Just for Guys

Word arrived in the inbox earlier this week that J. Crew has opened a separate men's shop in Copley Place. (It must have happened fairly quickly, because I was over there about a month ago and it was still just one store.) This is their first men's-only store outside of New York, so the company must consider this a worthy market to make this move. I stopped by after work today to have a look.

The whole palette of the store's design is darker and more masculine, as you would expect. The shelving is a darker tone of wood, the tables have black top surfaces, the floor is black, and the walls that don't have shelving are a dignified green. The space isn't very large, but the tones and colors make it feel cozy. There's a free-standing set of shelves in the middle that divides the space and holds shoes.

In the past couple of years, the men's section of the other Copley store had been compressed into less space to give more space to women's clothing, so this seems like a good move. They seem to be stocking more items that were previously web-only, like all the suit-separate choices (the mini-herringbone is particularly nice) and a nice selection of shoes from Alden and Red Wing that goes well beyond the previous meager shoe offerings.

There is one drawback to having this type of store: there is no sale merchandise. I also noticed this when I visited the New York stores in Tribeca and Soho. This keeps the sales per square foot nice and high, but it means if I'm looking for an item that's on sale, I have to order it from the web site, or hit the mall stores in the suburbs.

On the plus side, this new store is carrying the Red Wing Gentleman Traveler boots I wrote about a while back, so if nothing else I can at least try them on.