With a career spanning more than three decades in the fashion industry, Neville Armitage is a man well capable of redefining the notion of purposeful luxury. And that is exactly what he has done at Armitage, a stylish emporium in Umhlanga’s Park Square. Here, visitors receive a fully integrated service for busy men, including style advice, tailormade clothing, leather goods (and care), fine fragrances, skin and hair-care products, barber services, alterations, and dry-cleaning services.
What is your idea of luxury? One does not have to look far to see what my luxuries are. They’ve been widely sourced and carefully curated, and the shop is filled with them. From fine merino wool knits to superior two-fold cotton shirts, all-natural perfumes to outstanding art, smooth jazz with great vocals, fine furniture, Italian coffee and chocolate all bought together in a calm space that feels like a luxuriously well-appointed apartment.
How many brands do you stock? We now stock 46 local and international brands, including the likes of Sweden, Gant, Falke, Tom Ford eyewear, Amouage, Lock Stock & Barrel, MAXHOSA, Fieldbar, and Granadilla. We will soon be reintroducing the Bang & Olufsen range as well as an outstanding local skincare brand that is new to KwaZulu-Natal.
What are your plans for the brand this year? We are continually seeking ways to improve what we do and have big plans for Armitage in the short term, including additional service offerings within our current format as well as extensions of our current ranges.
What are some of the experiences one can expect in store? We love sensory experiences. It begins with the store’s distinctively masculine scent, which seems to attract people into the store from the car park. This scent blends throughout the day with our all-natural pure plant extract eau de colognes and eau de parfums, the beautiful smell of leather bags and shoes, as well as the shea butter leather creams and waxes wafting down from the second level in our leather care department. There’s the invigorating feeling of having a hair wash and head massage by one of our top-rated barbers with our Tea Tree shampoo. I love music and enjoy curating playlists for the store, so it brings me great joy when guests respond to the music while contemplating the Paul & Gordon Munroe oil paintings on the walls, over a freshly brewed Lavazza coffee.
