DAKS

The name DAKS was introduced in 1935 for Simpson's new line of self-supporting trouser, and later expanded to suits. While the company always used all caps for its trade mark name, others often wrote it Daks. Various stories for the origin of the name exist. Ashley Havinden, who worked on the brand's typeface, recalled in 1955 that the original name proposed was "Vacs", from vacation wear; the V was changed to D as it sounded stronger, and the C to K because it looked stronger. David Wainwright's 1996 official history says DAKS is a combination of the initials of Alexander Simpson and an initial and final letter of his business associate Dudley Beck, altered from DABS. an association Wainwright ascribes to marketer Bill Crawford. ==History==

Early years – S Simpson In 1894 Simeon Simpson, aged 16, rented a room on Middlesex Street, East London, with the intention of setting up a business in bespoke tailoring, focused on high standard craftsmanship. Several innovations of technology at the time were being introduced with machinery capable of making buttonholes and electric powered saws to cut many layers of fabric at once; Simpson saw the potential for such equipment for producing garments in higher quantities while still upholding quality tailoring techniques, aiming to improve ready-to-wear standards as no male or female professionals considered ready-to-wear to be suitable attire at the time. Simpson's methods proved successful in speeding up the process and he set up several factories within London, which soon required expansion in its early years through popularity of the label. The ease-of-wear of the trousers and how they allowed movement, as intended from Simpson's invention, led to DAKS being popular in sporting wear: kitting tennis, golf, motor racing and football players, and even for the British Olympic team in 1960. Despite the semi-destruction of the Stoke Newington factory due to bomb damage and loss of electricity Alexander Simpson died the following year of leukaemia aged just 34. whilst moving to another new store on Jermyn Street which was refurbished in 2012 to focus on selling classic menswear. The original store was sold to bookseller Waterstone's and is now their flagship store. ==Royal warrants and house check==

HRH The Duke of Edinburgh visited the company's factory at Strutherhill in Larkhall, Scotland (now demolished) in recognition of its role in exporting goods worldwide. The factory since closed in the early 2000s. ==See also==