Harry Rosen is a real gentleman

[hypostatic]

Originally Posted by GucciKid

Even if the salesman are a bit douchey, Harry's kicks the crap out of Holt's for high-end menswear. To me Holts seems like it's becoming more of a high-end streetwear type of place lately, with its massive jean section, a whole section downstairs dedicated to diesel, and another streetwear-y section with brands like BOO.

Holt's doesn't carry RLPL anymore, and don't have much RLBL at all. While at Harry's you've got brands like Cucinelli, Loro Piana, Borelli, Kiton, Tom Ford etc.

I was in the Holt's at Yorkdale the other day and they didn't have ONE solid necktie. Not even in their house brand.

I see what you're saying about the whole streetwear thing, but I hardly think the corner room with BOO and Burberry Prorsum can be categorized the same way. It's regrettable that they've stopped carrying some of the more exclusive brands like Dior Homme, which, as far as I know, no one else in the city sells. Don't forget, they have a huge men's suiting section on the main floor, with Etro, PS, Prada, etc....

I like Harry Rosen, but anything above the main floor is way out of my budget, and I doubt they sell very much of it. The Tom Ford section looks almost identical at the end of the season as it does at the beginning.

 

[Recoil]

Originally Posted by GucciKid

Even if the salesman are a bit douchey, Harry's kicks the crap out of Holt's for high-end menswear. To me Holts seems like it's becoming more of a high-end streetwear type of place lately, with its massive jean section, a whole section downstairs dedicated to diesel, and another streetwear-y section with brands like BOO.

Holt's doesn't carry RLPL anymore, and don't have much RLBL at all. While at Harry's you've got brands like Cucinelli, Loro Piana, Borelli, Kiton, Tom Ford etc.

I was in the Holt's at Yorkdale the other day and they didn't have ONE solid necktie. Not even in their house brand.

Holt's carries PL at the Bloor store, and that's really the only store that counts because every other store is just a pared down version of Bloor. BL didn't have many new offerings this season that weren't streetwear so there wasn't much for Holt's to bring in. I think they got seriously burned last season with the amount of BL product they had to discount, heck, there is a 40R Navy Blazer at their outlet store in Vaughn that hasn't moved yet, so I think they cut back on the suiting for this season. You are dealing with a very American product being sold in a very Canadian city. RL suiting doesn't have the appeal in Toronto that other major comparable brands have. They tend to sell more of the casual wear. Torontonians want big Italian name suits.

 

[oneeightyseven]

Originally Posted by LVoer

Torontonians want big Italian name suits.

This. In Toronto the consensus is that Italian = best.

 

[oneeightyseven]

Originally Posted by somatoform

Then there's the shoes which are far superior to Harry Rosen's over-valued reliance on Allen Edmonds.

totally agree since they began selling Lobbs (IIRC this is their second year doing so). They also sell better sneakers, i.e Lanvin (

).

 

[Albern]

Originally Posted by oneeightyseven

I'm not loud, but I do shop on the lower level. That's where they keep the Lobbs

and other SW&D items. Never really been higher than the main entrance; what's upstairs?

It's perfectly fine if you shop there but just from my casual observations there are a lot of annoying people there; more than Harry's to some extent.

The upper levels are all women's clothing and the mezzanine (?) is full of women's shoes and overcoats if I remember correctly. I only stay on the main and lower levels if I'm ever there.

Originally Posted by somatoform

In my experience, yes.


I wonder what the going rates are for custom stuff down in the basement. I remember inquring about getting a custom made leather jacket at Harry Rosen on Bloor by the Italian tailor they have down there who makes a wicked espresso. Tons of swatches and what not. But I can't remember the price they quoted me. Andrew Marc simply was not working for me: nice leather, but very billowy at the waist, so they recommended custom.

They did let me try on Eric Lindros' half-complete suede blazer (at least this is what they said). He must be a big boy because I'm big but this was quite big one me. Nice jacket to. This was in 2003.

When was the last time you've been on Bloor? They did a massive renovation about 2 to 3 years ago and as far as I know all the MTM / bespoke stuff is done on the 4th floor now. The basement mainly has all the lower end stuff like Boss, Zegna Sport, etc...

From what I've seen prices for bespoke are identical to other true bespoke master tailors in the city (which are very few from what I've been seeing / reading). $3,500 to $4,000 to start if I remember correctly.

 

[SeriousBusiness]

Originally Posted by Albern

Great story, thanks for sharing. It's too bad the nice things you said about Mr. Rosen cannot be reiterated to a number of his sales staff; especially the ones at Bloor Street.

The ones in Edmonton are some of the laziest salespeople I've seen in any store.

Now to be fair, the last two times I've stopped in, they've had new people who have been very pleasant so maybe they cleaned house there.

 

[Albern]

Originally Posted by oneeightyseven

This. In Toronto the consensus is that Italian = best.

That and the fact that nearly all men downtown wear black suits.

Driving in or out of downtown I'm always thinking "who died?"

 

[Albern]

Originally Posted by SeriousBusiness

The ones in Edmonton are some of the laziest salespeople I've seen in any store.

Now to be fair, the last two times I've stopped in, they've had new people who have been very pleasant so maybe they cleaned house there.

Well, personally I might take laziness over snobbery any day. What were they doing or not doing that made them lazy? Hopefully things will improve over there with the new blood like you say.

 

[GQgeek]

Originally Posted by EL72

I met Harry Rosen this weekend and thought I'd share the story and some observations:

I have a great Samuelsohn navy sportcoat in very soft wool/cashmere from Rosen that happens to be unlined. The absence of a lining means that there is very little stitching attaching the side pockets (only on top), which continually pull at the seams from the weight of stuff in the pockets (another great reason for patch pockets but I digress). So the fabric at the top edges of the pockets has begun to tear and unravel and I decided to go to the store so they could fix it.

I was wearing said jacket and was going up the escalator (in the Bloor St. flagship) when I notice an older man who nods at me. I recognized Harry and smiled so he introduced himself and shook my hand. He then complimented me on my jacket so I took the opportunity to tell him that the reason I was here was because of an issue with the jacket and he asked to take a look. After seeing the problem, he said they would definitely take care of it. He called the head tailor right away (in the midst of a busy sat. afternoon no less) and discussed ways to repair the jacket. He wrote out a repair ticket and handed the jacket directly to the tailor and told me that since he had bypassed the regular computer system, he would follow-up himself with the tailor and call me directly when the jacket was ready, and gave me his card.

We chatted a bit about the origins of my name and some of the people he knew of Sephardic heritage. He also lamented the fact that he could not find any tailors to replace the few aging Italian gentlemen who are left and how no one in North America wants to be a tailor, compared to Naples where it's viewed as a higher status profession and is still attracting new recruits...

Harry was very pleasant and it was comforting to see a man, in a store that bears his name, who still cared enough about service to help someone out with a jacket that needed mending. He was a real gentleman throughout so I thought I'd share. He also made me want to buy stuff so I browsed a bit and here are a few observations of interest to SF:

Zegna has a new suit cut (Savile fit) that features A LOT of waist suppression, much more than their Milano (or of course Roma) cut. The shoulders are however relatively soft, though not as soft as the Milano. It's a nice hybrid sort of cut but I could barely button the 38R so it will be a tough sell imo.

Tramezza have jacked their prices again and the shoes I saw at Rosen were now $1,300+!! WTF?! They are great shoes and I love Tramezzas but thought it was nuts when they went from $650 to $900+ but $1,300 is just insane imo. I don't know whose paying those prices but the shoes are still the same construction as five years ago so I don't see how they can justify the increase since I don't think the market will bear such a price.

Scott Rivard is a pretty great guy too. Don't know if you've ever dealt with him. I actually met Harry very briefly in Montreal once. I think the store is languishing under his son. They don't take any chances and their pricing stinks. There isn't a chance in hell tramezzas are worth $1300. And their only other options near that price are crap like a.testoni. Where are the lobbs and EGs at? I'm still waiting.

Originally Posted by oneeightyseven

totally agree since they began selling Lobbs (IIRC this is their second year doing so). They also sell better sneakers, i.e Lanvin (

).

Holt's has Lobbs now? Are the prices exhorbitant compared to what the go for in other cities. There's a store in Montreal that caries EGs but they mark them up heavily from the normal EG prices.

 

[somatoform]

Originally Posted by Albern

When was the last time you've been on Bloor?

2003, actually

I stopped going to Bloor so much when I discovered the wonderfull world of free mall parking, though I have been to Holts on Bloor a bunch of times. Come to think of it, I haven't been to Bloor period (no Holts, Harry, nothing) in about 1 year.

 

[Albern]

Originally Posted by somatoform

2003, actually

I stopped going to Bloor so much when I discovered the wonderfull world of free mall parking, though I have been to Holts on Bloor a bunch of times. Come to think of it, I haven't been to Bloor period (no Holts, Harry, nothing) in about 1 year.

haha... I don't blame you. I hate paying for parking myself, especially to the private lots. Here's a trick you might want to try should you feel a fleeting fancy to go back to Bloor. Drive up Avenue Road, go past Bloor and park at Hazelton Lanes. For over a year now they've been doing this parking promotion where if you swipe in and out with your credit card rather than punching in with a ticket, parking is free for 90 minutes. From there it's just a 5 to 8 minute walk to Harry's et al. It's my main parking spot when I'm there and there's usually spot available throughout the day.

Besides this, Bloor being the largest; I believe it has the largest selection. Mind you I've haven't had the urge to shop there since discovering SF and B&S.

 

[oneeightyseven]

Originally Posted by GQgeek

Holt's has Lobbs now? Are the prices exhorbitant compared to what the go for in other cities. There's a store in Montreal that caries EGs but they mark them up heavily from the normal EG prices.

between 1200-1700. Brackleys go for ~1250(IIRC) and some of the nicer models are more.

 

[oneeightyseven]

Originally Posted by Albern

That and the fact that nearly all men downtown wear black suits.

Driving in or out of downtown I'm always thinking "who died?"

unfortunately, this is true. A majority of Torontonians are not very well put together when it comes to their suits. However, in my experience, the sentiment of "Italian reigns supreme" is even held by those who can put together a successful outfit.

 

[oneeightyseven]

Originally Posted by Albern

haha... I don't blame you. I hate paying for parking myself, especially to the private lots. Here's a trick you might want to try should you feel a fleeting fancy to go back to Bloor. Drive up Avenue Road, go past Bloor and park at Hazelton Lanes. For over a year now they've been doing this parking promotion where if you swipe in and out with your credit card rather than punching in with a ticket, parking is free for 90 minutes. From there it's just a 5 to 8 minute walk to Harry's et al. It's my main parking spot when I'm there and there's usually spot available throughout the day.

Besides this, Bloor being the largest; I believe it has the largest selection. Mind you I've haven't had the urge to shop there since discovering SF and B&S.

Doesn't Holt's have a valet service? I've never used it, but I assume its free? (says complimentary on their sign)

 

[Albern]

Originally Posted by oneeightyseven

unfortunately, this is true. A majority of Torontonians are not very well put together when it comes to their suits. However, in my experience, the sentiment of "Italian reigns supreme" is even held by those who can put together a successful outfit.

Exactly. The whole sentiment in Toronto has been focused on Italy. Even when I started taking the time to better educate myself on tailored clothing I found a lot of people "in the know" to be of this belief. "What about the English?" I say, and blank stares is all I get. Oddly enough, as the phrase goes - the English want to be more like the Italians and the Italians want to be more like the English.

I too am leaning more towards the English tradition over the Italian one but I'm still having trouble grasping the distinguishing concept between the two.

Originally Posted by oneeightyseven

Doesn't Holt's have a valet service? I've never used it, but I assume its free? (says complimentary on their sign)

They do and Rosen does as well. For me I think that the valet service is for paying customers only and when I'm there it's only to look around. Plus, I don't mind parking further as it allows me to walk and just look around too. Unfortunately with the colder weather now, women are covering up more or staying indoors entirely.