Young men finally have options when it comes to downtown shopping. Sure, there have always been the staples—Gian Marco and Samuel Parker Clothier—but they dress a very specific customer (read: older and wealthier). But what about the 20- to 40-something guy? The one who needs dress-up clothes—not just suits—but also covets play clothes for the weekend? "Guys are tired of shopping at the mall," says Jamie Campbell, co-owner of Hampden's Shine Collective. That store—which already stocks some of the best alternative labels for women—now has a healthy men's section. Other independent shops in the city with options for guys: Urban Chic, Cloud 9, and South Moon Under. Surprisingly, some of the city's most special and contemporary finds are at a tiny jewelry boutique in Cross Keys, dresscode by gita.
And what about that rarest animal of all: the exclusively male boutique? Well, we're getting there. There's hipster outposts Pedestrian and Shop Gentei, which both mesh fashion with art and culture. And now in Federal Hill, Jennifer Solomon and her mother Patty Pearson, above, have opened Reason boutique.
Too often, Solomon says, men's clothing is a mere afterthought. "You've got this women's boutique, and you squeeze in some men's pieces," she says. "Guys are ready for a store of their own." The store's upstairs space—about 400 square feet—indeed feels quite masculine and industrial and will house some familiar lines (Ben Sherman, Modern Amusement), plus Drifter and Scotch + Soda. "I'm getting my feet wet with this," says Solomon, a first-time retail owner. "But so are the guys in the neighborhood."
Reason, 1033 S. Charles St., 410-234-0204
