George de Paris: The Story

George de Paris stands just over five-feet-tall but in the world of presidential fashion he’s a giant. The 75-year-old has worked as a master tailor for the past nine U.S. presidents. That includes President Obama, who even wore a de Paris suit to accept his Nobel Peace Prize. The tradition of de Paris creating suits for our chief executives is almost as intriguing as his own story of a one-time homeless person living on the streets of Washington only blocks away from the White House.

“Fantastic person,” gushes de Paris about President Obama in a French accent thicker than the heaviest winter wool.   De Paris was so nervous when he first met Obama that he almost forgot to take some measurements.  There’s a lot of pressure when you’re creating a perfect piece of fashion for the leader of the free world.  De Paris spent about an hour with the president during their initial meeting, which took place back in October.

Obama first asked de Paris which style the suit would be created in. De Paris replied, “Modern classic is the style I want to give you, Mr. President… and you’re going to like it.” It’s the same style de Paris has created for Presidents since Lyndon B. Johnson.  The only president he hasn’t designed for, since then, is Jimmy Carter.  De Paris says the former governor of Georgia was a farmer and didn’t like buying new suits.  Instead, Des Paris was beckoned to the White House to simply alter Carter’s old suits.

Photos of our modern Presidents reveal the difference between Carter’s style and the other presidents wearing de Paris’ “modern classic”. Carter’s frightening five-inch lapels, though stylish in the 70′s, would never be found on a de Paris jacket. Instead, the photos including LBJ and both Bushes showcase de Paris’ sleeker three-inch lapels and finely-tapered jackets.

Inside the shop

It’s a tailoring shop that feels like a designer clothing store combined with a political memorabilia museum. High-end suits and ties that de Paris has designed himself crowd wooden racks across from the counter in the tiny space off 14th Street, just a stone’s throw from the White House. Photos of de Paris’ top-drawer clients line walls and are propped-up in frames on the counter and in the front windows. Many of the photos are former presidents. Official portraits of George W. Bush and Bill Clinton are personally signed to de Paris.

The back of the store is where the magic happens. That’s the workshop where de Paris recently finished his third suit for President Obama.  Just the mention of the President sends him into a frenzy. A flash of his long gray hair and perfectly European looking suit vest begins zipping around the cramped workspace.  He barks at his assistant, Tony, “Where are the slacks for the president?” A few seconds later de Paris has both Obama’s pants and jacket in hand. The suit was just one fitting away from being finished when we met up with the diminutive Frenchman.

De Paris personally dropped off that third suit for Obama at the White House in mid-December. Each one of the suits is dark, single breasted and two button. All were made out of the finest cashmere wool, hand selected by the president himself. The process to make a suit takes about a month and involves two fittings before he delivers the final creation.

De Paris had hoped that President Obama would wear one of his earlier two suits when accepting his Nobel Peace Prize in Norway. Sure enough, de Paris tuned into live cable news on December 10th to witness the president accepting the award in a suit that de Paris had stitched together himself.

“It was very exciting,” de Paris beamed. “The President looked incredible.”

Threads Through History

Actually, a modern American president wearing a de Paris during a historic event is pretty common. George W. Bush delivered his first State of the Union address in one. Ronald Reagan was shot in one. Gerald Ford was buried in a three-piece de Paris.

After working as master tailor to nine presidents, it’s no surprise that de Paris has his favorites. “I love Obama,” he confesses, “I like him so much next time I see him I’m going to kiss him.” Even though he may like Obama the most personally, it was Ronald Reagan who de Paris believes had the most sense of style.  De Paris created three suits for Reagan, all of them either dark blue or black.  After the assassination attempt on Reagan, his son, Ronny Jr., brought that suit back to de Paris to repair the bullet hole in the jacket.

From The Trash to Top Tailor

De Paris grew up in what he calls a “good family” in Marseille, France. In 1960, at the age of 26, he fell in love with a young French-American woman who convinced him to leave his home and live with her in Washington, D.C. Following his heart, De Paris moved across the Atlantic and into her downtown D.C. apartment. It was not meant to be. The two soon split up and de Paris found himself broke and living on the streets of the Nation’s Capital.

“I was in Franklin Park, in the trash,” de Paris recounts in his choppy English, remembering how he even asked the Red Cross for help. “It was sad… but my dream was one day, I’ll be tailor.”

Framed in de Paris’ shop: his appearance in a New Yorker cartoon measuring George W. Bush. The caption reads: “De Paris finds Bush, ‘So nice!’ but Ronald Reagan brought jelly beans”

With a lot of hard work, he made that dream come true. De Paris landed an apprenticeship with a downtown suit maker and within only a few years, he managed to save enough money to start his own business. De Paris quickly gained the reputation as a top tailor. Word began to spread around the halls of the U.S. Capitol about a talented Frenchman nearby who designed sophisticated suits. In the early 1960′s a Congressman from Louisiana was one of de Paris’ first customers. Otto Passman liked his suits so much, he recommended de Paris to a friend of his: Lyndon Baines Johnson, who was Vice President of the United States at the time. Johnson also loved his suits and the rest, as they say, is history.

Since then, de Paris reveals that valets at the White House recommend him to each incoming Commander in Chief. He’s now famous in his own right. Images of the eccentric Frenchman have graced a New Yorker cartoon and many other magazines, newspapers, and television newscasts. His list of clientele is impressive even without all the presidents. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Rudy Giuliani, and former Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Anan are just a few of them.

Along with his top notch reputation as a suit designer, de Paris has two rules that he believes helps keep his White House invitation open: he never talks about how much the suits cost and he won’t discuss politics with any president. “I’m just a tailor,” he says. “Not a politician.”