The Saint-James Company has been established in Lower Normandy since 1889 where the company originally spun and dyed local wool. Its fame is based upon a cult item of clothing “the genuine pure new knitted woolen Breton seaman’s sweater”. Originally intended for deep sea fishermen, then adopted by known seafarers, and amateur yachtsmen.
French garlic merchants or “marchand d’ail” traveled to England to sell their produce wearing a “chandail” or sweater. The real Fisherman’s sweater was a long garment, very close fitting, designed to protect a sailor’s back and keep the body warm. Highly practical and very easy to put on as a result of the buttons on the side.
Several variants appeared: colours like red, white as well as stripped, but it should be remembered that, in the Navy, the single coloured sweater was reserved for officers, and the stripped variety for sailors. In the French Navy, young recruits wear a stripped tee-shirt during their three month on board training period.
Originally reserved for professional purposes, the Fisherman’s sweater and tee-shirt have now become, like jeans, a 20th century fashionable clothing item. Rooted in our common heritage, this mythical sweater and tee-shirt are worn by both fishermen or weekend sailors, at sea, and in town. It is a real symbol of escape to distant horizons.
