Cheating on Philly

UPDATE: Prior posts about these brands being in stock for fall were wrong (Johnny Kent, Karl Momoo, Simbols). Sorry about that folks. For updated fall info, see the more recent  posts..


So, I will be taking a trip up north for the holiday weekend, and will be hitting several Jersey and NYC stores depending on what I can fit in. I had a feeling that moving to Philly I was going to get restless w/only one Daffy's in a reasonable driving distance.

Not Much in Philly :(

Another week of almost nothing new. I'm beginning to think my Sloppy Seconds post was fortuitous of what the higher-ups think of the store - as in, let's put all our best merchandise in NYC, and we'll let Philadelphia have the leftovers -- hopefully that's not the case, but I can't imagine that the NYC-area stores are not getting in Fall merchandise already, or at least have significantly cleared out their spring/summer stuff and shipped it down here or to 34th St.

Anyway, the two bits of new stuff worth mentioning --

Shoes from Alan Payne (made in Brazil) -- decently made loafers, and a few saddle shoes w/Amazonas rubber soles. All $49.99 - not a huge selection, but they had a few pairs in most sizes.

Some navy linen shorts from French Connection for $13.99. Sadly, the Size 28 didn't even fit me (strange, as I'm normally a 30 waist, but I suppose the linen fits differently). Decent stuff but there were only a few pairs; the rest of the merchandise was NYC leftovers :P

Coming Soon To a Daffy's Near You...

Daffy's has started to release it's Fall Kids merchandise, and I believe menswear won't be too far behind. The first week or two is usually iffy merchandise, or at least was this past season (FB Class, Kemitch, Cosby Sweaters...) though they did have some great stuff from NCM SRL which came out (Futuro, Asfalto, Bocodo). If anyone starts seeing new suits or other merchandise that looks like it's coming from the fall selection, please leave a comment on the blog.

Gazzarrini Spring 2012

One of the few designers that Daffy's consistently gets in that always has a presence at fashion week in Milan. Here's a quick video of some of the looks from the recent show. Much more unstructured and dimensional than anything I've ever seen from Gazzarrini. All the pleated pants I'm not too fond of, otherwise definitely some interesting pieces.

F/W 2011-2012 @PatriziaPepe

Just thought I might start posting some looks from the designers that Daffy's carries so people might become a bit more familiar with them (something Daffy's should be doing on their own, but I digress...) Patrizia Pepe recently posted pics from it's Fall/Winter 2011-2012 collection, which probably will be seen at Daffy's in about a year from now. Some awesome menswear from a brand more well known for it's women's merchandise. The plaid suit below is amazing, and the officer's shearling (must click on the link) is quite awesome as well.

http://inside.patriziapepe.com/it/2011/collezione-uomo-autunno-inverno-2011-12-seattle-sound/

Philly - Sloppy Seconds?

This week in Philly didn't seem to get anything new, persay, more like new to the Philly store. It seems the store got in a large amount of shirts, pants, suits and sportcoats from NY-area stores. All the stuff can be told apart because the original tags have been replaced with price tags marks "AS IS", and the source designation code reads "MNTW" on all of them (see: 'Anatomy of a Daffy's Hang Tag'). Only benefit is that the prices have been marked down decently since the original price tags - i.e., a Messori suit for $69.99, which normally starts its Daffy's life at around $300.

In a way, I'm not particularly upset about this as I managed to pick up a nice linen blazer for $50; it just feels like the folks in corporate decided to dump the leftovers down here, and they don't think the store is good enough for new merchandise yet -- HELLO!!! Blogger who spends insane amount of time and money at that store and lets the world know about your merchandise!!! (sorry for the self-promotion, but I want to make sure the honchos know I want the good stuff so I don't have to schlep up to NYC if I can avoid it)

Be that as it may, I was informed that the Philadelphia store will be turning its Third Floor into a Clearance Floor as of next week for the spring/left over winter merchandise. Unsure how that will affect the men's department, but it's possible that the Philly store may permanently become a clearance location, simply b/c of the retail space available in the building. Will be interesting to see how that's implemented -- will have a full report on that next week if it actually comes to fruition.

That's really all for this week. I believe I also noticed some Paul & Shark (made in Italy) short sleeve button-downs and polo-shirts, a brand which normally only appears in the Paramus, NJ store. Decent looking, too preppy for my tastes. Hopefully next week will bring something better.

New Feature - Brands List

Just added a Brands List today -- think of it as a quick reference chart for the good brands that occasionally appear at Daffy's. Quite useful if you have your iPhone or other hand held device available. I'll likely add some other lists, such as 'Mediocre' and 'Avoid at All Costs' brands, but haven't had time as of yet. Will get around to alphabetizing it a bit later, was just throwing it all out there as fast as I could.

Taking suggestions on other features you'd like to see; this was one suggested by some readers over at SF.

Ho Hum Week, Though Some Decent Footwear from J. Shoes

A lot of weird things came into the Philly store in the last week or so; not really sure I would say anything great, though I was quite happy w/some shoes in particular  --

Shirting from Michelson's of London, Archive Collection, I believe at $26.99 each. These were pretty ho-hum - made in China, fit and construction nothing special. Haven't heard of them, but then again that's nothing new at Daffy's. All I could find is that they seem to make formalwear accessories.


Wool pants from Greg Peters; pretty poorly made, I would stay away from them. From what I can tell, this stuff is pretty low end. Same goes for shirting from a company called Zimni; appears to be a designer named "Alberto Zimni" that doesn't really produce much these days.

Also, some uber-gaudy tuxedo jackets w/tails from Il Terzo Uomo -- I've mentioned this brand before before; made by the same company that produces under Gaf, Ugaf, and Spago Uomo. Just poor quality things, often extremely flashy, bad construction and use of synthetic fabric. Stay away :P (I have a feeling these were shipped down from NYC-area stores after not selling too well up there; they did that w/some Copen Group blazers a few weeks ago).

Shoes came in from Varese, as well as a small assortment of other labels from them. Even though they're stamped 'Made in Italy', construction on this stuff is pretty poor, and they're really not worth much. I would avoid them unless you need some cheap things in a pinch.

The only really redeeming thing about this past week --- shoes from J. Shoes - mostly samples, all marked at $29.99 - the same shoes will run you easily at least 2-3x as much outside of Daffy's. Some great things, in all sorts of different styles. Unfortunately, the pair I really liked were copped by someone else in 24 hours :( -- pair of ox-blood colored oxfords. Really nice things; I'll just pretend they wouldn't have fit me anyway.

-- And a quick note: All American-branded shirts (CK, Beene, Ike Behar, Kenneth Cole, etc...) are 25% off, though I've seen these things literally for less than $1 on final clearance; All ties are 25% off as well, and I believe a small shipment of new Altea ties came in for father's day. Also applicable to the 25% off discount -- Valentino shirts, which are now $59.99 w/the discount; better deal than before - unsure if that will last long or not.

And, finally, as much as I was pissy about the poor showing this week, a big shout out to Clarita at the Philly store. Some great customer service from her, and I'll be glad to see her in  the coming weeks.

Update Coming This Weekend

Another crazy week at work, but hoping to make a stop this weekend to take a gander for anything new. For those of you that know of the website www.yoox.com, they've already started stocking their Fall merchandise -- basically it's a closeout company based in Italy that buys up leftovers from the manufacutrers over there; very similar business model to Daffy's, so they wind up carrying much of the same stuff, just at 2-4x's the price Daffy's charges :P

Anyway, take a look at what they're stocking for Gazzarrini, Patrizia Pepe, Jey Cole Man, Solosali, Daniele Fiesoli, Futuro, Mastai Feretti, and other brands featured on the blog. There's a good chance you'll see some of that stuff popping up at Daffy's in the next few months once the Fall merchandise starts rolling in. I, for one, have started to salivate over the knit cardigans I saw from Patrizia Pepe, and the JCM stuff is particularly nice. They haven't put up many suits yet, but I'm sure they're only slowly starting to build their inventory over at Yoox.

Quick Update

Very quick update, as I've been working some insane hours at the new job, and need to make sure I get some sleep.

Suiting + Blazers came in from a label called 'Ibiza'. I haven't been able to find anything on the stuff, other than one eBay seller that's selling a ton of it, and one lone suit on Overstock.com selling for around $130. The merchandise seemed ok, and everything was marked as a Sample. Suits were $69.99-$89.99 depending on material; blazers I don't recall, probably around the $40-50 mark. Decent, but certainly nothing special or particularly well-made.

Shirting from Henry Grethel, a name which seems to be synonymous with early-mid 1990's based on a Google Images search. Can't imagine where they got this stuff from, but again, it's decent, just nothing I would ever purchase for myself. Styling was a bit on the older side. Most of the stuff was either made in Hong Kong or Bangladesh.

There was also some activewear marked 'Athlete Ironman' from a company called Zorrel. Seemed to be some sort of imitation of Under Armour-esque clothing. More info here. Nothing too special, but if you need that kind of stuff, they have it. It seemed there was a lot of stuff from Zorrel outside of the ironman items aswell.

One last bit, I noticed also some jeans from Tavernitini Jeans. Honestly can't believe these things sell for well over $100 on most websites, but they do. Daffy's had them for less than $30, I believe it may have even been $19.99, but I can't recall, honestly. Great buy if you can find something that's a bit more reserved, as much of the pairs I saw were pretty out-there.

The Anatomy of a Daffy's Hang-Tag

While I settle into my new job, I figured I'd do a post I've been wanting to do for a while. This post will describe the finer points of the information available on a Daffy's price tag. Those out there who are true hardcore Daffy's fans may already know much of what I'm about to say, but for the casual shopper there's a lot of info to take in. And I assure you one of the points below will have you thinking about what treasures you may find on your next trip to Daffy's. (Hint: It's letter C)

A - This is the unique code which identifies every single garment at Daffy's. The only time you'll ever see two pieces with the same 13-digit code is when they are identical (though, different sizes will still be under the same number, I believe). Thus, if you ever need to find whether another store has the same item, different size or not, you can have the clerks behind the register look it up for you. Mind you, they are often very reluctant to do that as they have to go to a special computer. So be nice, and ask for a manager if the first person won't help you. Be aware, however, that given the nature of the business Daffy's is in, the whole chain is lucky to get 2 or 3 of the same exact item, so chances are always slim that there are duplicates, regardless of whether the sales people are nice enough to help you out.

B - This happens to be a unique feature of this particular hang-tag. Oftentimes, Daffy's items are designer samples, rather than closeouts, seconds, etc... - the best part is, those items are almost always cheaper and better-quality than the regular stock Daffy's gets in. So be on the lookout for any hang-tags marked 'SAMPLE' -- best deals at Daffy's.

C - This bit of text generally indicates the source/manufacturer of the garment. The tricky part is that the letters must be read backwards. In this case, the letters when read backwards spell, 'ITAL'. Believe it or not, that particular code means that the item came from Raffaele Caruso - i.e., I purchased a Caruso-made sportscoat (see item description at top of tag) for $39.99! How I know this particular correspondence is a story for another day, but most other source-designation codes are a bit easier to decipher -- I would assume this particular tag is marked this way to protect any association by the casual observer. The following are some codes for which you should keep your eyes open (listed as they would be on a Daffy's hang-tag, so make sure if you see them, you read them backwards) ---

'LOCJ' = Jey Cole Man
'TIAS' = Mastai Ferretti
'SSET' = Tessilform SPA, makers of Patrizia Pepe
'UDNI' = Incotex
'ELIM' = Milena SPA, makers of some great shirting (see prior posts)
'REHG' = Alessandro Gherardeschi
'SMAG' = Messagerie
'REIP' = Gazzarrini (stands for Piero Gazzarrini, head designer of the line)
'CCMN' = NCM SRL, makers of Futuro, Asfalto & Bocodo
'EPOC' = Copen Group, makers of some great suiting options, including Royal Hem

D - Each season of merchandise at Daffy's receives a new letter code. We are actually in season 'D' right now, which corresponds w/late-spring/summer arrivals at the store. This hang-tag is marked w/letter 'C' which means the garment came in a bit earlier in the spring season. Last winter, items were marked w/season-code 'A' --- so if you ever see any items around the store w/that letter, scoop them up - they will be extremely cheap (there are definitely bits and pieces in each store). And if the discount doesn't come up, be sure to speak w/a manager and point out that the garment is from the prior season.

E - Suggested retail price. The trick here most of the time is really to just ignore this. Believe it or not, Daffy's actually undervalues most of its clothing in the MSRP section of their tags. And, in fact, most sample items have no MSRP listed, even though they're some of the best items in the store. So while it's a decent indicator of value, you're better off knowing the brand of item you're purchasing, and the quality of the garment.

F - As much as one would think the 'Size' portion of the tag is pretty straightforward, it's actually a common misconception of Daffy's merchandise, which I still continue to make. This particular item, even though marked a size 40 both on the tag and on the inner-label, actually fits as a size 36. What happens more often than not is that the garments fit much smaller than are indicated on the tag, whether it's b/c they're made for the European market or b/c the mis-sizing is specifically why the item made its way to Daffy's in the first place.

Particularly to watch out for when looking at sizing info on a tag at Daffy's is when you're dealing w/shirts. Shirts are never marked their true size from the shirt label (i.e., 15, 15.5, 15.75, 16, etc...) - instead Daffy's marks them as S, M, L and XL. Your best bet is really just to find a shirt with your corresponding neck size. I've found, as a guy w/a size 15.5 neck, that I can pull off both 15.5 and 15.75 shirts, but generally anything size 16 and above will be too big in the body of the shirt -- yet Daffy's in its infinite wisdom marks all of those sizes (15.5, 15.75 & 16) as Mediums. So if needbe, try on several sizes and see what fits.

One glaring error which Daffy's continues to make is when they get in pants from Mabitex which are manufactured for a brand called Loewe, a Spanish-luxury retailer owned by Louis Vuitton. Those bottoms are made for the Spanish market, which has a different sizing scheme than the rest of Europe. A size 26, which is often the most common size I've seen in Loewe items, is actually a size US 32/EU 48 -- and NOT a size 26 waist, though, Daffys' hang-tag would have you thinking otherwise. Believe me, no manufacturer, American or European, is making mens' pants/shorts in a size 26 waist -- that is a boys size.

....I hope you've enjoyed my little foray into the details hidden in a Daffy's price tag. There are actually more pieces of info in there which I have yet to fully decipher, but I hope this was useful as a first-run. And yes, once again, this proves how overly obsessed I am with Daffy's - but hey, we all need a hobby :)