Bradford’s Crossing

The word ‘Bradford’ is synonymous with men’s suits. Svelte, sleek and well-tailored, the company has been churning them out for the past few decades. Now though it might just be looking at cutting profits from a different cloth. In an interview at his Henry Street office last week, Ronald Hadeed, Bradford’s owner, hinted that the next line of defence might be women’s suits. He acknowledged that this was not an easy market to break into, adding that numerous requests have come from customers to cross over to women’s clothing. Hadeed said that while the market for women’s clothing is wide open, it could become tedious and challenging at the same time. He acknowledged that a cross over to women’s suits would be difficult, hence his preference for the male version. On men’s suits, he said  if a style goes out prices can be reduced — and they can still be sold. When a style goes out for women, he declared, “no woman will wear anything that has gone out of style.”  

There are very limited options when it comes to tailored women’s suits, he believes, stressing though that this was something that the company might have to consider. For now though, the company’s bread and butter will be men’s suits and accessories. The company, he says, sells several thousand suits a year in TT alone. At the Bradford City Mall, there is now an entire department devoted to boys’ clothing. Boy’s uniforms and suits are sold here, and judging from the amount of activity that takes place at its counter, it is doing considerably well. There are five Bradford outlets throughout TT, in strategic areas such as Henry Street, Port-of-Spain, Bradford City Mall, Port-of-Spain, Grand Bazaar, Gulf City Mall and Movie Towne to sell several thousand suits per year to the Trinidad public.  All told, Bradford’s employs 60 people throughout the country. On what was responsible for the company’s longevity, Bradford put it down to service. “That’s the difference; quality and service.” When Bradford first opened its doors 48 years ago, a commitment was to sell quality men’s suits and tailoring materials. According to Hadeed, Bradford has never compromised that quality.

“We always put people before profits. It may sound like a slogan but it’s a fact.” Hadeed remembered that he survived the economic slump in the 80s, noting that other major  players in the industry like Kirpalani’s and Habibs, disappeared. “We want not only to be the best, but we want to be recognised as the best.” Bradford’s survival, he said, was pegged to the delivering quality clothing for the people of Trinidad and Tobago. Bradford’s may be  one of the many men’s stores in the country, but  “copycats and clones,” he charged, have come out from the wood-work over the years. He is of the view that his suits have been copied over the years.  “The Bradford line is constantly being copied,” he said. “I will continue  fighting down the line,” he said, when asked how he was going to survive in this age of cut-throat competition. Much of their clothing designs are taken from contemporary styles. “If  imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Bradford is extremely flattered because of all the clones and copycats,” he said. On the clothing stores that have mushroomed over the years and which sell cheap clothes,  Bradford is not worried about the competition. He says when the market opened up, there was a proliferation of inferior garments. The decision was then taken not to import anything.

“There are merchants who claim to sell quality clothes but don’t,” Hadeed said. Instead, his company went in the opposite direction, and chose instead to implement quality control into their operations.  He vowed to continue to set the pace. “The TT consumer is ‘bright,’ and is beginning to realise that what they are getting is a  ‘big rip-off’,” he said. Hadeed admits that not many people go for suits, stressing that this was niche market. “There are certain occasions when a suit becomes indispensable to a man,” he said, citing  weddings and graduations. There is still a viable market, noting that professionals, the legal fraternity, and politicians still go for suits. “The good news of Bradford is spreading.” Hadeed said that the regional market is something to look at, especially with the Caribbean Single Market and Economy coming on stream. In fact, he said that Bradford has markets in places like St Vincent, Barbados, Grenada, Nevis and Curacao. Now, it’s all about protecting their local turf, he said. Bradford’s Trading offers a full service to its customers, which includes alterations on the spot.

There  are very few places that actually offer this service, he says, adding adjusting women suits takes time and effort. He boasts of having their suits and pants locally made, most of which is contracted out to local tailors. Hadeed said that because of the great time and effort placed into making the Bradford line, the  brand is now “acclaimed as possibly the best fitting pants in the world.” Hadeed said that with a lot of new players and the market being wide open, the clothing industry in TT was truly exciting. While he welcomed this vibrancy in the industry, Hadeed pointed out that with the good also came the bad, and said there was still a lot of inferior clothing on the market. “Even with the cost of living  on the rise, the price of clothing was the one thing that was dropping,” he said. “Bradford,” he said, “will remain a competitive force. “We put a lot of energy and effort into what we do.”