Location: 845 Madison Avenue, NYC
Timestamp: Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Text, Vivian G. Kelly
Image source of Tom Ford from cover of OUT Magazine
Image source of Tom Ford Store, NY Magazine.com
Image source of Private Blend Collection, Harper's Bazaar
We walked into Mr. Ford’s much-discussed NY store, located at the corner of 70th and Madison with a lot of preconceptions. Mr. Ford, rose to fame at Gucci by popularizing a slick, hard driving brand of sexuality that worked wonders for the brand and put him at the top of the fashion heap, season after season. It worked because it spoke of the zeitgest at that time.
Mr. Ford himself WAS Gucci, the handsome designer appealed to men and women alike, they both desired him and the fact that he knew it somehow made it even better.
Photo layouts of his glamorous homes and the Gucci ads themselves [which Mr. Ford also art directed] served to fuel the fire and further promote the brand.
It finally ended when Mr. Ford stepped down, professing to “burn out”, and that chapter seemed closed. After some dabbling with Hollywood and controversial spreads such as “Tom Ford’s Hollywood” for Vanity Fair, it appeared as if Mr. Ford had lost his magic.
Then came the sunglasses, which were instantly embraced by young starlets and reminded us of the kind of frenzy Mr. Ford was capable of generating at the cash register.
The glasses were a sign that Mr. Ford had NOT lost “it” and our interest in his eponymous Madison Avenue boutiques was piqued.
We entered the men’s store, somewhat skeptical and emerged 40 odd minutes later completely charmed by Samuel Vassallo, who looked great in a gray vest, shirt and trousers from the spring line. We were impressed that Mr. Vassallo, who had worked for Giorgio Armani for 13 years in Chicago left to go work at the Tom Ford store in New York. Guided by the expert Mr. Vassallo, we began our tour by trying- on numerous sunglass models, and sampling several of the scents in the Tom Ford private blend collection. Our favorite, tobacco vanille, was one of the two scents that had already sold out. In the front of the space there were three-piece hounds tooth suits that appeal to discerning dandies the world over. The vest is making a comeback. As Mr. Ford himself joked, men can use it as “a man girdle” as it hides sins incurred from too many late dinners out and not enough time at the gym to compensate for an overly indulgent lifestyle.
Mr. Ford has taken a page from Mr. Lauren’s script. When you buy Tom Ford, you are buying into the Tom Ford lifestyle. His 2-story 10,000 sq. ft. Madison Avenue space was laid out like a luxurious bachelor pad, complete with a butler’s area paneled in rare wood. It was clear that Mr. Ford had thrown himself 110% into this project. There were several pieces of his personal art collection used as part of the décor, and a beaver rug on the floor, adding to the warm chocolate tones throughout. The sitting room we were informed bears a close resemblance to the designer’s London residence. Hugh Heffner would have felt right at home lounging in the well-appointed sitting room wearing one of the gorgeous silk robes [@ $3,000] and a pair of monogrammed slippers.
Despite the recent risqué ads/layout in OUT Magazine [it was sold-out at several newsstands] and flash photography on www.tomford.com, it appears that Mr. Ford has transitioned to the next phase of his professional career. Everything in the store shouted, “quality” from the beautiful chocolate brown and gold notebook /brochure of The Private Blend Collection to the matching textured brown gift-wrapping paper, to the handsome dark brown glass apothecary style fragrance bottles.
Brad Pitt loves the brand, which according to Mr. Vassallo, has helped to generate sales among the 20 and 30-something hipsters for whom a steep price tag is of little importance when it comes to achieving the slickly urbane “Tom Ford look”. Fittingly, Mr. Ford, as Mr. Lauren, is his own best advertisement for the lifestyle he is selling. With this store, Mr. Ford has succeeded in walking out from under the shadow of Gucci and transitioned to the next phase in what we predict will be a long and interesting career.