Coveted Rare $300 OFFICINE GENERALE Paris Black Leather Belt, Stunning Unique Piece – Tom Ford, Brunello Cucinelli Aesthetic

Masters of tailoring, Parisian label Officine Generale insist on exceptional quality with understated style (see MRPORTER reference). When Officine Generale came on the scene, they quickly dominated my closet. They are the perfect blend of sartorial and workman (designer Pierre’s grandfather was a tailor and his father an oysterman — read more about the brand background and DNA at the end if interested). The quality, materials and fit of literally every piece of OG I’ve owned are exceptional and I would put them up against any of the elite brands I’ve acquired. They pretty much go with everything and you can dress them up or down to taste with ease. As soon as you touch them, you can feel the quality leap out. The attention to detail is incredible and the quality is so good it will last for years (designer Maheo spent years in the trade learning the best sources to acquire materials and production methods).

In their early days they used to style looks with these incredible belts, but didn’t sell them. Their customer service (at least back then) was the best I’ve ever dealt with. It must have been one of the upper management I was dealing with. He told me they sourced some vintage belts Pierre loved around Paris and were thinking about creating some of their own. This is one of the rare pieces they came out with, however, it seems they stopped creating these belts, which makes it all the more coveted!

As designer Pierre has said “The younger guys will appropriate the clothes by dressing them down, sometimes in a trashy way—which I love. The more conservative guys, my generation, will wear it differently. But what I love is that, when you design something, you give it away…You have to take them and make them your own.”

Price firm due to rarity...

SIZE / FIT
I don’t see a size on this, but would say this should work for a 32-33 waist (I’m more toward a 34 now and buckle it at the end). See measurements below from first to last hole below before buying.

MEASUREMENTS
Length to first belt hole: approx 36.5 inches
Length to last belt hole: approx 42 inches
Width: approximately 1.5 inches
Buckle size/dimensions: approx 2.25 inches

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BRAND HISTORY

Casual French quality
Officine Generale's Mr Pierre Mahéo says the brand is focused on "beautiful normality". Inspired by tailoring and workwear, he uses premium fabrics such as Japanese selvedge Oxford cloth for the label's shirts and trousers, and everything is made in Europe.

There’s no flash here, and there are no unnecessary frills, no click-bait nods to trends, though an almost imperceptible sleekness (a slimmer silhouette here, a slanted pocket there) pervades everything he touches. Details and quality (everything’s made in Europe), from plackets to stitches, are paramount.

Mahéo’s obsessed with material. Though the clothes may look straightforward, the fabrics are absurdly sophisticated, all meticulously sourced from Italy, Japan, and England, plus washed to assure comfort and durability. It’s a winning combination of refinement and approachability, what he calls “accessible luxury,” that’s driven Officine’s continued staying power, remarkably finding and filling a void between the super high-end (Armani) and the not-quite fast fashion (Club Monaco), but with a bit more edge and craftsmanship than, say, a rag & bone.

When Pierre Mahéo launched Officine Generale in 2012, he drew from his own past while simultaneously crafting his own future. That’s because the brand—known for its mix of fine tailoring with workwear influences, all executed in premium Japanese, Italian, and English fabrics—pulls together influences from Mahéo’s storied family history and is comprised solely of pieces the designer himself would like to wear.

How would you describe the DNA of Officine Genrale?
Pierre Mahéo: When I launched Officine Generale, it was because, first and foremost, I wanted to do the pieces that I wanted to do and that I wanted to wear. I used to design for other companies, and there was always a cahier de charge [specification] as far as color groups or other factors. I wanted to be able to use the fabrics that I wanted to use. When I designed my oxford shirts, I decided to use a Japanese selvedge, which is a narrower fabric and means that you use more fabric and the shirt becomes more expensive. But it’s been one of my top sellers.

The formula was to bring the best fabrics at the sharpest price, and then to create a line that men want to wear. I don’t sit around in the morning and think that next summer men will want to wear a running short every day—I know they won’t. It’s about putting together a wardrobe that’s fully actualized, using references from the past, adding a modern signature, and in fabrics that will last in the future: that’s Officine Generale.

Your aesthetic has been described as tailoring-meets-workwear, drawing the best from both. Where does this point of view come from?
It was natural for me. I was born in Brittany, where my grandfather was a tailor but my father was an oysterman. So I saw my grandfather, every day of the week, wearing a three-piece suit. Even if he was working in the garden with his employees, he was still in a dress shirt and vest. On the other side, my father was always in old chinos—in vintage blue or that true fisherman red—paired with a workwear jacket with patch pockets. The colors of everything would fade out beautifully from the sea water and the salt. So when I started to design and put together the DNA of what would become Officine Generale, I couldn’t choose just one side. It was my roots, so it had to mix both. The two go well together.

Beyond yourself, who do you see wearing the collection? Do you have a muse in mind when you design?
One of the things I’m most proud of is that I didn’t design the collection thinking that it’s only for a specific group of guys. This isn’t just for guys who are between 22 and 30, go out, live in the city, and listen to a certain music. When you design, the best compliment is to have a nice variety, and I always say Officine Generale is trans-generational. My father-in-law is 75, but he wears the collection, loves it, and looks great in it. And I have friends who are 23, 28, 30, 40, 45… They all look good when they wear it, and they all look different. The younger guys will appropriate the clothes by dressing them down, sometimes in a trashy way—which I love. The more conservative guys, my generation, will wear it differently. But what I love is that, when you design something, you give it away. When there’s an apple in the store, you don’t know if it’s going to be a pie or a fruit salad or just an apple. It’s the same with my clothes. You have to take them and make them your own.