Now, brief reports on what I saw. Obviously this is a personal and eccentric view, and PLEASE do not shoot the messenger:
1) Lobb: I found amusing to see a woman who spoke Spanish, obviously South American, count out "600, 700, 800..." in cash to the salesman. And I am sure he was amused too. For some reason I was not inspired by the shoes, but this could be a function of my not looking too closely and also my knowing most of the standard Northampton models that the manufacturers offer, from my Internet activities and purchases. I did not notice the more distinctive models that caught my fancy in the Photojournal of this site.
2) Barney's: The Battistoni section is so small. I really need those mannequins to inspire me. Besides I am really not into RTW anymore. I asked for Merola gloves, since when they were mentioned here I called the company and they said Barney's carried their products and they no longer sell directly to the public. Blank stares.
3) Venanzi: A beautiful space and a gracious salesman, perhaps the owner or director? A very narrow and boring selection of EG's, for the same reason as Lobb, I think I am immune to the standard models now. I wonder about the English bespoke thing, it is a nice addition to the NYC scene (not for me, but if I lived in NYC).
4) Stephen Kempton: I stopped in by chance on my way to J Kos. Kempton is a nice fellow, if a bit solicitous. He wanted to order Cleverly models for me because he had so few in stock, but I admitted I might not be worth it and he said "Only you can know." Well, I am an impulse purchaser in retail off the Net, so unless I see it, I won't buy. The shoes were fine but again, I was not inspired. Okay, here is the big news. He claims Cleverly RTW are made by Crockett. His Italian-made bespoke was very attractive with over-the-top handwork.
5) J Kos: Kos himself was there and this guy is wound TIGHT. He went on and on about how he hated Ask Andy participants (too obsessed with unimportant details) and American consumers (obsessed with brands). He freaked out when I asked about his selling Castangia and denied everything. He said something about his customers' "just trusting him" and he saw no reason for people's looking deeper, though he said they should recognize the evident quality of his goods. He was wearing an Irish linen suit from Drapers by the way, a little lighter-weight and darker than my own. I prefered his color to mine, though perhaps his shop's light was flattering. I think I would be afraid to purchase clothing from him (that I might say something that would enrage him). But oddly enough, I saw nothing unusual about the prices. In fact, he has some good deals on Weston loafers.
6) Bergdorfs: Disappointing. There are no RTW Castangia models to see. Blank stares on Merola gloves (another store Merola said sells their goods). The Charvet shop was nice, with a beautiful blazer displayed (I wonder who made it), the fabric was nice and it had lots of handwork, price quite high.
7) Turbull: very gracious staff. I saw the CJ Handgrades. I have seen them on the web and there were no surprises.
Oxxford: store was closed so I had to skip it. Same for Hertzfelds.I have one question and one thought. I was looking for knit ties and I wondered, does any particular person make a better knit tie? I saw them at Charvet, T and A, and Kos and they were all similar, they all said that only a few people make them for all the labels.
My thought is this: there is no shortage of beautiful bespoke tailors to be had in NYC. I think the competition for bespoke dollars is ferocious in NYC and that is why the vendors I met seemed high-strung.
Well that was "David's most excellent NYC adventure."