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DR ESS I NfJ
TH·E MAN
of its sales staff to their suppliers, which is like letting the fox loose in the henhouse. As expe1·ienced
veterans retire or are pushed our to make '''ay for a more youth-ful and cost~ efficient sell ­
ing Staff. ItlCll 's clothing floors become increasingly bereft cif those qualified tO jnstruct anyone
imetestcd .i.n the finer points of this masculine ·art fortn.
vVith most selJers' incomes derived primarily from commission., fash.ion advice is too
frequently prejudiced by the p rospect of a sale. It's rare to find a salesperson inclined to dissuade
a customer frorn buying an ill-fitti ng or w1A atteri.ng garment because of tbe pressure to ·sustain
or increase bis fjgures. Too ofte11, perso nal opinion and ~i friendl y smile are respons.i.b.le for the
fashion -challenged's slu·u1.ki ng closet space. And ~N ·ith the econon:Jic realities currently operating
in men's f~1s hion retailing, there is not n1uch reason to expect immediate i.Jnprm'ement.
'vVhereas rhis might sotmd like chapter and verse li·om any period in t\ventieih-century
menswea r. such vvas not always the case. T he tv.renty-year span bookended by the tvvo worl.d wars
marked theh.igh poi.ntofAmerican men's retaiLing and fashion. This was the lasttimethatthe manufacturing,
retailing. and editorial sectors of the mensvvear industry worked together to ~ ns urc the
del.ivery of what it prcnriised: authentic style and correct taste. Even though the I920s and J930S
VI'C t~e de cad~ of considerable econon1 ic uun td dar America, they produced the best- c:U·e~'Sed generation
it1 the t-vven:tieth cenhuy But the lesson from th.at bygone time vas. not how well kitted-out
the well -to-do ,;.,,·ere, but r;;)ther that the ~1ve rage mc,m 's dressing tastes were not th:rt±ar behind.
D uring that pe riod. the American male was
the beneficiary of some very favorable sartorial circumstances.
The period b~gan by catapulting the most
important single force in m.odern men's fashion onto
tbe -world stage. Whi.le still not yet ] ing of England,
David \i\lind$or was regarded in Americaa5 the undisputed
King of Fash1on. The yeUov\r-haired heiJ· to the
thro 11e. Yariouslv knovvn as the Prince of \tVales and
J .
1ate.r as d1c Duk~ ofvVindsor, visited the United States
in 1924 and made front-page news . ..Plmtographers
trailed him from the Long Island estates of America's
wealthiest families to lunch with President Calvi.n
Coolidge, with detours to the races at BeL11onr Park
and the polo 111atches at Meadowbrook.
1\s British menS\i\rear's greatest u aveling
The Prince qfwales: The Beau of the Twentiet11 Century.
salesman. th ~ young Prince of'vVales ap.d wh