Binks in Hilditch & Key, without his cigar
I suppose Jermyn Street may now be considered something of an anachronism, considering that it is an enclave for that rarest of shops gentlemen s outfitters (and a cheese shop, still looking as if Eric Ravilious had just lithographed it). Here you will find proper shirts, ones that fit properly and leave enough material to tuck into one s trousers; shoes handmade in Northamptonshire; and every kind of hat, from bowlers to Henley boaters.
Bates was where you went for your Fischer Fedora or Ecuador Coffee Planter, and where, in 1921, a kitten strolled in and promptly took up residence. Binks was much loved by the staff and, after his demise in 1927, was honoured by a taxidermist and placed in a glass case wearing a top hat and smoking a cigar.