🔒Suiting Up: J. Press moves to new Elm Street location as New Haven menswear retailers rebound

When is a suit not just a suit?

When it is a navy chalk-stripe model with classic “Ivy League” tailoring, stitched in North America and designed to last for decades – if not a lifetime.

That’s what menswear retailer J. Press is selling at its new location at 262 Elm St. in New Haven, along with wool scarves, vintage-looking Yale merch and lots of classic sportswear long considered the essence of “preppy” style.

But be sure to check your credit limit – that J. Press suit costs $950, and few items in the store fall below triple digits in price.

“It's expensive, yes,” said J. Press Assistant Manager Carl Casuga. “But you have to think of it as an investment because that suit will last you years, you can pass it down to your grandchildren. It never goes out of style.”

The suits are also easy to wear during long workdays, said fellow Assistant Manager Stephen Mason, who wore J. Press for 33 years practicing law in Los Angeles before taking a job at the New Haven store. He fell in love with the brand after buying his first wardrobe there in 1984, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather.

“It's very comfortable,” Mason said, modeling his own three-button Ivy League suit jacket. “I would call it restrained elegance,” he said of the signature J. Press look. “It's not something that is speaking loudly.”

Historic roots

High quality at premium prices is what J. Press has been selling since it first opened on York Street in New Haven in 1902, launching a brand that became a signature look for “Yale men” and business leaders in the decades since.

The J. Press tailored look helped shape what is considered an American suit and has influenced the look of men’s office wear across the globe. (The brand does not sell women’s clothing, although many of the items are functionally unisex.)

But all that history and tradition couldn’t save J. Press from 2013’s Winter Storm Nemo, which dumped 34 inches of snow onto its century-old building at 262 York St., in a February blizzard. The weight of the snow caused floors to sag and the facade to peel away, prompting the city to declare the building unsafe and order its demolition. Where the old J. Press once stood is now a patch of gravel fronted by a chain-link fence.

Plans were soon underway to relocate to an adjacent property owned by J. Press on Elm that had been home to Tyco Print. Tyco agreed to move down the street, and after several temporary locations along with pandemic and other delays, J. Press finally opened its doors at 262 Elm in May.

The new Elm Street location “represents a centralized omni-channel concept for the company,” J. Press parent company Onward Kashiyama USA said in a statement. “This New Haven location will again play a large role in the operations of the business, re-connecting J. Press to its hometown and providing a foundation for the next chapter of the business in New Haven and beyond.”

A division of a Japanese retail giant, Onward Kashiyama USA bought J. Press in 1986 and operates two other J. Press stores, one at 51 E 44th St. in Manhattan and the other at 1801 L St. NW in Washington, D.C.

J. Press was founded on the Yale campus in 1902 by Latvian immigrant Jacobi Press, whose descendants still hold advisory roles at the company. Keeping close to the campus origin of J. Press remains important to the brand, according to Onward Kashiyama.

“J. Press remains a pillar of Ivy League style and has stayed true to the quality tailoring and craftsmanship of its historic past,” the company said. “It was very important for the store to maintain this relationship, and the proximity to where it all began is an important aspect of that.”

Retail rebound

The store’s return to its historic home is also important to the Broadway district, adjacent to the Yale Campus and designed as an upscale retail corridor curated by the university’s real estate operation, Yale University Properties. Shoppers can visit J. Press then drop into L.L. Bean’s Elm Street location before fueling up at Belgian-style cafe Maison Mathis.

“We are delighted to see J. Press opened again in the Broadway shopping district in New Haven,” said Lauren Zucker, Yale’s associate vice president for New Haven affairs and university properties. “J. Press, founded in New Haven, has been a successful retailer in New Haven for over a century and we look forward to our relationship continuing to grow in the years to come.”

The clothier’s investment in its new location also represents another hopeful indicator of the strength of the city’s retail sector as it emerges from the pandemic, said Carlos Eyzaguirre, deputy economic development director for the city and business development director at Economic Development Corporation of New Haven.

At least 115 new businesses have opened in first-floor storefronts in the last two years, Eyzaguirre said, with about 70 businesses closing in the same period. Recent ribbon-cuttings in the Broadway district include Warby Parker eyewear – next-door to J. Press – Bulldog Hotdogs in the Broadway island and Pedals Smoothie & Juice Bar at 284 York.

“J. Press is about as iconic a business to ever come out of New Haven, rivaling brand names like Winchester, Sargent and other famous New Haven clothiers like Gant,” Eyzaguirre said. “We are thrilled to see them permanently back in the Broadway district with an expanded space on Elm Street.”

E-commerce expansion

The move back to the Broadway district represents not only a return to tradition for J. Press – it’s also a step into a future increasingly dominated by e-commerce. The store’s second floor is dedicated to online order fulfillment, and the staff spends a good portion of its time picking items from the inventory, packing them and shipping them.

Not that e-commerce isn’t ultra-competitive: Start visiting the J. Press website and you'll soon get pop-up ads online for companies like Charles Tyrwhitt of Jermyn Street in London, which offers its “Italian Luxury Narrow Stripe Suit” for a mere $649.

Even so, J. Press continues to sell worldwide through e-commerce and reports strong sales.

“This part of our business continues to grow alongside our physical brick-and-mortar shops,” Onward Kashimaya said in its statement.

The new J. Press location will employ several e-commerce workers along with a full-service tailor. The third-floor space may become an event space, Casuga said.

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