Forsaken by retail?

Sunday found me needing to go in search of new dress pants, as I wear black dress slacks five days a week and the current three pairs I have are looking a bit worse for wear. My friend Rick joined me, and we headed to North Avenue to hit the stores there.
As we stopped in the Express store (which regularly has a style of pant I can wear), I noticed a few things that I really hadn’t picked up on before. The first thing, which was indeed a new feature of the store, was the presence of an entire section of women’s denim and fashion on what had previously been an entire floor dedicated to menswear. Not only was there this new section, but men’s was now shifted to be the last section of the store, relegated to the back, as if it were something to be ashamed of.
Then I discovered that my size was nowhere to be found, so I had to ask for it to be brought from the stock room. When they did find my size, there was one pair. And when I asked for my size in an alternate fit, I was told it was out of stock… and all of their nearby locations. Rubbing salt in the wound, the guy at checkout chirped,”All pants are Buy One get one at half off, don’t you want a second pair?” I barely held my contempt in check as I coughed up $100 for pants that really weren’t what I wanted. Needless to say, my shopping experience was a casualty of the downsizing. It sucked.
Sadly, this trend is an issue that it growing more and more frustrating every time I venture to a store for clothes. In retail, the average male shopper is not taken into account. Fashion is either bland or so skewed to the young, and sizing… everything is now geared to the skinny and slim. There’s no variety for an average slightly overweight thirty-something guy like me. To wit- Rick tried on a pea coat which fit him in the sleeve length, but was cut so short and slim it looked a bit awkward on him. ‘All I see are small and medium, and even the large and XL are small,” he mused aloud, and I agree. Not every guy is wanting the super slender anorexic cut in jeans and shirts. In fact shopping for clothes and finding the words ‘fitted’ and ‘slim cut’ on the label can be a real buzz kill.
Worse is finding a favorite retailer has decided that you are no longer a size deemed worthy of carrying in the store. I need a 30 inseam for all of my pants. I’m discovering that Banana Republic, and more recently, Gap, are no longer carrying my waist size/ inseam in store. “Sorry, that’s online only,” I was told by a hapless sales clerk not two weeks ago when my Rick and I were shopping for clothes for our upcoming vacation. I had to come home, go online, and wait five to eight days for my pants, hoping they fit right. Luckily they did, but frustrating it was, particularly since one of the colors I wanted in the pant wasn’t offered online.
Granted, I’ve put on a bit of weight in my recent years, and have gone up a size (or two, depending on the store). I was able to admit that to Rick after our Express disaster today as I licked my wounds with a coffee and pumpkin muffin at Starbucks. Regardless of this, it’s still a crime to make a man feel inferior or a freak of nature by not making clothing that fits, or worse, not making it readily available. I remember my years in retail and how we bent over backwards to make womens’ fashion all inclusive for every shape and size. Now on the other side, I’m seeing the same attention is not being paid to the male shopper. It’s sad, it’s depressing, and it’s only getting worse.
The coda to my outing today: after our dismal experience at Express, I found a happy ending, with not one but three dress pants at the Men’s Wearhouse, and at a far better deal. Needless to say, my Express slacks were returned within an hour of being bought. They were cheerful if a bit confused about the quick return, and remain clueless to my plight. But as I walked out, I felt vindicated a little by my refusual to accept mediocre fitting clothes.
Take that, skinny bitch store.

Belle & Sebastian Write About Love

Belle & Sebastian- the band, not the boy and his dog- are returning after four years with a new disc this October, called Belle & Sebastian Write About Love. On their website, they feature a short form video which introduces us to two new tracks and features a Q&A about making the new album. On September 7, iTunes will release their first single here in the US, “Write About Love”, with the group’s website having it for free for a limited time.
I’m excited for the new tunes, and am loving the first track they previewed, ‘I Want The World To Stop.’ It’s immediately new music you should love. They are writing about love. Makes sense, right?
Enjoy!

And as a bonus, this is the second track they previewed, ‘I Didn’t See it Coming’.