—by Lucianne Tonti
Through meticulous craftsmanship and an intuitive understanding of the national sensibility, Christian Kimber is redefining Australian menswear from his Melbourne atelier.
One of the first things to catch the eye upon stepping through the doors of Christian Kimber’s Little Collins Street boutique is what appears to be shelves of books—covered in the brown, green and burgundy hues of vintage encyclopedias. On closer inspection, they reveal themselves to be folders of fabric swatches from the many European mills Kimber collaborates with to produce his eponymous menswear label.
The emphasis placed on high quality natural fibres and their inherently plush, tactile textures gives Kimber’s award-winning tailoring a distinctly modern-Australian edge. At Christian Kimber, it’s clear the old rules of tailoring no longer apply. Where Melbourne’s corporate landscape once demanded a uniform of razor-sharp navy and charcoal suits, Kimber has recognised a fundamental shift in how professional men want to dress.
The executives and entrepreneurs who frequent Kimber’s three Melbourne boutiques—his CBD flagship plus outposts in Armadale and Fitzroy—are not seeking a corporate uniform. Instead, they’re investing in thoughtfully designed separates that can seamlessly transition from dog-walk to airport to lunch meeting, all without requiring an iron’s intervention.
“The rules have changed,” Kimber explains. “Now you can choose how you want to dress—and how you want to feel.” He adds that most of his customers work in industries that just don’t demand traditional suiting anymore. “The contemporary workplace wardrobe has evolved,” he says, adding that separates have become the cornerstone of professional dressing.
To emphasise the point, Kimber holds out a navy-blue blazer that is both unlined and unstructured. “We wanted to create a jacket for a CEO that feels like a sweater,” he says. “This is a wool-cashmere blend but it doesn’t really crease. You can wear it on a flight, then walk off the plane and straight into your meeting looking as polished as ever. It’s the ultimate work jacket.”
As traditional office culture and the strictures of a nine-to-five commute dissolve—with working from home more widespread and tech workplace culture bringing jeans, sneakers and hoodies into the boardroom—men’s tailoring is now able to define itself, liberated from decades of rigid convention. This newfound emphasis on lifestyle invites men to layer and curate a wardrobe of complementary individual pieces that align with their unique needs and values—as well as their tastes.
Always dapper, the British-born Kimber is wearing pale beige trousers with a single pleat at the front when we meet, a dark blue chambray shirt tucked in beneath a chocolate brown double-breasted blazer. The look is finished with brown loafers that match his brown leather belt. Although he’s aware that in Europe, the menswear runways from Giorgio Armani to Zegna and Saint Laurent have celebrated the renaissance of ’70s slouchy silhouettes, he describes the trousers he’s wearing—which have a straight, classic line—as rather wide for his typical customer.
This year, tailoring was front and centre at New York’s Met Gala too, but in contrast to the runways, the gala’s theme ‘Superfine: Tailoring Black Style’ inspired narrow fits and sharp lines. During awards season, Hollywood stars such as Adrien Brody, Timothée Chalamet and Colman Domingo embraced saturated colour, neckerchiefs and brooches to redefine the suit—reclaiming each look as their own. Reflecting on this, Kimber says, when it comes to tailoring, right now “anything goes.”
But at Christian Kimber, the clientele is not influenced by what’s being photographed at Paris Fashion Week or on red carpets. “We often have clients coming to see us, inspired by styling they’ve seen in a film or on TV like The Gentleman, for instance,” Kimber explains. “They’ll come in with a picture and say ‘I want this suit, or I want this jacket,’ and we’ll work together to reimagine it for their wardrobe.”
Such dreams are something Kimber is primed to fulfil. Beyond his ready-to-wear collection, he offers a made-to-measure service encompassing suits, blazers, shoes, leather outerwear, shirting and overcoats. Appointments are held in store and begin with a personal consultation before fabrics are selected and measurements taken. These specifications are then shared with specialist manufacturers in Portugal and Italy, and final fittings and adjustments are made locally once garments return. A recent foray into womenswear offers tailored pieces that seamlessly integrate with the menswear range.
While this kind of service has been a hallmark of tailoring for centuries—most notably on Savile Row, where Kimber worked before moving to Melbourne in his early twenties—the renewed popularity of his approach reflects something bigger.
Amidst the churn-and-burn of next-day delivery and the omnipresent mass-produced fast fashion brands taking over malls and strips from London to Tokyo, a desire for a slower, more deliberate shopping experience has emerged.
“Our creative and technical possibilities are really unlimited,” Kimber says, mentioning his team of master tailors who work in the flagship store. He recalls recently recreating a double-breasted, flared-trouser suit that one client had spotted in a film. “It was an incredible look,” he says, adding that the challenge comes when the vision pushes beyond the brand’s established aesthetic. Such projects, he explains, require considerably more time and consideration—it still needs to be an expression of the Christian Kimber house, and the client’s personal sense of style.
This focus on reading the customer and meeting their needs might be the secret underpinning the brand’s success. “I always work to get the fit right,” he explains. “If we can ensure someone feels great in our clothes and they’re cut perfectly for their body shape, then they’re going to come back.”
He acknowledges his job as a designer is also about understanding the lifestyle of Australian men—who might have to grapple with the cold of an early-morning Melbourne winter and Sydney’s high humidity in the space of a single working day.
“It is challenging when you think about Brisbane, for instance,” he says, holding up another unstructured blazer. “We do a jacket like this one for warmer climates. You can see the light coming through the fabric because it’s really that light and breathable.”
The stores—where you’re just as likely to be served by Kimber as his wife and co-founder, Renuka—have become community touchstones; a place outside the rhythms of busy executive life.
Designed by Brahman Perera, interiors at the warmly lit flagship store reflect this balancing act between traditional service and modern expectations. On one wall, a film of the Tasmanian outback shot by cinematographer Alexander Naughton plays on a large screen. Echoing the Australian landscape, the space’s earthy palette captures the essence of the man Kimber serves: masculine and refined, but refreshingly unpretentious—a fine fit for the national character that he so deftly channels.