Ashley Lloyd-Jennings had received stern instructions from his secretary on the morning of the first showing of his new line: refrain from wearing jeans that day. So, during the round of media interviews that preceded the evening presentation, the newly ensconced creative director of Alfred Dunhill was elegant in navy suit, crisp shirt, contrasting tie and pocket handkerchief.
But at the show that evening at his company's Jermyn Street flagship store, he greeted his guests still clad in his navy jacket - and wearing a pair of blue denim jeans.
That is the brand of subtle irreverence Mr Lloyd-Jennings, a fashion specialist of Portuguese-German-English parentage, is bringing to the venerable house of Alfred Dunhill.
The new creative head is not so much bucking tradition (Alfred Dunhill has been around for more than a century), as gently redefining it. When he was approached to take on the position, which he accepted late last year, he was lured with promises of growth and transformation.
'People have before paid lip service to change. But the company brought in a new financial director, managing director and marketing head at the same time. I was convinced they were sincere,' he said.
Mr Lloyd-Jennings was given a brief to 'revitalise' the brand. Not that, he admits, it needed any work; as he said, his initial reaction was 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it. The company is bringing in an amazing amount of money anyway'.