Australian Members

[appolyon]

Yeah, would be good to see the business make it through this rough period.

The more these kinds of stores close down, the less inclined others will be to open up and Australian males will continue to wallow in their slobbery for even longer ...

 

[penguin vic]

They'll make it through if they find a buyer (pretty tough call in this climate). No guarantees on what a buyer will do to the place though (aside from shutting more stores).

 

[CatsEyes]

Not sure I follow the logic that says: I'm not going to buy a suit from a shop that may soon go out of business.

What were you planning to do: take it back there every 3 months for a grease and oil change?

Or are you really saying: I don't want to own clothes with a 'dead' label on them? But isn't that a little contrary to the anti-label, anti-fashion ethos of this forum? If the clothes are good, isn't that good enough?

In any case, I voted with my credit card yesterday. I went into Herringbone's last surviving shop in the QVB in Sydney and bought (out of the dwindling stock there) a great mid-grey windowpane light-weight wool suit in 38R that fits me like a glove. $1200 full-price and excellent value. Better work on it that on an old Canali I own of a similar design, that must have cost 3 times as much.

I don't suppose that'll pull them out of receivership. But I have an excellent suit, and gave 'em a bit of support...

(Not sure the wife sees it that way, though.)

 

[GuidoWongolini]

Originally Posted by CatsEyes

Not sure I follow the logic that says: I'm not going to buy a suit from a shop that may soon go out of business.

What were you planning to do: take it back there every 3 months for a grease and oil change?

Or are you really saying: I don't want to own clothes with a 'dead' label on them? But isn't that a little contrary to the anti-label, anti-fashion ethos of this forum? If the clothes are good, isn't that good enough?

In any case, I voted with my credit card yesterday. I went into Herringbone's last surviving shop in the QVB in Sydney and bought (out of the dwindling stock there) a great mid-grey windowpane light-weight wool suit in 38R that fits me like a glove. $1200 full-price and excellent value. Better work on it that on an old Canali I own of a similar design, that must have cost 3 times as much.

I don't suppose that'll pull them out of receivership. But I have an excellent suit, and gave 'em a bit of support...

(Not sure the wife sees it that way, though.)
- One of my favourites from Herringbone, I wear it once a week & always pack that as well as a nvay suit for my business trips.
- good choice

 

[CatsEyes]

Thanks, Phat Guido. Best-fitting OTR jacket, to my taste, I've ever tried on.

 

[Tardek]

Originally Posted by appolyon

Am on the list!

How does one get on this mysterious "list"?

Whilst I do think that Herringbone's shirts are a bit overpriced, I don't think that's the reason for their problems, as there are plenty of brands in Australia selling far more poorly-made shirts than those produced by Herringbone for prices ranging from $170 to $200, and they haven't gone into voluntary administration.

Whilst I really have no idea, I suspect that Herringbone simply opened a few too many loss-making stores that cannibalised on each other's sales, and that perhaps the owners took on too much debt in the process of opening the stores. Things probably would have been alright if sales didn't slump in Q4 last year.

I heard yesterday that the VA period has been extended by another 45 days whilst various options are investigated, so Herringbone should still be around for at least another six weeks, and hopefully much longer than that!

Good info, thanks.

Not sure I follow the logic that says: I'm not going to buy a suit from a shop that may soon go out of business.

What were you planning to do: take it back there every 3 months for a grease and oil change?

Or are you really saying: I don't want to own clothes with a 'dead' label on them? But isn't that a little contrary to the anti-label, anti-fashion ethos of this forum? If the clothes are good, isn't that good enough?

None of the above. Two words: liquidation sale.

 

[tba]

Originally Posted by Tardek

How does one get on this mysterious "list"?


Just buy something from them. Your details are then added to the mailing list

 

[meister]

They have few things in the closeout store in Commonwealth St Surry Hills (next door to Billy Hyde's Drum Clinic) but it is fair trek there for very little advantage.

 

[CatsEyes]

"None of the above. Two words: liquidation sale."

Hmmm. Not sure I'd put my money on it. But good luck...

 

[appolyon]

Originally Posted by tba

Just buy something from them. Your details are then added to the mailing list

I'm pretty sure you can add yourself to the list via the website too.

 

[apropos]

Originally Posted by CatsEyes

Not sure I follow the logic that says: I'm not going to buy a suit from a shop that may soon go out of business. What were you planning to do: take it back there every 3 months for a grease and oil change? Or are you really saying: I don't want to own clothes with a 'dead' label on them? But isn't that a little contrary to the anti-label, anti-fashion ethos of this forum? If the clothes are good, isn't that good enough?
It's quite simple, actually. Hand-made suits sometimes behave.... distinctly handmade a few weeks/months down the road. Nothing to do with labels, because let's face it - labels aren't (usually) prominent things on suits anyway. Let me explain. I once picked up a Zegna jacket from the Bourke St DJs (Melbourne) - a month later, a sleeve started to come loose at the sleevehead (it happens rarely, apparently). I brought it back. They did good by me, and fixed it for free. Bang - good as new. Some other small points worth mentioning - I've lost cuff buttons before (and misplaced the spares), and had them replaced free of charge at the store. A small service, but something I really appreciate as horn buttons can be a little difficult to match. I've had advice on storing, cleaning and pressing my suits "from the horses mouth". Tailor/drycleaner recommendations. Free alterations, even a short while down the road after you've overindulged a bit during the festive season. All these, while not much individually, cumulatively push me to hesitate to pay full price for a product from a company that I know to be at serious risk of going out of business. It's almost as though there's no 'point' in building up a relationship with this company, and the only 'deciding factor' remaining is price. Unfortunately, a size 40 Herringbone suit looked tight on me, while the size 42 was loose in the shoulder, so if there are any closing-down sales I needn't apply.

 

[whistler]

Bump.

Bit of a struggle finding good-quality shoes here. The best-looking shoes I could find so far are these Florsheims:

AUD$400. Made in Spain. Salesperson couldn't tell me many details or whether they are goodyear welted.

Judging by the prices on the Florsheim website, it seems a little pricey.

 

[penguin vic]

$400 - yikes! You can get some decent (better) shoes for that price from Pediwear or Plal or Herring provided there's somewhere in Perth where you can try on C&J, Sargent, Loakes etc.

 

[AndrewRogers]

That's some nasty leather right there :S

 

[whistler]

Originally Posted by penguin vic

$400 - yikes! You can get some decent (better) shoes for that price from Pediwear or Plal or Herring provided there's somewhere in Perth where you can try on C&J, Sargent, Loakes etc.

I've heard Pediwear and Plal mentioned a few times on this forum. I'll have to check them out.