The F/W 20 Line Has Given Me Hope for the Future of J.Crew Mens
Obituaries for J.Crew abounded online for the past six months. Some were mournful and some bid good riddance but most were somewhere in-between. After news broke in April that the iconic Americana brand was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in an attempt to renegotiate their staggering debt, it seemed like everyone had something to say about it. Tragic irony unfolded as so many people suddenly cared about a brand that appeared to be hemorrhaging customers for years. By mid-summer, J.Crew’s dead horse had really taken a beating. The only unanimous opinion that I came across in these articles was that regardless of how the Chapter 11 proceedings played out, the J.Crew we all knew and loved was gone.
Now, it appears that pessimism may have been premature. First J.Crew came to favorable terms with their creditors. Without diving into the complexities of the situation, the bankruptcy negotiations shaked out as well as could be expected. Some stores were closed (which probably should have been closed anyway), leases were re-negotiated on others, payrolls were cut back, and ownership shifted. But the customer facing side of the business was allowed to pretty much carry on as they were. Then I took a look at the Men’s F/W 20 line and a pleasant thought crept up on me: this stuff is good… like really good. While I cannot speak for the Women’s line, I can say for sure that J.Crew Men’s is not dead yet.
Now for a quick disclaimer: This subject is personal to me because I spent over seven years working for J.Crew in their Men’s line. When I joined the company in 2012 they were one of the most respected clothing brands in the world. Then a chain of events unfolded that saw a gradual decline in the quality of the product and sharp drop-off in profit margins. I was as harsh a critic as anyone as I watched the decline from within. Mistakes were made at all levels, fingers were pointed from both inside and outside the company, and eventually heads rolled.
The designers, merchants, and planners that created J.Crew’s current Men’s collection are several degrees removed from the brand’s peak at the beginning of last decade. From one perspective, they had the easy task of just not making a bigger mess than they were left with. A series of calamitous decisions were made during the previous CEO’s administration that alienated many of J.Crew Mens’ core customers. From another perspective, they faced the daunting task of winning those customers back by recreating the glory days. To the benefit of menswear enthusiasts everywhere, they took on that latter challenge by leaning heavily on J.Crew’s vast archive.
The F/W 20 line plays like a mixtape of the Men’s lines greatest hits from the past decade with some 80’s and 90’s classics peppered in. A chunky cardigan, a vintage-style military jacket, and heavy pairing of denim and suiting are some of the homages paid to former Men’s creative director Frank Muytjens. Cable knit cashmere sweaters, 100% cotton selvedge denim, and peak lapel jackets, are back after missing from the lineup for far too long. If you squint a little bit, you can hardly tell the current line apart from the vaunted 2011, 2012 and 2013 F/W lines.
Before we get ahead of ourselves though, there are some crucial differences between old and new J.Crew. The two key factors are material quality and price point. After all, the fashion world has changed completely in the past decade and J.Crew’s failure to keep up is what got the company in trouble in the first place. Prices have been lowered almost across the board to make the brand more approachable. For example, the Japanese selvedge denim is now $158 compared to the $205 it used to cost and cashmere cable knits have dropped from $225 to $188. The catch is that with those price drops come a drop in material quality compared to a decade ago. Market factors have made it impossible for a traditional retail brand to offer top quality materials at mid-tier prices. The good news is that garment quality has improved compared to the previous few years. It appears that the creative teams have struck an acceptable balance in quality and price, which is no small feat in today’s fashion world.
Another obvious difference from a decade ago is the lack of third party items. During Mickey Drexler’s reign as CEO, J.Crew Men’s became known for partnerships with elite heritage brands like Alden and Belstaff, hip start-up brands like Hillside and Billy Kirk, and hard to find foreign brands like Engineered Garments and Private White. These kinds of elite third-party relationships are expensive to maintain and do more for a retailers image than their profit margin. Almost all of these partnerships (with the notable exception of Alden) ceased as their contracts expired after Drexler stepped down from CEO. For the past few years, J.Crew has maintained a “marketplace” on their website in which they offer goods sold directly from other brands, much the way Amazon does, but with very mixed results. Given J.Crew’s ongoing predicament, it was a smart move to focus on reviving their own brand for the time being.
J.Crew Mens played a leading role in the Menswear Renaissance a decade ago. They were the gateway drug for American men who got hooked on fashion, myself included. That iteration of the brand lives only in nostalgia now and dwelling on the past had never done anyone any good. The men who obsessively shopped J.Crew back then have graduated onto designers like Todd Snyder and Billy Reid while getting their import fix from End. The F/W 20 menswear line is not for them, it’s for the next generation of men to seek out and stumble upon as they discover their own style. From what I’ve seen in this new line, this new generation is in capable hands.
As for us grumpy old menswear enthusiasts who wrote J.Crew off months or even years ago, it’s time to reconsider. I admit that, for a long time now, I’ve had little hope for the future of one of my favorite brands. Now the future looks promising and I hope that the current Men’s team can keep up the good work. I also might have to pick up that espresso peak lapel corduroy suit.