Obituary: Stuart Malloy, founder of Jones and Quincy (1941-2022)

Tributes have been paid to Stuart Malloy, founder of the hugely influential Quincy and Jones shops in London, who has died, aged 80.

In a retailing career stretching from the late 1960s to the early 2000s, Malloy developed concepts - originally menswear-only and later involving womenswear – that made the reputations of many British and international brands.

Among multi-brand independents probably only Browns rivalled the longevity and impact of Quincy and Jones.

Menswear designer Roger Walker-Dack, who founded the English Menswear Designer Collections (EMDC) group of young creatives in the 1980s, said: “Stuart Malloy was a pioneer in fashion retailing in London. His Jones and Quincy stores in London's King’s Road in the 1980s and 1990s were a destination for every would-be fashionista who craved to be different.

“Malloy went out of his way to seek out up-and-coming homegrown designers and buy their avant-garde collections that were overlooked by others. His intuitive sense of style and taste led him to fill his stores with such wonderful designers who he would introduce to his inquisitive King’s Road customers.

“When I was the chair of the EMDC having Jones carry your line was the highest form of acceptance.”

Peter Sidell, who became Malloy’s main buyer, right-hand man and business partner for 17 years from 1975 until 1992, recalls his generosity of spirit and zest for life: “Stuart had the biggest heart ever. He was super-sociable, he loved meeting people and he loved developing young people’s ideas. He was so open to everyone. For example, he was one of the first owners to hire cool black guys to work in his shops. It just wasn’t done at the time.

“Stuart was so experienced in the fashion business but he was always eager to hear what younger people like me thought. That’s why he was able to develop the business and move it forward for so long.”

Born in Morpeth, Northumberland on 28 November 1941 Malloy brought a strong visual sense to fashion retailing. He did a Masters in Sculpture at the Slade School of Art in London in 1967 and maintained an interest in the visual arts throughout his business life.

Before he opened his first shop near Shepherd Market, Mayfair in 1969, Malloy worked in London with Jeff Kwintner and John Simons at their legendary menswear mini-chain The Village Gate, which was named after a New York jazz venue.

Reflecting his own interest in the Modern Jazz movement that gave the British Mods their name, he named his own stores after prolific musician Quincy Jones. His first stores, in Mayfair and later Soho, had an updated Ivy League vibe but Malloy then followed an ever-changing path that created new trends and broke new brands and designers for more than two decades.

He was an early stockist of Paul Smith, who personally used to deliver new Made-in-Nottingham product to the King’s Road shops that became Malloy’s main base. Among Italian brands, he was the first to stock the designs of the visionary Massimo Osti, who created the CP Company, Stone Island and Boneville collections.

In the Euro-jeanswear boom of the late 1970s and early 1980s, Malloy was the first to stock - and sometimes to act as UK agent for - collections such as Ball, Diesel and Liberto.

Always on the lookout for bright young talent, Malloy hired a young London girl called Yasmin Yusuf when he was venturing into womenswear in the early 1980s. She became the company’s womenswear buyer. Yusuf and Sidell became a couple and had a son. Yusuf is now better remembered for her time as creative chief at Warehouse and as womenswear head of Marks & Spencer.

Another notable Saturday member of staff was Nick Kamen, the model in the 1985 “Launderette” commercial that relaunched Levi’s 501s and kickstarted a global denim revival.

Most things significant in premium fashion in the 1980s and 1990s seemed to happen around Jones and Quincy.

Reflecting Malloy’s strong visual sense, the iconic vertical Jones logo, design by the London agency Autograph in 1983, was a powerful brand identity.

In 1985 Malloy moved Jones to another level by opening a cavernous unit on Floral Street in Covent Garden. A minimalist concrete shell designed by architects Peter Mullins and Jake Morton, it gave plenty of space for both avant-garde menswear and womenswear, putting Japanese designers such as Yohji Yamamoto and Issey Miyake alongside the best from the UK and Europe.

Menswear veteran Saleem D’Aronville, who had various roles in UK retail and wholesale before relocating to Japan, remembers Malloy giving him a sneak preview of the Floral Street flagship: “It was mind-blowing. Nearly 40 years ago Stuart made a minimalist store with the interior stripped back to bare walls and all the pipes and cables exposed. The floor was just concrete varnished over. The changing rooms were a makeshift cubicle with a curtain.

“He told me it was his new loft-style inspiration. Stuart was way ahead of his time, the pioneer of modern fashion as we know it today.”

D’Aronville also remembers Malloy’s generosity even to so-called competitors: “Stuart was a very kind person, always willing to help and advise. I first met him in the early 1970s after he had opened his own shop and I was working at The Squire Shop, part of The Village Gate, his old employer. Over a coffee he encouraged me to work on some short leather blousons, as worn by Adam Faith in the TV series ‘Budgie’, which was a hit at the time.

“I tried some from a supplier he used in the East End. They were a mega hit; we turned over 1,000 pieces a week.

“Throughout his career Stuart remained a true professional who worked his company with passion.”

In 1997 Malloy closed the womenswear side of Jones and concentrated again just on menswear. The industry was changing and “designer brands” once stocked only in Jones and one or two other premium boutiques were opening their own shops and being stocked by London department stores.

Back in menswear only, Malloy continued to develop and nurture new talent in his business.

Another Jones alumnus is Stuart Cass, who has been sourcing director for All Saints, Urban Outfitters and Lacoste. He was part of the Jones management team from 1997 until the business was closed in 2004.

“I started out as a Saturday boy at Jones in 1993 and I joined full-time in 1997. Stuart had so much experience but maintained his pioneer spirit. He was always forward-thinking and ahead of the curve, stocking things like the first Martin Margiela menswear collection, Raf Simons and Japanese denim brands like Evisu. They were golden times.

“He was a mentor and father figure to me, the most influential person in my working life. I would not have had my career in the fashion business without Stuart Malloy. I will miss him.”

After closing Jones in 2004 Malloy retired to the Greek island of Skiathos, where is funeral was held on 6 May.

Marianne survives him, along with his first wife Carol, their daughters Amy and Ester, and his grandson Eric, son of Ester.