Lewis Leathers
To celebrate the best of British motorcycling, we’ve been taking a look at some of the most influential and iconic brands to emerge out of this fair isle. We’ve been delving into history, brand ethos and the day-to-day running of business, to get under the skin of some of the finest British bike brands. This time it’s the turn of Lewis Leathers
Starting out in 1892 as a gentlemen’s outfitters, founder David Lewis Isaacs named his fledgling company ‘D. Lewis’ to avoid problems from the prevalent anti-Semitic tendencies of that time. The first shop opened in London’s Great Portland Street and the current shop in Whitfield Street is just 5 minutes’s walk away.
By the 1920s, D. Lewis was supplying specialist kit for aviators. Amongst their customers was the famous longdistance record setter Amy Johnson and Alex Henshaw, long-distance, record-breaking flier (Cape Town and back in 4.5 days, then on to becoming chief test pilot on the Spitfire during WW2). At that time, military pilots bought their own jackets. D. Lewis offered RAF Officers a 10% discount. Car racers began taking interest, but from the mid-1920s D. Lewis was courting a blossoming marketplace, – the motorcyclist. The 1930s saw the D. Lewis catalogue featuring a wide specialist range of bike clothing.
In the 1950s, the D. Lewis ‘Aviakit’ range was supplying the top bike racers of the day. Geoff Duke, John Surtees, Mike Hailwood and Giacomo Agostini all wore D. Lewis leathers. The company also supplied kit to the movies. Perhaps their most famous customer, Steve McQueen – himself an international standard dirt-tracker when not filming – bought a set of D. Lewis leathers during a break from filming The Great Escape.
In 1958 the company opened a factory in East London, where it was to remain for the next 23 years. By the 1960s, the Lewis Leathers brand was established, eventually becoming the company name.
The 1960s saw the company continue to grow, with the catalogue expanding to three times its original size. The advent of colour television towards the end of the decade created a new sales area as racers that were previously anonymous in identical black, saw the opportunity to make themselves easily identifiable. Soon, fans that wanted to look like their heroes were asking for replica kit.
The 1980s saw changing times and fortunes. The original owners sold up, and the company changed hands a number of times during the next decade. During this period the jacket styles changed, and the London and Sheffield factories closed, with production moved to Northampton.
It’s fair to say that the company lost direction during this time. Thankfully, in 1991 a gentleman by the name of Derek Harris visited Lewis Leathers to order sample jackets for the Japanese market. He noticed how the styles had changed, with classic items like the red lining and ball chain zippers having been lost. Owner Richard Lyons asked Derek to get involved. The classic lines were thoroughly researched, patterns were re-cut and original components re-introduced as the company looked to the past to build the future.
Sadly, the original shop closed its doors in 1993. Lewis Leathers operated out of a showroom in Paddington until 2009, when they moved into the current store in Fitzrovia, just down the road from their original home. The 1990s also saw Derek develop the Japanese interest, as the company continued to revive its fortunes in both there and in the UK.
The year 2003 saw Richard Lyons looking to concentrate on his core businesses and he sold the company to Derek Harris. Building on his previous research, the next few years were spent tweaking existing patterns and re-introducing several new styles.
Early on, Derek quickly became aware of how the original designs were masterpieces of function and style, with every pocket placement and sleeve curve correct and considered. Work also went into finer detailing, including re-making zippers to match the period of the jackets’s original release. In 2009, a new shop was opened in Fitzrovia, and step one was to secure Lewis’s original phone number, first used in the 1920s.
As well as establishing wholesale accounts in 9 different countries, 2017 saw Lewis Leathers open a store in Tokyo. (A huge amount of credit must go to Derek’s wife Saaya, who drove the deal through in record time and without who things would have moved ahead far more slowly.)
With such a rich history, the Lewis Leathers range covers decades, allowing you to find a jacket, which will suit your needs. It is possible to buy a jacket off the rack (when I visited, if my arms had been a centimetre shorter, I would have been an exact match for their template size!), but their made-to-measure service ensures a perfect fit. It is possible to order online (https:// www.lewisleathers.com and enter some basic information [chest size, base jacket colour, colour of stripes if applicable]), the company will then email you, asking for a specific set of measurements.
If possible, I recommend visiting the shop. Part outfitter, part museum, you can try on template outfits, and have the friendly and knowledgeable team measure you up and discuss any specific changes you would like. I wanted an inside wallet pocket and had an idea to add stripes that celebrated the classic Italian bike manufacturer Morini.
You can also see first-hand examples from Lewis Leathers’s rich history, such as genuine examples of their Aviator kit. The measurements are then sent to the company’s London factory to handcraft the item.
A variety of leathers, horse, cow and sheep, are used – with horse and cow more suitable for riding due to their abrasion resistant properties and thickness. Depending on its size, each jacket is hand cut from a single piece of hide and assembled by one machinist. The zippers, all brass and custom made for Lewis Leathers, are added to the individual panels. Finally, the shell is put together and the lining added. Depending on the time of year, it normally takes around three months to complete an order.
So what next? Well, the outfitters will continue to delve into their rich history to grow and revise the range, while the Japanese shop goes from strength to strength.
Essentially, Lewis Leathers are in a good place, drawing on their rich history to serve the current retro market, maintain their position as a company that can rightly say a jacket you buy from them lasts a lifetime.