is not, in practice, a choice between brands. It is a choice between specific cloths within specific ranges. At a first appointment with RN Tailoring, Richard brings samples from all three and others, and the selection process is about finding the right cloth for the specific commission: the right weight for the season, the right colour for the occasion, the right texture and surface for the purpose. A client who knows they want a robust flannel in a warm grey for a winter wedding suit and a client who wants the finest Super 120s navy for a summer business suit will both be well served, but by different cloths from different mills.
Richard Neasham’s role in the cloth selection process is to guide without prescribing, offering the benefit of experience with these cloths over many years of work while respecting the client’s own preferences and instincts. The best cloth selection is always the one that the client handles and recognises as right for them.
