The Shop
A brief conversation yesterday got me thinking again about a business idea that I have had bouncing around inside of my head for a few years.
I've been in retail sales in one capacity or another for seventeen years. I am thirty-six, so we're talking about most of my adult life. I have a lot of experience, and there are aspects of sales that I really enjoy. I've never really been a big fan of working for other people, though, and I have never sold something that I really love (except for brief stints at Pottery Barn - where they nearly made me hate their products...nearly). There are things I would love to sell, though: really cool clothes, great hi-fi gear, vintage records, antique books, art, gourmet food products... the list could go on.
My idea, as you may have guessed is a boutique. Not just any kind of boutique though, a Man's boutique. A shop based on the idea that there are things that make a man feel good, things that make a man more appealing, and things that make a man's life more enjoyable. I'm not talking about porn, and I'm not talking about NFL-themed furniture. I'm talking about handmade dress shirts, hand-wired Japanese hi-fi components, French truffles, Japanese denim, Italian coffee... the things that make a sophisticated, stylish man grin.
I would call it, simply, "Inman." It would be housed in an old, loft-style space with subdued lighting and exposed brick and beams. There would be a DJ booth, with a DJ spinning a mix of Frank Sinatra, Radiohead and Thievery Corporation. There would be a wall for signing and leaving messages. There would be comfortable chairs in which to sit and read the paper while sipping your cappuccino (made however you like, as long as you like really hot, whole milk cappuccinos in winter, and iced whole milk cappuccinos in summer).
There would be seasonal products galore, as much locally produced stuff as I could lay hands on. One of the ideas that I like most is having a parfumier who would come in toward the end of each season to produce custom scents for my clients for the upcoming quarter. Perhaps a day scent and an evening scent for fall, composed in early August and delivered before the solstice.
The shop would also be a place where men could "hang out." Something like the old-school barbershop, but with more of an open-door policy for women, because, while the shop would cater to men, I firmly believe that a real man should always make the people around him feel welcome and comfortable, regardless of gender. Thus would the shop be the venue for all manner of soirée, always with a theme revolving around some aspect of the best life.
Someday I may have such a shop. If I do, you should expect an invitation to come and have a cappuccino on me, sit back, read the paper and listen to the music. Maybe you'll find something you (or a man in your life) can't live without.
I've been in retail sales in one capacity or another for seventeen years. I am thirty-six, so we're talking about most of my adult life. I have a lot of experience, and there are aspects of sales that I really enjoy. I've never really been a big fan of working for other people, though, and I have never sold something that I really love (except for brief stints at Pottery Barn - where they nearly made me hate their products...nearly). There are things I would love to sell, though: really cool clothes, great hi-fi gear, vintage records, antique books, art, gourmet food products... the list could go on.
My idea, as you may have guessed is a boutique. Not just any kind of boutique though, a Man's boutique. A shop based on the idea that there are things that make a man feel good, things that make a man more appealing, and things that make a man's life more enjoyable. I'm not talking about porn, and I'm not talking about NFL-themed furniture. I'm talking about handmade dress shirts, hand-wired Japanese hi-fi components, French truffles, Japanese denim, Italian coffee... the things that make a sophisticated, stylish man grin.
I would call it, simply, "Inman." It would be housed in an old, loft-style space with subdued lighting and exposed brick and beams. There would be a DJ booth, with a DJ spinning a mix of Frank Sinatra, Radiohead and Thievery Corporation. There would be a wall for signing and leaving messages. There would be comfortable chairs in which to sit and read the paper while sipping your cappuccino (made however you like, as long as you like really hot, whole milk cappuccinos in winter, and iced whole milk cappuccinos in summer).
There would be seasonal products galore, as much locally produced stuff as I could lay hands on. One of the ideas that I like most is having a parfumier who would come in toward the end of each season to produce custom scents for my clients for the upcoming quarter. Perhaps a day scent and an evening scent for fall, composed in early August and delivered before the solstice.
The shop would also be a place where men could "hang out." Something like the old-school barbershop, but with more of an open-door policy for women, because, while the shop would cater to men, I firmly believe that a real man should always make the people around him feel welcome and comfortable, regardless of gender. Thus would the shop be the venue for all manner of soirée, always with a theme revolving around some aspect of the best life.
Someday I may have such a shop. If I do, you should expect an invitation to come and have a cappuccino on me, sit back, read the paper and listen to the music. Maybe you'll find something you (or a man in your life) can't live without.
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