For the second year in a row now, On The Fly will have a temporary "pop-up shop" open in 1 Embarcadero Center in San Francisco's Financial District, right next door to our original store on the Street Level. It will feature leather goods from Mulholland, Martin Dingman, S.T. Dupont, Barbour, Dunhill (coming Tuesday), and maybe another brand or two before Thanksgiving...

The store is chock-full of luggage, wallets, business cases, a few leather jackets, and small gift ideas like flasks, valets, domino cases, corkscrews, and wine bottle carriers. 

The lease was signed last Tuesday. We got keys on Wednesday. The store will open Monday. And while it will only exist for 46 days, we did come up with a name we like:  Baggage Claim by On The Fly.

If you like the smell of leather, come on by -- the air is free!

For ever, we've considered the Change Base "the gift that no one realizes they need until they have one; then they wonder how they ever lived without it." But I've tended to think of the change base (a.k.a. Valet, a.k.a Catch-all) as purely an accessory of the home.

If you asked most Wingtip members, though, they'd probably say they consider the club their home-away-from-home. I do. Whether I'm in a suit or not, I always have my cell phone, breast pocket wallet, and keys with me. With 80-degree weather in San Francisco of late, I'm also carrying sunglasses. Up until now, I've removed my wallet, keys, phone, and sunglasses, and I usually set them on the bar, side table, or coffee table in front of me. It works, but it shouldn't be the Wingtip way. 

So yesterday, we introduced some Mulholland Brothers Change Bases to the club. As members sat at the bar, they were offered one to temporarily collect their "everyday carry." Feedback was all positive. Not a big deal, but sometimes it's about the little things...

I'm in Scotland for the next two weeks, which, ironically, will likely mean I'll have more time to blog than when I'm at the store. True to form, I waited till the morning of the trip to start packing, which reminded me in part* why the company is called "On The Fly."

I am not the world's best planner, so naturally I checked weather.com for the 10 day forecast in Scotland and discovered it's going to rain 9 of the 10 days — and my umbrella was at the store. Despite owning dress shoes in every shade of brown discovered by mankind, I don't own a pair of casual brown shoes. I wasn't going to take my laptop which meant I needed something casual to cart around my iPad 2, umbrella, sunglasses and other essentials. So the taxi to the airport had to make one stop — at the store — for me to pick up a pair of Michael Toschi SUV2's in brown, a Davek umbrella, a Mulholland Waxed Canvas Angler's Bag, and a new Peter Millar golf shirt for my round at the New Course at St. Andrews just because.

So long story short, everything I'm taking — luggage, clothing, accessories, shaving products — except for my toothbrush & toothpaste was obtained at On The Fly. Perfect for the gentleman "on the go." Especially the one that doesn't have the foresight to plan ahead.

* A few weeks back, a wrote a post mentioning that "Boothroyd's" was on a long list of potential names for the store; that entry resulted in 2 of the 5 people that read this blog to ask for the back story of On The Fly. So I'll write that up on this trip too between scotch tastings and golf.

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, we consider ourselves 37.5% flattered. Of the 8 holiday gifts for your favorite golfer suggested by Golf Digest's "Mr. Style", On The Fly carries 3 of them.

All three are long-time best-sellers of ours. The Mulholland Brothers Flat Shave Kit is the #1 dopp kit we sell, available in 4 different leathers and 3 different scratch-proof/water-proof polyvinyls.

Davek umbrellas have been flying off the shelf since wet weather has kicked in across the country, but the true golfer might prefer the Davek Golf Umbrella that has the hidden spike to keep your umbrella grounded while you take your shot. All Davek umbrellas come with a lifetime warranty, and a Loss Prevention card that gets you a 2nd umbrella at 50% off.

And while Mr. Style picks out the 30-gauge Cashmere Zip Sweater, any of Peter Millar's sweaters would make a fantastic gift. Our favorite for this season is the classic cable with a zip for a twist, available here in Oatmeal or Black.

See the spread in this month's Golf Digest here.

It's been a while since I've shared one of my many neuroses, but a recent purchase by one of San Francisco's most discerning customers has forced me to weigh in on a purchase of his.

Will Boehlke's blog, A Suitable Wardrobe, is a daily must-read for me and thousands of other men obsessed with clothing. For those that know how particular I can be about my clothing, Will has me beat by an order of magnitude. I have custom suits, shirts, shoes, and cufflinks, but Will would add custom ties, socks, suspenders, pyjamas, and other accoutrement to that list. He literally travels the globe to acquire exactly the item he needs to plug a singular, specific hole in his wardrobe.

So it was an honor to have him reach out to On The Fly when he was in the market for a new laptop bag. I shared many of my thoughts on the various business case options we offer, and he ended up with a stellar choice: Mulholland Brothers' Deerskin Slim Laptop (pictured). I could make a very strong case that this is the finest bag we have to offer based on style and durability, but I'll do that another day; Will's review is here.

Enough about Will; let's talk about my neuroticism. The death knell for Will's last bag was a broken shoulder strap, which we can probably all relate to. Except I never use a shoulder strap if I'm in a suit or sport coat. I think of a leather strap crushing the shoulders of a nice suit jacket or sport coat the same way hardcore animal activists think about eating meat: it's cruel and inhumane. For gentlemen like Will, who have personally met the tailors that will hand-sew their bespoke suits, the only thing that has prevented me from losing all faith in humanity is the hope that Will only uses a shoulder strap when sans coat. This isn't like putting ketchup on a Charlie Trotter steak; this is like walking into the freezer and grinding up the filet into hamburger meat. Decorum is the only thing keeping me from making references to clubbing baby seals.

I understand the enormous benefits of the shoulder strap, and I use one regularly with my weekend bag when not wearing a suit or sportcoat, so I'm hoping that Will just wants the option to attach the shoulder strap when he's dressed more casually (note: that is a relative statement since casual dress for Will is a two-piece suit).

In all seriousness, though, if Will says a suit will survive a shoulder strap, I may need to consider getting over this particular neurosis.

At Quality Logo Products, you can buy a leather business card wallet for $4.83. On our site, you can buy the Hlaska version for $75. Are we insane? What can you possibly be paying for?

The all-too-common answer to a question like this is, "You're paying for the name." And sure, a brand name can add a premium to any product, but it usually represents a small fraction of the price. Even strong brands recognize that most customers, especially affluent consumers, also look for value. That is to say, they'll buy nice, expensive things, but only if they are confident that they are also high-quality things.

The real answer to the question "What are you paying for?" is "Everything". Design, materials, construction, techniques, labor costs; and lastly, if the brand believes a slight premium can be added without scaring off consumers, a brand "tax" might be added [think of the premium Apple charges for the iPod even though there are arguably more functional MP3 players on the market].

We hope to make the "Makings Of..." articles a recurring series that will focus on the details - the excruciating details - of what makes the products we sell special. The first category to get covered is something near and dear to every gentleman's pants: his wallet. The Makings of a Quality Wallet explores many of the little details that explain why one "leather wallet" might sell in the single digits, and another in the triple digits. I suspect a few of the findings will surprise you, and will hopefully stick with you when you're in the market for a new way to carry your cash.