Since I opened my store, I have come to realize a lot of people think haberdashery means hat shop. And sure, you can buy a hat at a haberdashery, this is true.  However, haberdashery is currently an all-encompassing term for a men’s clothing store and menswear in general.

In school, I remember reading Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and learning the word haberdasher for the first time.   A haberdasher was initially a peddler who sold small articles for making clothes, such as buttons, thread and zippers.

Now, a haberdasher is a person that owns or works in a haberdashery.  I have always liked the word haberdashery and it signified an upscale men’s clothing store to me.  Somewhere you would go to buy something dandy like a well designed shirt, an alluring tie or the perfect jacket.  So, when I was planning to open a men’s designer consignment boutique, it seemed like the logical name for my store.

In High School, I became interested in current clothing trends, fashion and reinventing the classic iconic looks.  My style has evolved and changed over the years from preppy/punk to 80′s new wave to the vintage classics of the 1940′s, 1950′s and 1960′s in combination with the ever-changing current trends.  I have kept my favorite elements of some of those different time periods in combination with what’s current in my style repertoire.

My favorite look currently is a fitted dress shirt, a skinny tie and a suit vest over dark selvedge jeans with some well made leather boots and a black pea coat.  In my opinion, the look is very modern, but also has the elements of the classics.  The look is a reinvention of the classics, which to me, is a big part of what fashion is..

Todd Everett Kinner  ~  Proprietor of The Haberdashery