A powerhouse of world-class tailoring, where the iconic uniforms for Great Britain’s most recognizable soldiers are created

Photos:Mendel Photography

The rowdy protestors chanting “Not my king!” near the route of the Coronation procession, corralled into a side street by police, needn’t have bothered. They were vastly outnumbered, not only by the poncho-clad throngs lining the 1.4-mile route under a steady British drizzle hoping to catch a glimpse of the golden carriage and its royal occupants, but also by the endless formations of the King’s Grenadier and Coldstream Guards, instantly recognizable in their tall furry hats and bright red tunics with gleaming buttons. Their regimental marching band, who play at Changing of the Guard, state visits, and other events, belted out tune after tune with rhythmic precision.

If anyone shepped nachas from the spectacle, it’s got to be Nathan Kashket and his father, Russell. Their firm, Kashket and Partners, designs and manufactures the uniforms that serve as emblems of London and Great Britain, from the Beefeaters at the Tower of London to the scarlet tunics of the guards strutting up and down outside Buckingham Palace. The Kashket family’s sewing needles are the instruments of choice to design, stitch, and mend for the royal household’s best-dressed staff.

A proudly Jewish family arriving as immigrants around the turn of the century, the Kashkets retained their distinctly Jewish last name (Yiddish, meaning a kind of hat) at a time when many others anglicized their identity in an effort to blend in and perhaps achieve some degree of upward social mobility. Now the Kashket name has become synonymous with the highest-quality military and ceremonial wear.

Soon after Queen Elizabeth II passed away last September at the ripe old age of 96, the coronation of her eldest son and successor Charles went into planning. At 74, he was the longest-serving heir-apparent, having waited  in the line of succession for 70 years.

Anticipating the country’s first coronation in seven decades, an event whose 2,000 guests would include world leaders, dignitaries, diplomats, and celebrities, the world watched and eargerly waited. What would Buckingham Palace — undisputed international headquarters of pomp, pageantry, and precision — deliver?

What emerged was an awe-inspiring multistage procession of nearly 4,000 service personnel who fronted, backed, and flanked the 260-year-old Golden State Coach pulled by eight white steeds as it trundled its way down the Mall back to the Palace ahead of the iconic balcony appearance.

Each section taking a page from an age-old military history book, they appeared magnificently attired in gleaming, traditional uniforms, some riding on horseback while playing an instrument or beating a drum in one of twenty different bands. This military ceremonial operation, the largest of its kind since Queen Elizabeth’s 1953 coronation, reverently and majestically conveyed their newly crowned majesties back home.

The change in sovereign has left Nathan Kashket — who at 25 now oversees the company’s operations — with little time to catch his breath. Because coming fast on the heels of the Coronation is next month’s annual display of pageantry, Trooping of the Colour, held each summer to mark the British monarch’s birthday. Over 1,400 soldiers, 200 horses, and 400 musicians come together in precision and fanfare — and Nathan’s company is working full pelt to make sure it’s all ready to roll.