Issue 29
18 | The Essential Journal
STYLE
words by DAVEY BRETT photography by THOMAS SUMNER
Talking Shop:
UNION 22 In the first part of a new regular series in which we chat to the folks at our favourite menswear stores, this month we chat to John Paul Cooper at Liverpool’s luxury menswear boutique Union 22
J
Tell me about the brands and what’s exclusive to the store? Mackage is very exclusive. We were the first store to bring it to the north of England. As far as we know, apart from Harrods, we were the first retailer in the UK to buy into Santoni. We were the first for Corneliani in Liverpool, same with Brioni. Again, we believe it’s moving away from the French brands. We’ve brought in Santoni, which is a luxury footwear brand. Santoni’s leather, it’s that good that IWC use that to make leather watch straps. At essential journal: Tell us about the store, the moment we’re the only ones really concentrating on the Italian and British brands. how long have you been going for? john paul cooper: We opened in December 2017, so we’re just over a year old. The building, Do you have any particular pieces that are Union House, was the former headquarters popular at the moment? of Tetleys Tea and is Grade II listed. Recently Mackage outerwear is massive. It’s Canadian, we’ve gone to two floors and we’ve brought in waterproof, down-filled, luxury trim. Santoni more Italian brands. We’ve brought in Brioni, footwear again, finest leathers in the world, Canali and Ermenegildo Zegna. What we be- designed and handmade in Italy and the shape lieve since we first opened a year ago is that of the shoe is very italian, a sleek neat shape. fashion is moving towards the Italian brands Then Cheaney footwear across the board, fanagain. We’ve come in at an early stage, saying tastic quality and made in Britain. we think it’s going to be moving towards softer Are the customers on board with your Italtailoring. ian luxury revolution? Who do you cater for? Who is the typical We’ll have a blazer, but inside the blazer will be a chest piece detailing that stands out from Union 22 gentleman? We have everyone from football players to ac- any other blazer. Footwear will be, for instance tors, the customer base stretches all the way with Corneliani, a trainer with luxury suede down to London. We see ourselves as a union detailing on it, but it will be a different shape to and regular customers can sign up to our loyal- any other trainer that’s out there. It’s easily recty card, we can let them know what new brands ognisable and now our customers will look at are coming in. We source brands that you won’t footwear and immediately be able to say, that’s find anywhere else. Everything we do is usually Corneliani. They’ll see a blazer and they’re new to the UK, certainly new to Liverpool or if looking for a stitching colour detail or a suede it’s the same brand as another store, we’ll buy it trim detail. They notice that and they like that differently. We’ll buy garments that have luxu- every brand has heritage and an incredible ry detailing, luxury fabrics, cuts, that’s what we story behind it. look for to make a point of difference. ohn Paul Cooper, or ‘JP’ as he’s affectionately known on Merseyside doesn’t half have some stories. Having cut his teeth at northern fashion institution Wade Smith and travelled the world in the name of menswear, he’s got a few tales to tell. His latest venture with co-founder Dale Allman, Union 22, is a sleek menswear boutique on Liverpool’s majestic Victoria Street. When we visit the store in early January, there’s still evidence of the huge Union House Christmas display, a bold, multi-tiered light display inspired by his time in New York and the likes of Macy’s and Saks. We sit down with JP to talk Liverpool fashion trends, prized possessions and the Italian luxury menswear revolution he’s bringing to his hometown. EJ
How would you describe the style of Liverpool over the years, past and present? How does your customer fit into this? The younger Liverpool customer will tend to follow a brand rather than product, whereas our customers are following product over brand. They are looking for key pieces that will fit into their wardrobe and complement their style. What I would like to say about Union 22 is that if they’re after something a little bit different, a little bit niche, something that they’ve maybe already got in their wardrobe, but with a twist, they will find it here. We’re suited to either the young lad who wants to dress a little bit smarter to the guy who just wants to get rid of his Hugo Boss wardrobe and is saying, ‘I want something completely new, fresh and different.’ How do you think the fashion in Liverpool has changed? It has always been based very casual and around sports. Golf wear, tennis wear, ski wear, the entire sports spectrum. Hugo Boss conquered the market for seven years in Liverpool with a branded polo in every single colour you could possibly think of. People from Liverpool will always invest in jeans, whether it’s Jacob Cohen or Tramarossa, the jeans don’t tend to move a lot, luxury denim, nice slim fit. But when it comes to torso, outerwear is a big one, and Mackage
has taken over from Moncler. Do you have a prized piece of clothing that you own? A favourite piece? I’ve got a Borsalino flat cap and every winter I pull it out. It was the first thing I bought when I moved to New York. I came in off the flight and my head was freezing cold, so I went into Manhattan, JJ’s Hat Store on Fifth Avenue. I went in and I had never bought a hat in my life. I said I’m after some sort of flat cap and the man in the shop looked at me and said “It’s that one.” He gave me a newsboy cap and I’ll never forget what he said. “Fresh off the boat.” It is my favourite ever purchase. What’s in store for the year ahead? New brands on board. The new season stuff will start coming in at the end of January, start of February. It’s taken us a year to finally get the brand list that we want, so from now, this is Union 22. Pitti this month in Florence, then we’ve got a couple more brands on our hitlist that we want to approach. It’ll be nice to catch up with everyone in the industry.
Brioni, Santoni, Canali, Mackage, Ermenegildo Zegna, Tramarossa and Corneliani are all available at Union 22; Union House, 23 Victoria Street, Liverpool, L1 6BD