Thursday, October 31, 2013

Looking Sharp on Steinway

















The first Prato Men's Wear store was founded by Frank Ashwamy, and opened in the garment district in the mid 70s.  It expanded into a chain of outlet stores in New York and New Jersey, aimed at customers of modest means. 

"The goal of Prato Outlets became to provide it’s customer with the perfect suit without sacrificing its dedication to low affordable prices. Frank’s attempt to cater to his most cherished customer, the working man, led him across the globe. The key was to purchase directly from the world finest mills and factories without sacrificing quality; then to pass on those savings to the customer... Many of our visitors are out-of-state customers. Knowing that "New York's a BARGAIN if you know where to shop," customers began spreading the word about Prato's everyday low prices."

The Queens Prato, on Steinway, has a nothing-special awning, with an image of a rather generic Dapper Man ("Since 1975") up front, but much more pleasing is the picture up above the awning, a larger, reverse version of Dapper Man, painted on a second floor window, illuminated by stockroom light.   Now that's a style I like!



1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I love it! My boyfriend could use a new suit. It would be great to have one made for him with fabrics from the finest mills rather than stock from Men's Warehouse (his usual fare).

That signage is great. I live a block from Orchard Street in the LES and we're losing signage like this all the time!