Branding the man: why men are the next frontier in fashion retail

It comes as little surprise that retailers have warmed to the idea that men do like to shop. It’s not for nothing that I wrote a book on the subject, so some of the recent news of branded men’s offerings is worth closer inspection.

Coach, Hermes, and even department stores like Lord and Taylor have all made major statements with either dedicated men’s stores or departments.

One might wonder if they had perhaps been closely watching brands like Brooks Brothers and its Black Fleece stores (New York and San Francisco), or J. Crew, which has gone from a single prototype in 2009 to now two dedicated shops in New York and a soon-to-be-opened Boston location.

Coach’s store on Bleecker Street is designed to feel distinctly “masculine,” with rich mahogany wood, exposed air ducts, and a broad assortment of both men’s wear and accessories on display.

Coach has been rumored to be toying with a concept for some time, and their choice of the West Village is certainly strategic. Marc Jacobs, Black Fleece, Ralph Lauren, and Tommy Hilfiger are all a stone’s throw away from the store.

Coach is apparently also looking at other locations, and we’ve heard San Francisco and Boston are on their radar.

Hermes opened its opulent men’s store in February. The brand is one of the few to be resilient in these economic times, mostly because their customer base is so affluent. The glamorous space, located on New York’s Madison Avenue (you think they would open anywhere else?) includes custom pieces designed exclusively for that store — such as a baseball glove retailing for $8,500. I’d be so curious to see what that customer looks like, wouldn’t you? The four-storey retail experience includes an entire floor dedicated to suiting (topping out at $20,000 each) and a crocodile jacket for a mere $130,000.

Recession? What recession?

Not far behind Hermes’ (although a decidedly different customer) is Balenciaga, which opened its first free-standing men’s experience in Paris in late June.

The space is hyper-modern, with a sculptural stairway dominating the small, 650-square foot space. Designer Nicholas Ghesquiere collaborated with artist Dominique Gonzalez Foerster. The space is decidedly space-age, with clean, geometric lines and diode lighting.

Meanwhile, department stores continue to shuffle around their men’s offering — as if it makes any difference. We all know that men don’t really care much for department stores unless the entire space is made just for them. Nevertheless, Lord and Taylor put in a substantial overhaul of the flagship’s 37,000 square foot men’s store, which they hope to complete by fall. Currently the brand’s men’s offering accounts for roughly 12 percent of Lord and Taylor’s annual sales (estimated at $1.2 billion) — so it’s no wonder they want bolster their offering. Other department stores, like Saks Fifth Avenue, do far better in total sales, as high as 20 percent.

As I’ve discussed in my book, Branding the Man: Why Men Are the Next Frontier in Fashion Retail (2009, Random House/Allworth Press), department stores can rearrange the deck chairs all they want, but men still need to be able to access what they want as easily as possible. Lord and Taylor does in fact have an express elevator to their 10^th floor department, but it’s way over on the south side of the building, so most guys don’t even know it’s there. That means a slow trek via an all-stops elevator or worse, the escalator. More importantly is the perception of Lord and Taylor, (a) it’s “old”, and (b) it’s a women’s store. The brand will need to do substantial marketing to get men to see the store as a place for them.

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(San Francisco) — If you missed out on Man Up last January — the pop up event from our friends at Durable Goods Concern — you now have another chance to meet your maker. Literally.

On Friday, June 11 – Sunday, June 13, DGC has assembled yet another menu of local merchants and artisans who bring a smile to our face (and empty our wallet) every time we see them. This time the pop up concept will land at 19th and Treat, home of OHIO, a covetable line of made-to-order furniture.

Joining them at this modern-day souk will be local veterans such as AB Fits and Esquivel, purveyors of some of our favorite attire, as well as many NKOTB (New Kids On The Block) like Cause and Effect, Xetum, and Outlier. Clothes, accessories, furniture — all for the modern man. Hello, Heaven. We’re going because there’s no better time to support local merchants and to truly meet the people who have invested so much in creating products they believe in.

So let us all now pray, raise a glass of wine (yes, there will be plenty), and meet our maker.

Meet Your Maker: Well Crafted Men’s Goods and the Artisans That Purvey Them begins on Friday, June 11 from 4 – 9 P.M, continues Saturday, June 12 from 11 – 7 P.M. and ends Sunday, June 13 11 – 6 P.M.To learn more about all of the merchants at the event (over a dozen), go to www.durablegoodsconcern.com.

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Serge Gainsbourg’s reputation as a singer, lover, and all-around bad-boy is legendary. As husband to actress Jane Birkin and father to singer-actress Charlotte Gainsbourg, Serge had the je ne sais quoi that most men only dream about.

To top it all off, he was a short little chain-smoking Jewish man and women loved him for it. His Mod, louche style was pure Parisien, from his trim Levi’s jackets  and striped Breton sweaters to his long loopy scarves; bell-bottomed tuxedo pants paired with velvet blazers.

And then there were the shoes.

Gainsbourg allegedly disliked wearing most shoes and if he could have had his way, would walk the streets barefoot. His “69 Années Erotique” duet-partner (in more ways than one) Jane Birkin had just the thing for him: a pair of crisp, white Repetto dance shoes, a model called “Zizi Homme.”

Gainsbourg was smitten and throughout his life had dozens of pairs of the supple shoe, and the Zizi became as much a signature of his look as a cigarette.

Since 1947, Repetto has provided hand-made dance shoes to every major dance company but has also been adopted by the fashion world. In 1999 Jean-Marc Gaucher, a former executive from Reebok, took over the reigns with bold plans to make Repetto a major player in luxury fashion. Limited-edition collections have been created with the likes of Karl Lagerfeld and Veronique Branquinho. Hedi Slimane, Martin Margiela, and countless other designers have designed shoes in homage to the Zizi Homme.

Three years ago, on a trip to Paris, I made a bee-line to the Repetto boutique on the rue de la Paix.  I had become obsessed with pictures I had seen of Gainsbourg, lolling around his apartment in his exquisitely white (and diminuitive) Repetto’s.

Their legendary comfort is true: the shoes are the closest thing to walking barefoot. Made from the softest of calfskin, Repetto ballet shoes ar not for urban trekking — the soles are wafer thin. But for lounging at your corner watering hole or holding court in a pied-a-terre, there is nothing more chic.

Repetto shoes have limited availability in the U.S. Try www.farfetch.com, or better yet, book a ticket to Paris.

Boutique Repetto

22 rue de la Paix, 2eme. Tel: 01 44 71 83 12.

51 rue du Four, 6eme. Tel: 01 45 44 98 65.

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