He's a snowboarder; I'm not.
He's got multiple Olympic gold medals; I've got multiple gold cufflinks. 
His nickname is the Flying Tomato; mine is the Well-Dressed Cucumber (at least when someone wants to liken me to a vegetable).
He owns a couple Lamborghini's; I drive a car that either of his cars would fit inside.
He's a 23 year old living the life of a 16 year old; let's just say I'm living the life of a gentleman 3 decades older than I am.

There is one piece of common ground, however. Last night, during NBC's Olympic coverage, which included an interview with Shaun White. And sure enough, he was wearing a pair of the Wolverine 1,000 Mile Boots. Since my last blog post was already about the 1,000 Mile Boot, I won't rehash their appeal here. Needless to say, everyone at On The Fly already owns a pair.

How long before Bob Costas places an order for a pair?

Last Fall, several blogs I follow announced the re-launch of the 1,000 Mile Boot from Wolverine. From the press release announcing their reintroduction last year...

More than 125 years ago, Wolverine founder G.A. Krause built a company on a dream of creating finely crafted footwear using the best materials of the time. Inspired by hard-working men, Krause began a footwear company that would soon innovate the industry. The first of its kind, the Wolverine 1,000 Mile shoe was created in a time when men were looking for authentic craftsmanship and footwear that would last. The Wolverine 1,000 Mile Shoe had all these characteristics as well as superior comfort. Advertised as comfortable enough to “give you 1,000 miles of wear,” the shoe became a wardrobe staple for men of the 20th century.

The 1,000 Mile Boots are made in the USA based on the original pattern. The leather is top grade North American cowhide, tanned by Horween Leather Co. The leather sole features a classic hand-stitched Goodyear welt, and stacked leather heel and outsole. They are stunning to look at, and even more compelling when you appreciate the history and the construction.

My pair finally arrived today - the 1,000 Mile Boot in Brown. No one would ever accuse me of working hard enough to require a work boot, but then again, maybe that's the point.

The only negative aspect of carrying Wolverine shoes in the store? Since I've always been a big Saturday Night Live fan, I can't stop saying, "I would like...to feed your fingertips...to the wolverines." It's immature, I know, but I can't help it.

In difficult economic times like these, there seems to be a natural tendency amongst our customers to "Buy American". It just feels better to buy something made in the U.S. when everyone knows that millions of Americans are struggling. We certainly sympathize, and try wherever we can to buy, and promote, products made in the ol' USofA.

Today, we had two gentleman enter in the store, and the first question out of their mouths was: "What's on sale?" Which is a perfectly fair question when we have Sale signs in the window and we're trying to get rid of the last pieces from Fall before Spring starts shipping. We want sale shoppers --

Specifically, they asked about Bills Khakis since they knew everything they do is made in the U.S. There is a veritable plethora of items from Bills Khakis marked down 50% right now, from pants, to sportshirts to outerwear, all made in the U.S., and a steal at half-off. Nothing on sale seemed to suit them, but they asked about the year-round stuff, which I explained does not really go on sale, which seemed to take the wind out of their sails. They lamented the fact that not much is actually made in this country anymore, while at the same time sounding unwilling to spend on anything that was.

I can understand someone not wanting to pay $100 for khakis, and I can understand someone that turns their nose up at goods made in China, but I have a tough time with someone that says they only want to buy stuff that is "Made in America", but is unwilling to pay for it. There is no possible way for an American-made clothing item to compete with a comparable Chinese product when seamstresses in Asia are making $1.00/hr. It's impossible.

So how does a company like Bills Khakis stay in business? There's lots of ways, but first and foremost, it makes a better product than what it is available elsewhere. They believe in 100% customer satisfaction. They don't change their core products that have built up an extremely loyal following after 20 years, but they introduce just enough new stuff each season to satiate their fanatics (of which I am one). Theoretically, a company could try to do what they do in Asia, cheaper, but I can guarantee they won't do it as well.

Postscript: For those keeping score, brands like Bills Khakis, Agave Denimsmith, M-Clip, Ike Behar's TAILORED Collection & C.E.O. shirts, Mulholland's Alligator & Deerskin collection, Martin Dingman belts, and Wolverine's 1,000 Mile Boots are all made by craftsmen and craftswomen in the United States of America.

P.P.S. So as not to create the impression that everything not from the above vendors is made of a lesser quality, keep in mind that many of our other brands are made in countries that take a great amount of pride in their craft, including England, Spain, Italy, and France. 

Bills Khakis is one of my favorite appointments. The people are great, the product is always great, and the company feels like what you probably think it feels like: salt-of-the-Earth, proud of what they're doing, and doing well because they take care of their customers. The Limited Edition pants they come out with for Fall are always surprisingly new and innovative (for a company that prides itself on the traditional), and they create some new products that you'd never expect. True to form, then, Fall 2010 will be no different.

Most notably, it seems as though Bills is now buying a new fabric from the same mill that produced the fabric for the khakis worn during WWII. This is noteworthy because 20 years ago, Bill Thomas set out to replicate the WWII army khaki, and had done a pretty good job with it. Now, it may get even better. The fabric may replace the Bullard Field Cloth, which has been one of their best-selling pants for years now.

Some tried-and-true favorites will return, including Dixie Wale Cords, 11 Wale Cords in Fall colors, Cavalry Twills in several colors, the Cotton Gabardine, and the holiday party pants are a heavy wool Houndstooth in cream & camel. No Alternative Corduroys this year, which was a huge bummer for me personally, but they may have some piece goods lying around from years past, and maybe On The Fly will have an exclusive small-run Party-Pants cord for this Fall.

Of the entire line, my personal favorite was a Pima Cotton Corduroy that feels like it should be a cotton/cashmere blend. They're not cheap -- $295/pair -- but having owned some Incotex Cotton/Cashmere Cords at $500/pr, they may be the value of the season if you can believe it.

On the Jacket front, there are a few sportsmanesque-coats like the one in the photo that we'll be bringing in. Additionally, through a collaboration with Cockpit USA, Bills Khakis will be introducing a couple leather bomber jackets, which we couldn't resist.

So what are the products I didn't expect? We can start with Deerskin Gloves. Not dress gloves; work gloves. In pale yellow (the ones in the photo). Yet I have no doubt we'll sell every pair.

And last but not least, there will be Retro Tees, Baseball Tees, and a ton of "khaki-eating" sportshirts, including a couple warm, winter flannels.

First delivery should arrive on August 15th. 

Today's shopping took me to a different show where I expected to just see Agave Denimsmith. After immersing myself in all the ultra-soft knits & sweaters that Agave will be shipping us for Fall, our account manager said that there were some scarves that I had to see. Now, I'm a big scarf fan, but we tried selling scarves online 2 years ago, and it was a pretty clearcut failure. Beautiful, sumptuous cashmere scarves from a well-known mill in Scotland, and we had trouble giving some of them away at 60% off. I have several hypotheses (they're an impulse item, very tactile, etc.), but at the end of the day, it makes us look like we don't know what we're doing when customers come to our store during the holidays and we don't have any scarves (in our defense, we did bring in a few this last Fall and sold them out in a week or two and could not get more). 

Anyways, one look at one of the scarves from Margo Petitti and I knew we found our new source. Most of the scarves are patchwork designs, impeccably sewn, featuring a variety of very masculine men's suiting fabrics in cashmere, wool, and silks. For those that shy away from bold patterns, one side is usually a solid fabric; the real action takes place on the other side. Each scarf is a one-of-a-kind so online customers will be taking something of a leap of faith, but having seen dozens of her scarves today in person, there wasn't one I wouldn't wear proudly. And they are sewn in the U.S. which is a plus to me.

None of the scarves we'll receive in the Fall are on the site now, but they will be a sight to see. Mark your calendar for November 1st when our first batch will arrive.

Ok, maybe it's not live from New York, but since I'm in Manhattan shopping for Fall 2010 and I've seen a couple of our most important brands, I might as well provide an update on what I've seen, starting with Peter Millar...

As a company, Peter Millar is growing fast, and by Fall, they will have a much more prominent role on our website and in our store. In addition to their golf shirts, sweaters, & driving moccasins, we will also be bringing in a few, soft-constructed sportcoats, an in-stock program of 18 different dress shirt styles, fancy trousers, neckwear, mufflers, and a handful of new leather goods.

Cashmere is one of Peter Millar's biggest classifications, and there, they have re-engineered their basic Cashmere sweater from a 2-ply to a 4-ply, while retaining the same weight (in other words, it will be a much tighter weave) and the same pricepoint ($295). The 30 Gauge Full Turtleneck we had last Fall will return, and we're buying more given how fast we sold through what we bought last Fall.

The Luxe Blend they introduced last Fall that is 90% wool/10% cashmere will return. Though I don't fish, I'm most excited about the Fisherman Knit Turtleneck. It's the heaviest sweater being offered, and can't help but evoke images of battling The Perfect Storm while remaining impeccably dressed.

Merino Wool has an updated palette of colors within the traditional V-Neck sweaters and vests, but the real action is in the pieces with personality: a full-zip sweater you'll have to see, an open-bottom cardigan stitch with a hidden zipper, a shawl-collar sweater, and a herringbone quarter-zip sweater.

In Outerwear, the big news was the introduction of pieces that incorporate Loro Piana's famed Storm System into wool coats. Windproof and water resistant, the Loro Piana Storm System is made via a patented treatment that creates an invisible barrier that causes water to bead away from the fabric and protect from dust, dirt and liquid stains. My only complaint? Let's do one piece in Loro Piana StormSystem cashmere!

And last but not least, there will be new Golf Shirts in their cotton lisle, performance yarns, a satin-washed polo, a "throwback" pique polo, and the sun washed polo, as well as woven sport shirts in a dozen styles.