Simply put, if you're anywhere close to Boston, you must go to Morigi Milano in Chestnut Hill if you meet the following criteria:
1. You salivate at names like La Vera Sartoria Napoletana, Sartoria Partenopea, E. Marinella, Arny's, and Edward Green.
2. You long for days when a store's jubilant Italian proprietor knows everything under the sun about the clothes he's selling (and the Italian clothing industry) and treats you with old-world hospitality the minute you walk into his shop.
3. You enjoy getting esoteric Neapolitan brands at a discount.
Morigi Milano is a small shop in the beautiful Chestnut Hill area outside of Boston that made my 8 hour drive from Washington DC an absolute no-brainer. I'd been in contact with Vittorio, the owner, after buying a beautiful flannel 3pc Partenopea suit off his eBay store that needed a more conservative counterpart in my closet. He only kept about 5% of his inventory online, and, fascinated by the chance to try on La Vera and Partenopea suits and jackets at eBay pricing, I decided that I-95 was calling my name. So I made an appointment for Saturday (the store is closed to the public for August as any good Italian would do), drove north under the guise that I was primarily going to see old friends with a small clothes jaunt on the side (it was, in fact, the opposite) and the minute I stepped into the store I awed.
Great little shop, beautiful clothes, and the owner is a real charmer. He greeted me with an espresso and some jackets to try on to gauge my size. A few minutes later we started looking over his inventory. I'd never seen so much La Vera and Partenopea stuff in my life so I immediately sartoriagasm'd at the selection. Granted, I believe most of his things come from overstock or past season, so there's some garrish stuff, but it keeps his prices extremely reasonable.
After 3 hours trying things on, sharing a cigarette, discussing the Borelli family, Bostonomics, and the insatiable Japanese taste for La Vera, I ended up with a 40R solid navy Partenopea suit and a knit Marinella tie. And Vittorio ended up with an elated, loyal customer. I will be going back sooner rather than later.
Definitely check the place out if you get the chance.
1. You salivate at names like La Vera Sartoria Napoletana, Sartoria Partenopea, E. Marinella, Arny's, and Edward Green.
2. You long for days when a store's jubilant Italian proprietor knows everything under the sun about the clothes he's selling (and the Italian clothing industry) and treats you with old-world hospitality the minute you walk into his shop.
3. You enjoy getting esoteric Neapolitan brands at a discount.
Morigi Milano is a small shop in the beautiful Chestnut Hill area outside of Boston that made my 8 hour drive from Washington DC an absolute no-brainer. I'd been in contact with Vittorio, the owner, after buying a beautiful flannel 3pc Partenopea suit off his eBay store that needed a more conservative counterpart in my closet. He only kept about 5% of his inventory online, and, fascinated by the chance to try on La Vera and Partenopea suits and jackets at eBay pricing, I decided that I-95 was calling my name. So I made an appointment for Saturday (the store is closed to the public for August as any good Italian would do), drove north under the guise that I was primarily going to see old friends with a small clothes jaunt on the side (it was, in fact, the opposite) and the minute I stepped into the store I awed.
Great little shop, beautiful clothes, and the owner is a real charmer. He greeted me with an espresso and some jackets to try on to gauge my size. A few minutes later we started looking over his inventory. I'd never seen so much La Vera and Partenopea stuff in my life so I immediately sartoriagasm'd at the selection. Granted, I believe most of his things come from overstock or past season, so there's some garrish stuff, but it keeps his prices extremely reasonable.
After 3 hours trying things on, sharing a cigarette, discussing the Borelli family, Bostonomics, and the insatiable Japanese taste for La Vera, I ended up with a 40R solid navy Partenopea suit and a knit Marinella tie. And Vittorio ended up with an elated, loyal customer. I will be going back sooner rather than later.
Definitely check the place out if you get the chance.
But no, I had not heard of this shop before. - B
