A few blocks away from J. Press’s new location, another historic New Haven menswear retailer reported signs of recovery as social life returns to normal after the COVID-19 pandemic.At Enson’s Menswear at 1050 Chapel St., owner Jim Civitello has seen sales return to more than pre-pandemic levels.Selling merchandise via its website helped keep Enson’s alive […]
A few blocks away from J. Press’s new location, another historic New Haven menswear retailer reported signs of recovery as social life returns to normal after the COVID-19 pandemic.
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At Enson's Menswear at 1050 Chapel St., owner Jim Civitello has seen sales return to more than pre-pandemic levels.
Selling merchandise via its website helped keep Enson’s alive during lockdowns, Civitello said, echoing the increasing importance of e-commerce for New Haven’s historic retailers. Several years before the pandemic, iconic New Haven retailer DelMonico Hatter already made more than three-fourths of its sales online, making it one of the largest internet headwear dealers in the nation.
Civitello said he is also seeing some sales driven by people who have gained or lost weight during the pandemic and need new wardrobes.
“A lot of people are going back to work and going to weddings, so business has increased dramatically,” Civitello said. “We're actually at a point in our suit business where we're selling more than we did before.”
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Enson's owner Jim Civitello reports strong sales from upscale brands like Faherty, founded by a Yale alum. PHOTO LIESE KLEIN
Enson’s has also found success selling the creations of another archetypal “Yale Man,” Alex Faherty. A former Yale football starter, Faherty founded a sustainable clothing line in 2013, which is now sold nationwide.
“Faherty has been a very, very hot brand for us,” Civitello said. Along with Faherty, which has almost 40 standalone stores, golf wear by Greyson Clothiers and Peter Millar sportswear also sell well at Enson’s, Civitello said.
Even as the business thrives, Civitello is preparing for a big transition in the next few years – turning over his business to his son, Nick. The elder Civitello bought the business from the Enson family in the 1980s and is ready to retire.
“It's a joint thing now,” Civitello said. “Probably in the next year or so, he’ll take over completely.”
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The handover will come just in time for another big milestone: Enson’s 100th birthday.
“We've been here for so long … that we've created a customer base,” Civitello said. “The Greater New Haven area has been very loyal to us.”
