It suits you sir! Urbanites are dressing up again: briefcases and ties are back

Put away the ratty nylon backpack. The leather briefcase has made a comeback as men adopt more formal attire for the workplace.

This new preference for a more structured accessory comes as Marks & Spencer plans to grab a bigger share of the £935m tailoring market, in response to a surge in demand driven by a return to the office and more extravagant weddings.

Ettinger, a London family business, reports that sales of its luxury briefcases and stylish handbags are now above their pre-Covid level.

The need for these accessories decreased when people worked from home. But now there is interest in how to ‘Harvey Specter’ or upgrade your office wardrobe, with a designer briefcase to match a perfectly fitted suit.

Harvey Specter is the expert lawyer in the hit drama series Suits, in which, as the name suggests, tailoring is a big theme.

Ettinger CEO Robert Ettinger said, “I think city workers still spend a lot on buying briefcases for work because it’s a fashion statement.”

He is the son of Gerry Ettinger, who founded the company in 1934. The company that owns Royal Warrant still manufactures in the UK.

But it’s not just the £1,360 Ettinger Heritage Burlington briefcase, with its brass lock, and the £550 Pursuits Wimbledon leather-trimmed canvas briefcase, that has gained a new clientele.

The use of paper money may have decreased, but the well-dressed man still wants stylish accessories.

Ettinger says: “Despite being told Britain is becoming a cashless society, our sales of wallets and credit card cases are still at the same level as, once again, pre-Covid.”

Maxwell-Scott, another family business specializing in Italian-made leather goods, is also seeing a boost.

Eleanor Langan, the brand’s marketing director, said: “The turbulent economic situations do not appear to have deterred customers from investing in good quality luxury pieces.

“Flexible work options may have become more prevalent, but city workers still want to look professional when they go to the office, attend client meetings, or work in shared spaces.”

The executive who spends some time in the office, other days in a modern shared office space, and also picks up emails in coffee shops, may prefer a more casual leather bag.

There has been a 103 percent increase in sales of the Maxwell-Scott satchel bag.

The desire for a more elegant look has been inspired not only by Suits, which is a Netflix series now also available on BBC iPlayer, but also by the Netflix film The Gentlemen.

The impeccably tailored yet edgy suits and other smart-casual ensembles worn by actor Theo James are much discussed on Instagram.

The platform also features Savile Row tailors, including Davies & Son and Richard Anderson, explaining their craft.

Such is the fascination with suits that the publications on X by the American sartorial chronicler Derek Guy (@dieworkwear) have earned him 874,000 followers.

Discusses the finer aspects of tailoring for those learning the importance of elements such as “draping cut and high waist” to the fit of a suit.

He gives his opinion on politicians’ suits, pointing out, for example, that the sleeves of Keir Starmer’s jacket are always too long, while Rishi Sunak’s shorts are out of fashion.

Faced with this resurgence of interest, M&S plans to increase its market share from the current 18.7 per cent through a combination of better service (200 suit fitters will be available in stores) and more innovation in fabrics and cuts. These include the miracle suit range of Italian linen and summer tweed.

Richard Price, managing director of clothing, home and beauty at M&S, says there is a demand “for more style, softer and less structured tailoring, as well as stylish pieces that offer versatility from desk to dinner.”

M&S will present its annual results tomorrow. Analysts at Deutsche Bank forecast an 8 percent rise in group sales to 12.9 billion pounds and a 41 percent rise in pre-tax profits to 680 million pounds.