In honor of the nation's 44th President, we have picked ourselves up, dusted ourselves off, and increased the savings on seasonal Fall merchandise from 35% to 44%. That's a savings of almost 45%!

Save 44% on selected Fall items from Bills Khakis, Ike Behar, Martin Dingman, Agave Denimsmith, and much more. Great outerwear pieces, matte alligator small leathergoods, Supima cotton henleys, casual sportshirts, belts for denim, shoes, and lots of casual pants are all ready to ship.

Quantities are very limited, but in times like these, it's safe to say that if you find something in your size, the President would approve of your contribution to the engine of commerce.

It's that time of year that still makes absolutely no sense to me: retailers put Fall & Winter merchandise (overcoats, scarves, gloves, cords, woolens, etc.) on sale to make room for the imminent arrival of Spring goods (shorts, short-sleeved shirts, madras, linen, seersucker, etc.). Yet the weather just about everywhere suggests that now would be the best time to have lots of cold-weather gear as half the country or more is snowed in. 

Nevertheless, it is with much fanfare (this blog post and an email to follow on Monday representing substantial fanfare) that we announce our semi-annual, Post-Holiday, Pre-Spring sale on seasonal merchandise. Items on sale include tasty clothing like Bills Khakis Limited Edition, Ike Behar casual shirts and ultra-soft Agave knits, accessories like a select group of discontinued Bill Lavin belts and Martin Dingman wallets (Ambrose & Matte Alligator only), and a few deals here in there in Wine & Spirits and Leisure.

Spring will bring a colorful cornucopia of new products and new brands. Expect the usual suspects: Bills Khakis Limited Edition (if ever there was a time to buy shorts, it will be this Spring from Bills), Agave knits, Ike Behar casual and their new "Havana Collection", and the return of seasonal fashion from Fairway & Greene. Brand new classifications will come from Peter Millar, and new brands like Artificial Flavor will make their debut.

Happy hunting!

The Skull & Crossbones motif has been very hot the past few years. So hot, in fact, that I was hoping it had finally jumped the shark. I'm sure some of you will say it already had, which it did; but, that doesn't mean it doesn't still sell, which, to a retailer, means it hasn't yet run its course. 

All of a sudden, Somali pirates are all over the news, and we could be in for a few more years of skull-themed ties, belts, cufflinks, and pendants. News casts have featured words I am pretty sure I have never heard uttered by professional anchors, including but not limited to "Indian frigate" and "pirate mothership". While I can't find the audio I heard, Wired wrote it up here.

I shouldn't be making fun of it, really. But the pirates say they're strictly in it for the money, and it's hard to read that interview with a real live pirate and not ponder the notion that one man's pirate is another man's Coast Guard (no disrespect to our customers that are U.S. Coast Guard). In their defense, they (the Somali pirates) did just release a Greek ship they seized over 2 months ago with all 25 crew members unharmed.

It is the time of year when many organizations buy gifts to reward their top performers. Given the year they've had, perhaps we'll add Somali pirates to our growing list of corporate customers...

...we can reflect on all of the things we are thankful for: Family. Friends. Health. TARP. Jessica Alba. Small batch bourbon. Google Reader. In that order.

Bill Lavin, whose belts we have been carrying for years now, releases dozens, if not hundreds, of new belts every year. It's tough for us to keep up. Worse yet, he doesn't seem interested in taking the time to name his belts anymore. The early days brought belts with names like "Free-Wheelin'" or "Tribute to Buddha". If you look at his dressier belt line, none of the them have names, and we're equally lazy when eager to launch new products. Hence, the romantic sounding 3-404x Belt (and others just as badly named in the Bill Lavin dress belt category). 

In our rush to get up a slew of new belts, I didn't have time to think of a profound name for a new belt printed with scenes & excerpts from three of our nation's founding documents (the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and the Bill of Rights). I called it the Tribute to Significant American Documents belt. Surely, there is a more patriotic or flattering name for a belt of this...significance.

So, as you reflect on this Thanksgiving, you might noodle a better name for this belt. Submit it as a comment here before midnight on Sunday. In return, we'll thank the best submission with a $50 gift certificate to our site. Godspeed, and a Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.