Company History
Aquascutum was established in 1851, the year of the Great Exhibition, when tailor and entrepreneur John Emary opened a high quality menswear shop at 46 Regent Street. In 1853, after succeeding to produce the first waterproof wool, he had his discovery patented and renamed the company ‘Aquascutum’, Latin for ‘watershield’. In 1901, Emary moved to 100 Regent Street in the heart of London. In September Austin Reed had moved into that location at 100 Regent Street after it was announced that Aquascutum was in trouble.
Coats for officers in the Crimean War (1853–1856) were made from Aquascutum’s waterproof fabric, as were the trench coats worn by soldiers of all ranks in both world wars.
Domestic and fashion applications followed, promoted in the 19th century by royal fashion leader King Edward VII. His majesty was Aquascutum’s first royal client, ordering an Aquascutum coat in the Prince of Wales check. In 1897, Aquascutum was granted a royal warrant, the first that would mark the British royal family’s long patronage of the company.
In 1900, Aquascutum opened a womenswear department, offering water-repellent capes and coats, which were extremely popular among British suffragettes.
The company has created other fabrics and coats using similar names, such as the Eiderscutum light overcoat and (in 1962) the multicoloured wool-yarn weave, Aquaspectrum.
The company has supplied aristocrats, political leaders, and actors, including three Princes of Wales, Prince Rainier of Monaco, Sir Winston Churchill, Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Sophia Loren, Cary Grant, and Michael Caine.
During the 1980s and 1990s Kinglsey Matheson Pink, Managing Director of the Regent Street flagship store dressed UK prime minister Baroness Thatcher. Unknown to Matheson Pink, this included her historic visit to the USSR, which included everything from coats and tailored suits to dresses and evening wear.
He was also subsequently responsible for dressing Prime Minister Sir John Major, as well as a number of other international dignitaries including the King of Malaysia.
Aquascutum was family owned until 1990, when it was purchased by Japanese textile conglomerate company Renown Incorporated, and then by Jaeger in September 2009. It is now the property of YGM Trading, a Chinese fashion retailer, since April 2012.
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