For our latest instalment of Jacket Fanatics we caught up with the content creator, radio host, producer & friend of ours, Neil Summers.
From recently working with Lorenzo Osti & C.P. Company for their latest ‘Brotherhood’ campaign to currently working with the likes of Haglöfs, Dometic & Henry Lloyd from a PR & content perspective, Neil Summers has been flying the clobber flag for as long as we can remember. From launching a globally recognised menswear magazine to hosting his own radio show, Neil’s lifelong passion for cool looking clothes is pretty clear the first second you meet him. We caught up with the straight talking Stockport creative for our ongoing Jacket Fanatics series.
So first of all take us back to where the passion for clothes really started for you personally.
I can kind of trace it back to stealing/borrowing a mustard coloured corduroy LEE trucker jacket from my dad’s wardrobe when I was about 10 (I was a big kid and my dad wasn’t that tall). It definitely sparked something in me that has continued to this day. That said, the real obsession came when I started secondary school at a catholic grammar school/borstal run by Christian brothers who would educate you for free if you were in the highest 30% who passed the entrance exam. I was one of the clever ones (stop laughing) who got in for free so got to spend five years in an all male school with kids from a variety of different backgrounds.
This also coincided with the peak of the eighties casual scene as well as the arrival of hip hop in the UK, both of which involved a healthy amount of expensive sportswear and designer labels. Given the interesting socio-economic mix of pupils this created a fascinating dynamic of one-upmanship where it wasn’t just about the price or exclusivity of what you wore but also the way you wore it. Luckily for me the HQ for adidas was about a mile away from my house and their outlet shop was a real goldmine for trainers and tracksuits. Whilst the odd holiday to Spain provided the perfect opportunity to pick up some Lacoste gear that you just couldn’t get over here. It left a lasting impression on me and as a result I’ve spent the past 40 years dressing way beyond my means.
What kind of things have you been up to so far this year?
I actually imposed a ban on buying clothes and records at the start of 2023 but have slowly started to crumble and recently bought some tunes as well as an amazing cardigan by Beams Plus. Oh you meant work and stuff didn’t you? Living in the Peak District and working with outdoor brands such as Haglofs and Dometic I try to get out in the hills to test some kit as much as possible and have been on some epic walks recently. Workwise I’m also doing lots of exciting creative stuff with the likes of Birkenstock, C.P. Company, KEEN, Adsum and Henri Lloyd as well as some of my favourite shops like Urban Industry, This Thing of Ours and my brothers at Fresh store over in Turin.
A little birdy told us that you host the ‘Music Therapy’ radio show on Tameside Radio. Tell us a bit more about the show.
During the early days of the pandemic, I ended up pretty depressed as a result of having to leave a business that I’d started up and been working on for nearly twenty years. It’s a long story which I won’t go into but suffice to say I was in a dark place and felt pretty low. As the cliche goes you find out who your friends are when the chips are down and as soon as my mate Michael found out, he dragged me out on a hike and offered loads of top advice. A few weeks later he also asked me if I wanted to host a weekly radio show with him on Tameside Radio as a lot of our previous chats had involved professing our love for the band Talk Talk (amongst many others).
I’m as obsessive about music as I am clothing and have always wanted to do a radio show so naturally jumped at the chance and came up with the name ‘Music Therapy’. I chose this name because during those dark days I found listening to music genuinely therapeutic. I hope that our choice of tunes can provide the same kind of good vibes to our listeners whether they’re going through a tough time or just need a distraction from the madness of the world for two hours on a Sunday night.
Moving onto jackets. What have you been wearing recently?
I’ve banned myself from buying clothes this year but crumbled recently and bought a GORE-TEX cord parka from Woolrich but have just sent it back because it didn’t fit. Currently in heavy rotation on my jacket rail are a TNF Purple Label Mountain Parka, a CP x Palace Duffle coat and a Haglofs LIM ZT Mountain GTX jacket which is without a doubt the best piece of technical clothing I have ever owned. I’m also on a bit of a knitwear and denim tip at the moment so have been rinsing my new Oi Polloi aran jumper as well as various pairs of Orslow/LVC jeans plus a pretty amazing denim jacket by Adsum. Footwear wise I’ve been rinsing my KEEN x EG Jaspers, ALD x NB Rainiers, Birkenstock Bostons and Paraboot Yosemites.
If you had to describe the perfect jacket what would it be?
The first two jackets that spring to mind are the Barbour Bedale and the C.P. Company Mille Miglia, both from their respective 1980s heydays. I’m not sure perfection is achievable but both those jackets definitely come very close in my opinion. I think the perfect jacket is one that when you put it on it instantly makes you feel better. That’s why I love coats so much, you don’t have to be in particularly good shape to still feel great in one, in my case it’s like throwing a beautiful Pendleton blanket over a knackered old sofa to hide all the beer stains and springs poking out.
Didn’t you used to know someone that once lived in a cave for a month whilst on LCD?
Yeah, it was over the entire winter in Lanzarote, mad surfer types, can you imagine the smell?
Coming from Stockport, what do you think makes the North what it is in terms of clothes & culture?
It varies depending on where you mean but I’d say the Stockport/Manchester menswear psyche has come about as the result of very low self esteem, a reliably depressing weather system, ancient Irish ancestry, the flat out refusal to do whatever you’re told and incredibly strong drugs.
What clothing brands should our readers keep an eye on for 2023?
There’s some really interesting stuff happening with Henri Lloyd that I can’t wait to see, though that will mostly be happening next year tbh. Whilst C.P. Company continue to push the envelope and keep things interesting. There appears to be more natural materials and classic silhouettes being added to the mix this year which is what I really want to see from C.P. (BRING BACK TECHNO WOOL LORENZO!)
French brand Venturon looks really interesting too, I’ve been checking out their AW23 stuff and I want all of it. Similarly Wild Things and TNF Purple Label are still showing that the Japanese really lead the way on that old/new school outdoor aesthetic though if you actually want to go up any mountains then Haglofs gear is pretty difficult to beat.
