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'Clothier to the King' | Lansky's sees largest influx of Elvis fans since pandemic

One shop at The Peabody hotel here in Memphis had an owner that touted the official title of "Clothier to the King."

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Bernard Lansky is a name familiar to those who are privy to Elvis trivia, but for those that aren't up to speed, one shop at The Peabody hotel here in Memphis had an owner that touted the official title of "clothier to The King." 

Lansky held the honor of being Elvis Presley's preferred tailor after meeting the singer, pre-fame, outside of the store during the summer of 1952. 

These days, Hal Lansky is the second generation owner of Lansky Bros. at The Peabody. The way Hal Lansky tells it, his father developed a friendship with "the greatest entertainer of all time."  

"He [Bernard Lansky] saw this young man looking in the window," Hal Lansky said. "He said 'Come on in here young man,' and this young man back then was a nobody. This young man said 'Mr. Lansky, I don't have any money, but one of these days I'm going to come buy you out.'" 

It was then, according to Hal, that Bernard Lansky said to Elvis, "Young man, don't buy me out, just buy from me" and a friendship began. 

As Lansky Senior's title became known as "Clothier to the King," so too did Hal develop his own title.

"I guess my title was the delivery boy to the King," he said. "I used to deliver stuff out to Graceland. You know, Elvis loved clothes and a lot of times he would just say, 'I'll take it all.'"

In recent years, the average traveler has had to be more careful with the world around them than Elvis was with new clothes. Lansky said over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, international visitors to the world famous store slowed down. Now, they are "coming in droves."

"The crowds are awesome," Lansky said. "We are hearing a little French, a little Spanish, [etc.]" 

Gemma Hill is an Elvis fan from the U.K. 

"I just feel privileged to be here because not many people get the chance to be here," she said. 

Phil Shakespear, another Elvis fan from the U.K., said that Lansky's has "always represented style."

"It's embedded in rock 'n' roll history just like Sun Studios and Memphis and Graceland and everything else," Shakespear said. 

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