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FOR MEN WHO KNOW BEST

CYCLING CHAMP KEEPS CITY IN TRIM

Those sleekly suited legal eagles of the City don’t just stay young and beautiful on a diet of slim pickings and exquisite deals. Follow them from their offices, quite a few speeding off on bicycles, and you will find them heading down into a subterranean labrynth in Hatton Garden, where they come under the influence of Graham Sharman and his team.

This erstwhile antipodean and one-time silver medallist in the world cycling championships runs The Gym here along lines gymgraham.jpgtailored to individual needs rather than upon a Charles Atlas-style bodybuilding regime (look up Atlas on Wiki if you are too young to know).

No lesser cycling giant than Sir Chris Hoy recognises Sharman’s talent.

“I’ve trained and raced with Graham for many years,” says Hoy, in one of a long list of impressive testimonials. “Coupled with the knowledge he has gained as a world class sportsman, he has truly unique skill to help you reach your goals.”

Sharman won his Silver Medal at the World Championships in 1998 and has a string of others successes.  In recent years he has been concentrating upon building up his gym business but is now itching to get back on the saddle. “Certainly by next year,” he says, recognising that he has some extra training to do.

He arrived on these shores some ten years ago from Australia where he was brought up, but was born in London. At something of a loose end after his World Championship success, he came here to join his banker brother and just sort of fell into the gym/training sector.

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Top, trainer Graham Sharman; above, deep massage provided by Viva Therapies; below, Raquel Vaccioli, who heads up Viva; and bottom, one of the gym rooms for personal sessions.

“I worked for another gym for a while but then started up my own personal training business in 200. I hadn’t got a clue really, about starting a business, finding premises, planning laws, buying equipment, and all that, and I didn’t have any money.”

Undaunted by these minor details, and with the help of some existing clients, he started off  at premises by the Thames and, largely by word-of-mouth, soon had a loyal following among City gents keen to improve their physique. His present site within London’s diamond district of Hatton Garden is handily placed for these clients.

“They come for various reasons,” he says, “some to lose weight, some to improve their looks, some to feel fitter, stronger. We build up a long term relationship, geared to the individual needs.”gymraquel.jpg

He is rather more qualified than your average gym instructor. As a top level athlete himself, he has always taken a keen interest in the methods and directions given by coaches – and their effects on his own body.  He knows what does and doesn’t work, whether it is for other top athletes, like world champion rower Colin Smith, or someone like Dee Wood, who had had a ski accident and was told he probably wouldn’t walk properly again.

To complement his efforts, his soon-to-be bride, Raquel Vaccioli, lovely lady from Brazil (where the nuts come from )  runs her own massage and beauty business, Viva Therapies, from the same place. This is also very much a bespoke service, with Vaccioli and her team providing treatments for hotel guests and in private homes, strictly on a one-to-one basis.

Glowing references from a raft of hotels, including the Intercontinental, the Dorchester and the Atheneaum, vouch for her special skills, where she has treated such star guests as Ridley Scott.

“I set up my own business in 2008," she says, " and now have a 40-strong team of fully qualified massage therapists, beauty specialists and hairdressers ready at half hour notice to attend clients wherever they may be."

gym.jpg“The majority of our customers are men,” she says.”Either at the hotels or in luxury homes in London.

"Massages are the most popular treatment but more men are becoming interested in beauty treatments, in facials for example. And particularly in demand are haircuts. It saves time for top businessmen to have a haircut in their hotel room rather than having to go out for one. Time is important.”

The couple’s future plans are somewhat dominated by their marriage, to take place in Brazil in December, with family and friends flying in from around the globe. But another important task on the horizon is to find new premises as the lease of their present place expires next year. It will stay close enough to still be handy for its City clients. www.thegymhattongarden.com and vivatherapies.com

 

 
 

2013

:: SAVILE ROW Style Magazine ::

 
 
contact Home - Contents in brief
   
contact Cuba - not rushing to change
   
contact Tails win in new London Swing
   
contact Savile Row success in New York
   
contact Keeping the City in trim
   
contact Rolls goes on trial again
   
contact Dandy show in U.S.
   
contact Formal shoes go brighter
   
contact Many Shades of Colour
   
contact Boris leads the way
   
contact Culture - London fizzes
   
contact Poole's Citizen Kane
   
contact

Going colourful - carefully

   
contact

Japan's fine whiskies

 

 

contact Compendium - Links to the best brands and services
   
contact Contact - Details and registration
   
contact Tailors of Savile Row - listing of top tailors and interviews
   
contact Archive - Back Issues
 
     

:: CUT-THROAT COMING ::

 

SEXY scene in the latest James Bond film 'Skyfall' shows our hero subjected to one of many close shaves under the fine blade of a cut throat razor.

Wielded by Miss Moneypenny, played by actress Naomie Harris, it gives him the best shave of his life. "Sometimes the old ways are best," she says.

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A razor that never needs sharpening but has replaceable blades, so there's none of that stropping and honing. Each blade gives from 5 to 10 shaves. From Shaving Shack, it has a teakwood handle and costs £159.99.

Men may be somewhat alarmed to learn that this has prompted a rush to buy cut throat razors by women. Not for themselves of course, but in anticipation of giving their own man such a close shave.

The Shaving Shack, a retailelr of shaving products, reports that saales of their cut throat razors tripled within five days of the Skyfall DVD/Blue-ray being released, and with women taking up 73per cent of these sales.

Nick Gibbens, brand manager at The Shaving Shack, said: “It’s great to see more women taking control of their partner’s grooming and who wouldn’t want to recreate the shaving scene from Skyfall?"

He maintains that shaving with a cut throat razor is one of life's pleasures and gives the closest shave.

"But it does take time to master the technique and you'll certainly need a steady hand and plenty of practice," he adds.

Those men anticipating going under a blade held by their nearest and dearest may feel some instruction would be helpful in seeing them survive. Shaving Shack offers some tips on Youtube at http://youtube/qMVAhDqPbv0

:: BIKE EYE VIEW ::

FOR cyclists keen to capture their route on film, the latest camera head mount allows a lightweight view of the world from the saddle.

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The Camera Demon from Proporta is easy to attach to a helmet and is fully adjustable, so that a camera may be tilted and rotated to a full 360 degrees. Suitable for all sorts of biking, made in the UK, price around £24.95.
www.proporta.com