Albam is a British menswear brand founded in 2006 by Alastair Rae and James Shaw, opening its first shop on Beak Street in Soho, London. The brand was built on a straightforward principle: make the clothes the founders wanted to wear themselves — well-constructed, contemporary updates to classic menswear using the best available British and European fabrics, with the emphasis on details and finishing over trend.
Key Facts
- Founded: 2006
- Founders: Alastair Rae and James Shaw
- Headquarters: London, UK
- Industry: Menswear, Apparel
History and Philosophy
Shaw, a recent graduate from Manchester Metropolitan University, and Rae started the business out of cardboard boxes from a bedroom in Nottingham. Their first collection comprised just seven pieces. From the outset, Albam resisted the cycles of fast fashion — for years the brand avoided sales and advertising, letting the product do the work. The approach resonated strongly with men who found mainstream menswear either too trend-driven or too cheaply made.
Albam expanded to multiple London stores in Soho, Shoreditch, and Islington, and built an international e-commerce following. The brand is consistently cited as one of the foremost examples of quiet, quality-first British menswear — a category it helped define alongside contemporaries such as Oliver Spencer and Nigel Cabourn.
Aesthetic
Albam’s collections centre on versatile wardrobe staples — workwear-influenced outerwear, military-referencing shirts, fine knitwear, and well-cut trousers — made from premium fabrics sourced in Britain and across Europe. The design language is restrained and functional, focused on longevity over novelty. The brand has a seasonal rhythm but designs deliberately to sit outside of it.
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