Meeting Alan Flusser, Part One: The Custom Shop
Midtown Manhattan for the most part is a drab place. Everything there is very gray and looming and even on the sunniest days it still seems a bit cloudy. Interiors lend to harsh florescent lighting, cubicles, and computer stations. But in the midst of all this there is a small oasis tucked away just off 5th Avenue and 48th street called THE CUSTOM SHOP.
A man of my budget would never have stepped inside this haven of menswear had it not been for an invite from Chris Hogan of OFF THE CUFF to attend an inaugural meet up to celebrate the BeSpeak iPhone application created by Alan Flusser. I spoke of the app here after I had downloaded it and it truly is a wonderfully useful menswear tool. But let this post be more of the fabled shop I had only read about yet never had the means to step into.
Immediately upon entering one notices just how much of Alan’s ethos is based on the importance of color. Everything in the shop fits, much like his direction to us about suiting. Lush green, beautifully placed curtains, warm brown wood, and cherry reds are just the tip of the iceberg. While standing in the shop you feel like you have been transported to someone’s living room so comfortable that you just want to sit and stay a while.
And then there’s the clothing. There are busts that boast heavy wools, detailed patters, and perfectly spread collars. It was so inspirational to be amongst these wears that I started immediately to think of new patterns I could try out and color combinations that would work better with my own skin tone. I learned so much from Alan’s books but was much more affected seeing it all live and in person.
Oh yes, there were also beautiful shoes:
I almost wanted to stay inside the shop for the rest of the night, sit down with my glass of Pimm’s Cup, and chat with Alan about menswear and whatever else came to mind into the wee hours. It’s a shame more men’s stores don’t take this amount of care no matter what they are selling. If ever I was to open a haberdashery for those of us on a budget I would model it after this because no matter what the price point or the style, nothing beats feeling like you are right at home.
Stay tuned this week for coverage of the entire event plus my best dressed picks.
Fantastic! Thanks very much for the kinds words, Dennis. However, it is I who was honored to have you at the event. I can’t wait to read your full coverage.
Thanks, Chris!!
This was truly an awesome event. I look forward to the future of BeSpeak and what you guys will be doing with it.
Dennis,
Great post and I’m glad we were able to connect. Keep it up!
Dennis, if you are ever in Atlanta, GA I would recommend a trip to Sid Mashburn. In reading your description of THE CUSTOM SHOP it was as if you were describing this fine haberdashery of Atlanta. Keep up the good work. You are inspiring a welcome change to the way I dress. Cheers.
alan flusser is one of the greatest american men collection designers,,,,,,,guys in their 30′s would not know this …because they were not buying gq magazine in the 80′s…flusser was all over it…I remember the full page neiman marcus ad in gq ..this particular ad struck me …the model was wearing a flusser flannel paisley shirt with silk suspenders with trousers that had extended tabs for the suspenders..photographed with his back to the camera…flusser’s style was different…and this was a fully designed collection casual to dressy collection….when i walked into neiman marcus I found the flusser collection and bought exactly what I saw in gq..he was among the big six american designers….jeffery banks,calvin klein,alexander julian,ralph lauren,perry ellis and ALAN FLUSSER, I was not into armani and that whole italian influence as much,,,,because flusser and the other american designers made more sense to me…at that time alan flusser to me was a better designer than ralph lauren and a better dresser as well…when you saw a photo of flusser in the gq he was always dapper…double breasted suit pocket square and flower bud in lapel….now look at how young men are dressing… sloppy jeans all the time…i was a year or two out of high school wearing all these cool clothes..no jeans… just.linen shirts and tousers…to fine cotton shirts and trousers…and fall was the best time to dress….these days mens clothing has been destroyed… if you watch the first wall street look at micheal douglass clothes vs charlie sheen…it’s unbeleivable…look at the lapels on flusser’s suits ..timeless…and the shirts.and trousers….flusser was the first american designer that gave us timeless dapper designs from the 30′s…no one was doing it at that time in america..not even ralph lauren…his lapels were big,,,,alan flusser is much more than a bespoke tailor …he is an elite american fashion designer..remember he did win the cutty sark.