Lock &Co Hatters

Robert Davis opened a hat shop at 6 St James's Street in 1676; James Lock inherited the business through marriage to Davis's granddaughter and moved it to its current premises in 1765, where his descendants still run it. Lock & Co still fits customers using a conformateur, a device invented in 1852 that maps the exact shape of a head before a hat is blocked to match it. The shop originated the bowler hat and made the coronation fitments worn under Queen Elizabeth II's crown in 1953. Customers have included Admiral Nelson, Winston Churchill and Charlie Chaplin, and the firm now holds a Royal Warrant as hatter to King Charles III. Hats are hand-finished on site by staff before leaving through the shop's green front door.