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When master tailor Andrew M. Ramroop OBE first joined Maurice Sedwell on Savile Row back in 1974, he recalls that there were no people of color working in the front of the shops. The Trinidad-born craftsman, who moved to the U.K. to pursue his design dreams in 1970, was even told by another company at the time that customers would not respond kindly to “foreigners” being in the front-of-house—and that he could work in the back.
Fast-forward to 1988, after studying at the London College of Fashion, and Ramroop made history when he became the first Black business owner on Savile Row, assuming ownership of the Maurice Sedwell tailoring house. Ramroop can still be found there today, creating exceptional suits for his impressive clientele. He also now serves as the creative director. “Sartorial art, sculpting cloth around the human body, is what I am about with the Maurice Sedwell brand,” Ramroop tells Vogue. “I became the ‘first’ simply because no one else would give me a job when I graduated; I didn’t fit in, wrong accent, wrong color, wrong decade. However, I persevered, not to prove anything to anyone but myself.”
These days, Ramroop is as a legend of sorts in the tailoring world—known for building a suiting house during an era where few Black business owners were given the proper support to do so. “Despite the many challenges I have faced in my journey to excel in the field of ultra bespoke tailoring, what truly matters to me is creating a pathway for others to follow,” says Ramroop. “This value is and has been my purpose—my calling, if you like.”
In 2008, he founded his Savile Row Bespoke Academy, which is a leading tailoring school with the goal to train “elite tailors of the future to the pinnacle of sartorial excellence.” Ramroop aims to provide up-and-coming tailors of all backgrounds with the proper tools to succeed. “Savile Row is one of the most competitive environment to excel in business; it is where delivering excellence is the norm,” says Ramroop. “We focus on delivering the highest standard of craftsmanship attainable. Our holistic training in all seven disciplines are essential foundations for artisans to start their own collections. My intention is to expand to other countries.”
