ONES TO WATCH: HOUSE OF DOMONIQUE
Ever since he was a kid, Benji Gavron has been obsessed with men’s fashion. “When I was six or seven, I’d go to school dressed as a pirate,” he says. “Then as a teenager growing up in the West End of London, I’d hang out on Savile Row every weekend, spending hours in different tailor shops, listening to their stories and learning British craftsmanship.”
Knowing this was his calling (and being half American), Gavron decided to try his luck Stateside, studying fashion at FIT and looking for work in Manhattan. Based on sheer persistence, he landed an internship at Isaia (“They ignored all my early emails until I begged for a five-minute interview and promised never to contact them again after that”), which led to a real job there which resulted in a friendship with designer/entrepreneur Edward Armah. “Together, we wanted to bring something different to the marketplace, a design sensibility that combines our heritages: bright African colors/patterns and British sartorial tradition.”
Now in its third season, House of Domonique offers accessories and furnishings that are truly special. The umbrellas are virtual works of art, retailing in the $275 to $325 range and performing well at Harry Rosen and Stanley Korshak. More affordable are ties ($105 to $120 suggested retails), hats ($110) and pocket squares ($60 to $75), made in Italy of the highest quality Italian fabrics. There’s more excitement to come as accessories make the man.
