Shrine Haberdashers Chicago
With the explosion of online retail, it’s always exciting to find a small, local shop with a bit of personality. Enter Chicago’s Shrine Haberdashers. A little classic, a little modern, and more than a little dandyish.
Walking down Oak Street it’s one designer boutique after another. Paul Stuart’s townhouse has character, and Hermes is full of envy-worthy baubles, but most places are huge multi-national “luxury brands.” Not really our thing here at Simply Refined. But right in the middle of the street sits Shrine Haberdashers, perched on the second floor of #47.
Once inside Shrine, it’s obvious you’re not in boutique land anymore. First off, you can plop down on the decades-old Chesterfield couch and flip through the latest copy of The Rake while deliberating about which treasures you want to take home. The staff aren’t in your typical dark suit, ugly tie uniform, and actually dress like someone who might shop there. Always a good start.
Brand Manager Erik Wallace told me “Most of the fashion in this are is really contemporary and trendy. We wanted to bring something more traditional and make that fresh.” He’s wearing a jaunty floral bow tie and a few knit flowers in his pocket instead of a square. Too often “classic with a twist” is just a cliche. Shrine takes that mantra to heart and makes it something real.
Take for example their Drakes ties. The selection is pretty diverse, but it’s not your typical Drakes buy – no Ancient Madder, no foulards, and no challis. Instead it’s colorful spots and stripes all the way around. A high quality product, which the staff can speak about knowledgeably, curated to match their own personality.
Shrine Haberdashers also stock brands like Penrose, WANT les essentiels de la vie, Dents gloves, SWIMS, Francesco Maglia, Shwood, and Corgi. Everything in the spectrum from tame to outlandish is covered. Blue-ostrich handled umbrellas with silver fittings and tweed caps sit side-by-side. They also have their own line of house-branded goods, including leather goods, bow ties, and small accessories, and quality was good all around the board.
Some of the more colorful offerings, shall we say, aren’t necessarily my personal taste. That’s not strictly a bad thing, and I highly recommending stopping by Shrine if you’re in Chicago. For every piece I wasn’t crazy about, there were two I was. And above all, there is a real character about the place. It has a point-of-view, and it’s a perspective that doesn’t see anything inconsistent in taking classic items and playing with them in a new way.
Next month Shrine Haberdashers turns one year old, and here’s to wishing them a great second year.
