rothman's fall '08 magazine

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R O T H M A N ' S F A S H I O N S H O W

N E W Y O R K : V I TA L T O T H E C O R E

B A C K B Y P O P U L A R D E M A N D

F A S H I O N R U L E S !

C A N A L I

Looking Presidential A L O O K AT T H E P A S T, P R E S E N T & F U T U R

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M Most people are unaware that the Chinese saying "may you live in interesting times"* is actually a curse.These are some very interesting times, times that have challenged all of us. As the economy has slowed, consumer spending has slowed as

well, and at Rothman's, we have not been immune to the changing environment.

We have been very pro-active however.We saw our business changing at the end of last year and bought accordingly.We like

to joke about the Rothman Suit Indicator (RSI), which we maintain is actually a LEADING economic indicator. Our suit sales

began to soften a few months before the market peaked in October of 2007. We believe that men have an innate sense of

future economic conditions, and therefore, whether consciously or not, start paring back their non-essential items, like

clothing. On the other hand, even when all the news is gloomy, men also seem to have a sense when things are going to get

better.

Now you may think that we would be smart enough to use this information to adjust our portfolios to our advantage.

Well…that did not happen, and like many of you, we are now hoping that our children morph into amazing athletes who will

be getting a free ride to college. However, we did at least make changes in our business, buying less basic clothing, and

working hard to find truly exciting items that make you want to spend your hard earned money. We leaned on our suppliers

more than ever to be creative and affordable.We hope that your next visit to the store will confirm that we succeeded in this

regard. Lastly, as we write this in early November, we do notice that the Rothman Suit Indicator is starting to point upward.

This is probably a combination of the feeling that things are going to turn up soon, and the realization (we feel very strong-

ly about this) that corporate casual clothing is on a rapid decline. Serious times require serious clothes.

On the other hand, serious times do not require a serious magazine (certainly not from a clothing store!) Once again, we

have tapped our unparalleled client base for fascinating stories and writers.We asked former Snapple CEO and Rothman's

customer Michael Weinstein to tell his account of the amazing turnaround of that company. We also convinced famed NYU

Professor and client Mitchell Moss to tell us how NYC will handle this economic downturn. Of course, we have included

advice, a bit of humor, and an inspiring piece titled "Back by Popular Demand" about some Rothman's customers and their

friends who have formed rock bands in their limited free time.

Most importantly, we want to take this opportunity to thank you for your support as we look forward to the Holiday Season.

Jim and Ken Giddon

[email protected] • [email protected]

*the rest of the curse is "may you find what you are looking for, and may you come to the attention of those in authority"

rothman's U n i o n S q u a r e : 2 0 0 PA R K AV E N U E S O U T H • N E W Y O R K , N y 1 0 0 0 3 • T E L 2 1 2 7 7 7 7 4 0 0

S c a r s d a l e : 1 B o n i f a c e C i r c l e • S c a r s d a l e , N e w Y o r k , N Y 1 0 5 8 3 • T e l 9 1 4 7 1 3 0 3 0 0

w w w. r o t h m a n s n y. c o m

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OnThe Cover:

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Stephen R. Lewis

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Copy Editors

ROTHMAN'S

Rothman's Magazine

ROTHMAN'S is published by

Tufts Communications.

ROTHMAN'S © 2008,

Email: [email protected]

C O N T E N T S :

3

6

Welcome

Back by Popular Demand

12 Looking Presidential

16 Fluid Dynamics

20 A Visit to Canali

24 Rothman's Fashion Show

26 Special Offer

30 NYC: Vital to the Core

36 Clothes Make the Man???

40 Just for Fun

42 Fashion Rules!

FASHION RULES!

42

H O L I D A Y

2 0 0 8

• R O T H M A N ' S

M A G A Z I N E

Back by

b y l u k e t hom a s

Popular Demand The not-so-secret nightlife of some Westchester men Rusty Chicken at RMB's: Evan Molho, Greg Steinberg, Mickey

Glauber, Mark Gutenplan, Steve Blevins (Not shown: Tony Saparito on drums) www.rustychicken.com

It's ten pm at an Irish pub in Queens, the hour between real

life and late night, and a crowd is flowing in. On stage, Rusty

Chicken is warming up. You might expect a nascent collective

out of Brooklyn; the type with deliberately unkempt hair and

skinny jeans, looking to be noticed as the next big thing. Instead

it's a group of guys and a gal who look like your lawyer, your bro-

ker, or your contractor—and they really could be. At this pub, as

the 7 train rumbles overhead toward the soon to be leveled Shea

Stadium, late night is revolving around people who don't nor-

mally do this sort of thing.They litigate, they consult, they build;

but tonight they take the stage. It doesn't take much lip reading

skill to see what the bassist, Mark Guttenplan, with his hand

shading his eyes from the stage lights, says as he leans towards

the lead singer, "These are bright!" The lead singer, Mickey

Glauber, shrugs and pulls the visor of (appropriately enough)

his Mets hat further over his eyes.

In not too long Rusty Chicken launched into a set ranging

from Merle Haggard toThe Cranberries. From the beginning of

the set, the division between supporters of the band and regu-

lars at the pub was clear, the former were saddled up to a mas-

sive guitar shaped counter in the center of the bar.The third and

fourth songs: a one-two punch of 'Let it Bleed' and a rousing 'Me

and Bobby McGee,' however, decisively drew previously indiffer-

ent barflies away from the bar and towards the guitar. Every

patron began to nod, clap, and yes, even shimmy, to the music.

Rusty Chicken isn't creating themselves as the next big

thing. What they are creating is a damn good night.

Later, during a set break (forced by a conspicuous popping in

the PA system—this was no pampered Madison Square Garden

gig), I was talking to Mickey and keyboardist Greg Steinberg

about the band's formation. Like any great group, Rusty Chicken

had to overcome adversity. Not hard drugs, not a need to violent-

ly liquor up before each show, no legal issues with groupies

thrown by the wayside in the wild ride of touring life; nothing so

simple. Rusty Chicken and the players in the largerWestchester

band scene in general have to work around more encompassing

distractions than mere heroin: families, careers, and the

supremely vicious cycle of coaching and rooting for kids' soccer

teams. The reward is in each rehearsal and show, not the epic

tours of rock legend. Another Westchester rocker, Wayne Josel

of OffThe Leash, explained the payoff: "We want people dancing

6 rothman's magazine

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Element 4 at Connollys — left to right: Sam Jordan, Lennie Chasse, Dana G, Michael Gliedman. www.e4band.com

and singing along. It's the full experience that's fun." Added

bandmate Stephen Rabinowitz, head of the NY real estate

office of GreenbergTraurig, "We are not going to be rock stars,

but we become the center of a great event, that allows people to

let loose and party- that is the best part."

Jordan and the "dad bands"

Rusty Chicken and Off The Leash are just two in a cadre of

bands whose members have major full time jobs that have

developed within Westchester County. In the Larchmont area, a

band namedTurtle Park (named after a local playground appro-

priately enough) was the first "dad band". Jordan Goldstein of

Larchmont, a lawyer for a gaming company, but also a very tal-

ented keyboard player and vocalist, was fortuitously introduced

to some serious musicians in town. Although some of these

guys had some paid gigs after college, they certainly did not

acquire their houses in Westchester County on the strength of

their music earnings. Nevertheless, these were some very

accomplished musicians. Jordan got together with local gui-

tarist Andrew Leighton, drummer Scott Kaplan, and lead gui-

tarist Evan Molho to book some studio time. After playing a few

gigs and birthday parties, they added bassist Jorge Del Rio and

singer Jeff Solomon. Soon they were drawing huge local crowds

playing at bars and at the American Legion Hall. Not only could

locals see the dads who were usually spotted screaming on the

soccer sidelines now singing into the microphone, but these

guys were a pretty tight live unit. According to Goldstein "We

practice hard, keep learning new things, and are not afraid to

take risks in public. Our mix of blues, rock and pop, all with a

funk sensibility, makes it interesting. After the first time seeing

Turtle Park, the novelty of knowing the musicians is gone. At

that point, we have to let our music do the talking."

All of these groups are conscious and enthusiastic about

each other.They play in each others bands and enjoy the cama-

raderie. "In a weird way we view ourselves in a role more akin to

playing music than walking into a law office or business firm

and making million dollar deals," said Josel of Off The Leash

who (when he has to) works as a lawyer at Hughes Hubbard &

Reed, "even if I spend a colossal amount of time in the law gig."

Yeah, big ticket deals are made between gigs. Every musician

interviewed cited the same hierarchy for how they live: family-

job-music. It's not hard to see how essential their professional

lives are to supporting families, but the music gives back as

well.

"We really try to bring all of our families into the mix so

there's not so much competing for time," said Jeff Solomon of

Turtle Park. Jeff moonlights—daylights rather—at Ramius

Capital, where he is a Managing Partner. Inspired by Turtle

Park's bassist, Jorge Del Rio, Solomon's son, Ryan, picked up

electric bass in 2006. Earlier this year, withRyan's Bar Mitzvah

approaching, the guys let him jam with them in some practice

sessions. Once it was established that the sound worked, it was

time for some real showmanship, as Ryan led the band for a

crowd pleasingTurtle Park mini concert at his own Bar Mitzvah.

"I now have a permanent connection with my son through

music, which in large part was thanks to how accepting the guys

were," said Solomon.

Some of the Westchester bands even write their own tunes.

Michael Gliedman lives in Scarsdale and is the Chief

Information Officer for the National Basketball Association,

but he may think of himself as the guy who plays lead guitar in

Element 4 (e4), a band that plays original songs with minimalist

80s pop sensibility and an industrial tinge. Element 4 has cho-


ROTHMAN'S j o h n v a r v a t o s . c o m

sen to move beyond the local gigs and plays venues like The

Bitter End and Connolly's in NYC.

"We go in bursts," Gliedman told me when I asked how the

heck he and his band mates manage families, musicianship, and

high profile companies. As gigs approach, the foursome crunch-

prepares with rehearsals in the few weeks before and often, he

said, manage to write new songs while they iron out the old

tunes. To hear the e4 songwriting process explained—the

gelling that occurs when they get together to jam between high-

ly demanding separate lives is to hear echoes of what everyone

interviewed, without exception, told me of precious private

rehearsals. "The coolest thing was to play and interact with the

other guys. After falling into a good combination we would look

at each other like 'wow, that actually sounded like real music,'"

said Josel, of the less minimalist, more baudy Off The Leash.

Again, no matter what genre of jam, everyone had that same

story of the "a-ha moment" when it all begins to come together.

Chat 19

I recently made it to an Off The Leash hometown gig in

Larchmont. They showcased their sound and made Chat19 a

Saturday night hotspot on the otherwise un-Saturnalian subur-

ban drag that is Chatsworth Avenue. As the band's set time

approached, again at the ten o'clock witching hour between

reality and nightlife, Chat19's customers transformed from fam-

ilies with children, to fans with drinks like someone had hit a

switch.

Even though fans came out for it, the legitimacy of the rock

show in suburban Larchmont was surprising to some in the

audience. As Flippy, a guy with an authentic roadie's ponytail

sets upTee frame lighting, one man was surprised, "Whoa!They

got stagelights!" Later in the night, a few of the guys from the

same table noticed me taking notes on the scene. When I told

them that I was writing an article on what some of the

Rothman's customers do in their off time I was told "we're from

Scarsdale, of course we know Rothmans! This is a Rothman's

shirt." Thrilled by the show, I later overheard this same group

plotting to form a band of their own. "You want keys or bass?"

the guy in the Rothman's shirt grinningly asked his buddy.

That hotspot of a bar in the cold autumn suburbs was defini-

tive evidence that sometimes you just have to go for it. Maybe

these guys inspire other "dad bands" in other towns. Maybe the

rumors of aWestchester-palooza come true. For now, it's uncan-

ny, a pleasant shock to the family and friends who gather out of

loyalty and to have fun, and because the music is irresistible. As

Stephen Rabinowitz, the very talented singer and lead guitarist

of OffThe Leash told me, "Many come for the novelty, to see you

get up there at all. Others come prepared like NASCAR fans,

expecting a race, but secretly hoping for a crash. By the end of

the first song though everyone is shaking their heads and smil-

ing, some in disbelief I am sure, that the guy in the serious

suit on the 8:19 to Grand Central can really pull it off."

Luke Thomas is a freelance writer. His almost "Almost

Famous" experience of trailing the "dad bands" did not include

any drug fueled parties, but did involve helping a sixth grader with

his math homework

Turtle Park: Jeff Solomon, Jorge Del Rio, Ryan Solomon


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F Few presidents have had the impact on fashion of John F.

Kennedy, who famously took the oath of office bare-headed,

plummeting hatters into a doldrums from which they have

never recovered. But a host of other U.S. presidents have made

their mark, for better or for worse, on how American men

dress.

How do you measure up against these chief executives of

style?

George Washington: Powdered ponytail and pantaloons

The first president may look a bit of a dandy by twenty-first-

century standards, but he cut a dashing figure back in his day.

The father of our country, who had been the commander in

chief during the RevolutionaryWar, powdered his red hair until

it appeared white and wiglike and wore a military uniform in

early portraits.

Washington was well aware of the power of personal

attire. When the Second Continental Congress

assembled in Philadelphia in 1775, he was the only

delegate to appear in military uniform, thus sig-

nalingVirginia's willingness to come to the aid of

Massachusetts, which was already at war with

the British.

As president, Washington is usually

shown in a simple dark suit, symbolizing his

change of status. At his first inauguration in

1789, he wore a brown suit of broadcloth

made in Hartford, Connecticut, with eagle-

adorned buttons. The attire perfectly reflect-

ed the new idea of an American president.

Washington chose to wear American-made

clothing, and the eagle was a symbol of the new

nation.

Looking Presidential Reagan regal or Kennedy cool, what's your presidential style?

b y b a r b a r a e. coh e n

In the famous Lansdowne portrait by Gilbert Stuart, painted in

1796, he wears a formal black suit suitable to his station as a

second-term president. He appears as a citizen-leader, not as

a monarch. His rather austere attire, despite the lace cuffs,

assured his fellow citizens that he was a man of the people, not

above them.

Compared to Washington, Jefferson had a bit more flash.The

third president brought home from Paris, where he served as

minister to the court of King Louis XVI, a distinctive style. He

acquired from the French aristocracy a taste for lace and bro-

caded silk coats, although he was reportedly a bit of a slob

around the house.

Jefferson was fond of comfortable clothing, according to

Susan R. Stein, a curator at Monticello, Jefferson's family

home in Virginia. But he bent to cur-

rent fashion, occasionally

wearing a jabot, a bit of

lace around the neck

resembling a frilly

bib.The jabot

has been

retired, but

the colorful

silk brocad-

ed waist-

coat might

be ripe for

a come-

back.

election year 08


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Andrew Jackson: Weeping in public The seventh president, Andrew Jackson, was reportedly a vain man

proud of his pencil-thin physique, which he covered with well-made clothing.

But bowed by tragedy, Old Hickory wore mourning clothes to his

inauguration and favored black garments throughout his presidency following the loss of his wife Rachel, who died between his election and inauguration.

Although not remembered as one of the great romantics, despite

killing a man in a duel to defend his honor, Jackson reportedly said, "Heaven will be no heaven to me if I do not meet my wife there." Abraham Lincoln: Stylish to the end

He may have been born in a cabin in Kentucky and raised on the frontier, but Abraham Lincoln adorned his lanky six-foot four-inch frame in big-

city style. According to the Brooks Brothers Web site:

"At his second inauguration, Abraham Lincoln wore a magnificent coat specially crafted for him

by Brooks Brothers of NewYork. Hand stitched into the coat's lining was an intricate design featuring an eagle and the inscription: 'One Country, One Destiny.' Sadly, it was also the coat Lincoln was wearing when he was assassinated at Ford'sTheatre."

The black broadcloth frock coat with plain gray metal buttons, black trousers—both still stained with his blood—and the squared-toed goatskin boots he was wearing when he died are in storage at the moment, but they will be reappear on a mannequin in the refurbished

Ford'sTheatre sometime in mid-2009.

Teddy Roosevelt: He-manly style

Not to be outdone by Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt wore a Brooks Brothers military uniform in his famous march with the Rough Riders up San Juan Hill during the

Spanish-American War. He was also photographed as a rancher in the Dakota Territory and hunting game à la Hemingway. But he really made his mark on modern wardrobes when, as the twenty-sixth man in the august

office,TR was the first one to wear a necktie for his offi- cial presidential portrait.

Although Roosevelt's been dead for almost a century, his style lives on. In 2006, the sporting-gear company Orvis created an entire line of

rugged outerwear based on garments Roosevelt can be seen wearing in photographs where he's hunting and fishing.The intent of the new clothing line was to "embody the former Rough Rider's flair." No word on neckties with fishing lures as the next great fashion statement, though. Dwight D. Eisenhower: Fatigued?

Dwight D. Eisenhower's contribution to menswear came from his

service as the supreme Allied commander in World War II, not from his presidency.The Eisenhower jacket, a waist-length fitted military jacket, is known even today by his name. It's not a good look for the office, but

you might spot the body-hugging cropped jacket at play on plenty of men who've never seen the inside of a barracks. John Fitzgerald Kennedy: Camelot-style business casual

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, known for his handsome looks and unhat- ted head, popularized Brooks Brothers' two-button suit, slightly cinched at the waist, when he wore one at his inauguration. Even Gerald

Ford and George Bush took up the man-in-charge style. Kennedy's offi- cial presidential portrait shows him wearing a classic dark suit with a white-collared, custom-made shirt and skinny tie.

Alan Flusser, author of Style and the Man, called Kennedy "the last

stylishly dressed President": "Few in public office since have known how to wear a white linen handkerchief, or even why."

Lyndon B. Johnson: Texas individualism to the core For regional style, consider Lyndon B. Johnson, who often wore cow-

boy boots and hats withWestern-wear suits with a stitched yoke across

the jacket front. Johnson is known to have been a distinctive dresser even as a child.

He wore dresses as a little boy, and tunic suits when he got older. Historians of children's clothing report that his clothes were always dif-

ferent from that of other boys, some more formal than the weekday over- alls or knickers everyone else wore, others described as "outlandishly elegant" for the small town in which he grew up. Jimmy Carter: No fashion peanut

Jimmy Carter worked hard to come off as a regular, wage-earning

guy. He often wore polyester-blend suits, carried his own garment bag off the campaign plane, and favored a black raincoat over a tan British- style one.

While in theWhite House, he added more expensive tailored suits to

his closet but continued the casual note, especially when it came to cardigan sweaters. Most notably—and good to recall in these days of high gas prices—Carter wore a cardigan on national television on February 2, 1977, when he asked Americans to turn down the thermostat

and put on a sweater in the name of energy conservation.

Ronald Reagan: All the world's a stage

Ronald Reagan, an actor turned politician,

brought a bit of Hollywood panache to the White House, using as president the same Beverly Hills tailors who served him in his film days. Reagan

favored brown or brown-plaid suits in styles some considered more at home on Wilshire Boulevard than in the dark-suited capital city.

Reagan's look was classic: in his presidential

portrait, he wears a pinstriped suit with a white-collared shirt and red- and-blue-striped tie. In many pictures of the First Couple, both Ronald and Nancy Reagan appear in coordinating "costumes." Ronnie's tie often matched the color of Nancy's dress, a gesture simultaneously

hammy and tender. George Bush: Preppy chic

Conservative suits, usually in navy blue, and white shirts were the uniform of George Bush, aYale graduate frequently described as a post- graduate preppy. But Bush No. 1 was best known for his rep-striped ties

and fabric watchbands, which he had laundered regularly and which up- and-coming Republicans inside the Beltway emulated for a while. George W. Bush: Blue ties

George W. Bush, the forty-third president of the United States, will be forever remembered by men's

clothing consultants as the guy who vanquished the red power tie. Bush favors varying shades of blue (from pow- der blue to navy), a color which connotes steadfastness and consistency. President Elect Barack Obama: Fit and Trim

Barack Obama is a new generation of

style as well. Everyone seems to notice how well he looks in his closely cut and narrow silhouettes. While officially he was reported to be wearing American made Hickey-Freeman, recent photos

have definitively confirmed he is wearing Canali, and creating a great new Presidential look.


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my own beverage business.

traces back to poor judgment from bad things I did in college in the '60s. Not that I was that bad back then. In fact, in December 1969, as a member of the Lafayette College swim team, I beat Mark Spitz in the 100 meter freestyle at a

I can't remember why I decided to start

It probably

business with a catchy name — the Unadulterated Juice Company. It wasn't until 1980 that they actually bought the name Snapple (for $500) and began to try different beverage products.

In 1986 they launched their now famous tea and juice drinks in wide- mouth bottles. Supported by radio adver-

Fluid Dynamics Meet entreprenuer, Michael Weinstein

national meet in Ft. Lauderdale…but more about that later. I've spent my whole career as a beverage guy. In the '70s I was in marketing at Pepsi but never quite fit their corporate mold. In the '80s I ran marketing for a small company called A&W Brands that did one of the early leverage buy-outs. Now those were the good old days. A million dollars in equity was enough to buy a $100 million business, with the rest borrowed through a new thing called junk bonds and dumb bankers willing to loan you whatever you wanted. Most of those banks are gone today (wonder why) but we managed to grow sales and profits, go public, and sell the business to Cadbury Schweppes in 1993 for 300 times the original investment.

My next gig was in 1995 as CEO of Mistic Beverages, a small new age beverage company in New Rochelle. Mistic was just beginning to take on Snapple which was in a tailspin after it had been acquired by Quaker Oats in 1994. But let me first back up to Snapple's start in 1972, the same year Nixon began his second term.Two window washers from Brooklyn, Lenny Marsh and Hymie Golden, joined with Queens health food store owner Arnie Greenberg and invested $60,000 to start up a small juice

tising on the newly emerging Howard Stern and Rush Limbaugh shows and TV spots featuring Wendy the Snapple Lady, the business grew from $5,000,000 to $500,000,000 in 1993. Meanwhile, out in Chicago, the team at Quaker Oats, owners of the enormously successful Gatorade brand, were watching Snapple's success and figured they were a lot smarter than window washers and could do a lot better. So in 1994, they made a $1.7 billion tender offer for Snapple, a staggering twenty-three times cash flow. Lenny, Hymie, and Arnie waltzed off to Florida with big smiles on their faces and nine-figure checks in their pockets. But the smiles at Quaker Oats didn't last long as things began to go wrong almost immediately. They quickly moved the Snapple offices from Valley Stream, New York, to Chicago, fired most of the employees, and cancelled contracts with Rush, Howard, andWendy. Stern was so mad that he spent the next two years ranting on air about "Crapple." Without their consumer spokespeople and a total lack of new products, Snapple sales began to plummet, down more than twenty per- cent in both 1995 and 1996. Afraid that Snapple was going to drag down Gatorade, they put it up for sale. Unfortunately,


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sales were dropping so fast that no one

wanted to touch it…except for one compa-

ny —Triarc. A NewYork-based conglomer-

ate run by NewYork financier Nelson Peltz

and owner of the small Mistic beverage

brand, Triarc decided to take a chance on

Snapple. Their bid of $300,000,000 was the

only one Quaker received, and in May of

1997 Triarc took over Snapple, leaving Quaker with a $1,400,000,000 bath in a mere two years (averag- ing $2,000,000 lost per day!).That's where I jumped in, with the rest of the Mistic team. I was appointed CEO of Snapple and Peltz told me, "Fix it!" With only three of Snapple's three hun- dred Chicago employees joining us, we were really starting from scratch. But I had a plan. Now I'm not the smartest guy around, but I figured if Quaker did everything wrong, we could be successful doing the opposite. So we immediately hired back Wendy, Rush, and Howard and launched a host of new products like Whipper Snapple and Elements. Within six months sales turned positive, and in 1998 and 1999 Snapple returned to dou- ble-digit growth. Snapple's newfound success drew the attention of Cadbury Schweppes (again) who bought the company for $1,400,000,000 in 2000. That was a good day, and I even got to wear my Rothman's suit to the meetings in London (suits weren't too popular in the Snapple offices).

As you might have guessed, I didn't thrive in the Cadbury Schweppes corporate environment. So inspired by Lenny, Hymie, and Arnie's success, I figured I'd try something new and become a beverage entrepreneur. In 2006, along with my business partner, Brian O'Byrne, I started up a beverage company called INOV8 (located in Rye) to sell an energy drink to people who don't like energy drinks. Now that may sound awfully dumb, and it may be.We figured there were a lot of people who wanted a beverage that tasted good, was low in sugar, and did not give them jitters (or make their boss think they had a hangover). That's the idea behind our new product, HYDRIVE — the energy drink for people who do not like energy drinks. HYDRIVE is hydrating, non-carbonated, with just thirty calories, and a nice jolt of caffeine. We're already in 12,000 stores in the Northeast and Midwest, and it's a lot harder work than I ever imagined. But I suck at golf, so what else would I do all day to keep busy.

Oh yeah — the race against Mark Spitz: I did beat him. Of course he was just warming up in the next lane and didn't real- ize he was racing me. But hey, a victory is a victory.

Michael Weinstein is the former CEO of Snapple but now prefers to be known as the Energy Czar at Hydrive. He lives in Larchmont and can often be seen kayaking in the Sound, pedal- ing his Colnago up the Post Road, or spotting for Ken bench pressing 450 lbs. at the Equinox gym. As a Director at HJ Heinz he gets to wear his Rothman suits to six meetings a year. He is living proof that poor wardrobe choices early in life can be overcome.


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A visit to

Canali The retail clothing business has some nice benefits. One of the best is

the ability to visit Italy on business.This past summer, I took my two older children to Italy for their first trip to Europe. After spending several days in Rome, several more in Florence, and then up to Lago Maggiore, we ended the trip with a little bit of business, a visit to Canali headquarters, in Sovico, outside of Milan.With almost 10 days of churches and museums under their belt, a trip to a modern (and air-conditioned!) factory was not such a hard sell to a couple of fifteen year-olds.

Rothman's was one of the earliest stores in the US to carry Canali product, and we have worked closely with the Canali family for almost 15 years. We have always felt it was important to visit the factories, and meet with senior management that may not make it to New York very often. Our visit to Sovico, was another opportunity to see their new state of the art facility, and see, first hand, their growth plans for the business.


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Canali was founded in 1934 by brothers Giovanni and Giacomo Canali with a small tailor shop dedicated to the manufacture of high quality clothing. Once just a tailored clothing company, Canali expanded to encompass an entire collection of shirts, ties, belts, shoes and a distinctive line of sportswear.

Early in the morning, a car picked us up at our hotel and whisked us 45 minutes outside the city to their gleaming headquarters. Attached to the office were two of the seven manufacturing facilities. After meeting with Giorgio Canali (third generation), we were treated to an eye opening factory tour. There were several surprises. The factories seemed to be an amazing blend of old world craftsmanship combined with technology. Modern systems seemed to move the raw materials, cut the fabrics, and process the orders, while the actual making of the suits was still done the old-fashioned way...by hand.The facility we saw had almost 300 employees, mostly women (at noon many of them went home for lunch), most of whom were sewing,cutting and pressing. Each person seemed to have a specialty. One group would sew pockets, another would stitch shoulders, another would sew buttons on the sleeves. Rolling racks or pipe lines would then move the finished product to the next station. It really was possible to see the manufacture of a suit from the fabric being rolled in, to the pressing process at the end.The factory was amazingly clean, comfortable, efficient and well-lit.

We were then treated to an amazing lunch in the facility with Giorgio Canali. It was truly a great way to end our Italy trip.

The numbers: every day Canali's 1,500 employees produce some 1,400 suits and 1,600 pairs of trousers, all of them tailored and finished by hand one at a time — to serve a clientele in more than 80 countries.


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JOHN BLATCHLEY AVIATION ENTHUSIAST , MVY AIRPORT, MARTHA'S VINEYARD

NO TURBULENCE. NO JET LAG.

REAL GOOD PEOPLE. REAL GOOD LIFE!

rothman's Fall & Holiday

Follow the trends in Paris? Milan?...No

Scarsdale! Once again the runways at

Rothman's of Scarsdale were filled with

"Local Supermodels" showing the fashions

of Winter 2008. Along with next door

neighbor LF Women's Clothes, we were

honored to have these models strutting their

stuff. Among our "Supermodels" were

Mike Wilson of Wilson & Sons, "Dentist to

the Stars" Ted Sewitch, Gregg Proudian of

Proudian Rugs, as well as Anant Nambiar

and Padraic Boyle.


FASHION SHOW

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JACKVICTOR.COM

These are tough times. The collapse of Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers, the volatility of the stock market, the severe

credit crunch, and uncertainty about the duration of the nation-

al recession is affecting everyone, from Scarsdale to Staten

Island, from Manhattan to Montclair.

Fortunately, NewYork City is well-positioned to cope with the

economic downturn. The reason is simple: New York is not a

one-industry town like Detroit which is heavily tied to the auto-

mobile industry.There are more than 3.5 million jobs in the city

and the securities industry, though it does generate more than

one fourth of the city's income, only accounts for 5% of the city's

jobs.

Money Matters

Financial service firms are downsizing and restructuring.

However, there will always be a demand for people who connect

those with money — to opportunities for investing money. New

York City's greatest comparative advantage is its talent base:

unmatched for the legal and financial expertise required for

managing money. No other city can compete with New York's

financial know-how. Thirty years ago, Chicago and San

Francisco competed with New York in banking, but today the

New York: Vital to the Core By Mitchell L. Moss, Henry Hart Rice Professor of Urban Policy and Planning, NewYork University

second largest banking center in the United States is Charlotte, North Carolina, home of the Bank of America. But,

Charlotte's principally attracts people for NASCAR races not

for accessing capital markets.

The bankers, brokers and analysts who have suffered in the

current crisis are not likely to leave NYC. These professionals

have valuable skills and knowledge which they will draw upon to

advise individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations and

governments.They may experience a decline in income, but they

will continue to be needed.

Even the federal government recognizes that New York City

brainpower is essential to implement the bailout of the financial

industry. That's why the U.S. Department of the Treasury

retained a major New York City law firm to help carry-out the

recently passed $700 billion package to aid the financial indus-

try. Ironically, the very skills that helped create the financial cri-

sis are needed to help get us out of the crisis.

Tougher regulations will also reinforce New York City's

appeal to global investors, since a strong regulatory framework

in the United States will contrast sharply with the capitals around the world.

financial


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Universities and Health Care: New York's "Firewall"

NewYork's health care and higher education institutions pro-

vide a "firewall" to protect us from massive declines in the pri-

vate sector. With six medicals schools and several major med-

ical centers, New York's biomedical complex is one of the

strongest in the nation, attracting hundreds of millions of dol-

lars in federal research funds and patients from all parts of the

region and globe.

Health care is increasingly an information intensive industry,

in which laboratory tests and imaging are used to diagnose and

treat a multitude of illnesses, creating jobs in physicians'

offices, ambulatory care centers and hospitals. The cost of

health care is a serious problem, but NewYork's economy gains

from the intense demand for sophisticated procedures because

the federal government and insurance firms pay for such a large

share of these services.

Today, higher education employs more people in New York

City than manufacturing, and the students who study here often

stay in New York, where they provide the talent and brainpower

to fuel the industries of the future.

And higher education, one of New York's premier industries

with colleges and universities located across all five boroughs,

thrives in hard times; that's when people return to school to get

new skills and credentials. Manhattan's Union Square and the

surrounding area has emerged in recent decades as the region's

hub for higher education with approximately 100,000 students

enrolled at nearby colleges and universities such as NYU, New

School University, Baruch College, Cardozo Law School, Pratt

Institute's Manhattan Campus, the School of Visual Arts,Touro

College, Fashion Institute of Technology, and Beth Israel

Medical Center.

More than forty-five million tourists will visit New York in

2008, a record number.They don't just come here for amusement

parks or to gamble as they do in other cities; tourists are

attracted to NewYork by the choices that the city offers: to dine

in world class restaurants like Tabla or Gramercy Tavern or

enjoying our unique sidewalk cuisine, to shop endlessly for the

trendiest and the most traditional, and to explore our museums

and cutting-edge art galleries.

A Growing City

Defying all expectations, New York has gained more than a

quarter million residents since 2000. New York's reputation as

the safest large city in the United States has made it more

attractive for young people who want to launch their careers in

NewYork City, for families who want to settle here, and for older

people who appreciate the ease of living without an automobile

and the proximity of cultural institutions.

To accommodate the city's population growth, the Bloomberg

Administration has rezoned one-sixth of the city's land and fos-

tered the growth of a new set of residential communities, in the

downtown financial district and in Chelsea next to The

HighLine, where long-abandoned elevated railroad tracks are

being transformed into a spectacular linear park. Few would

have imagined that the city's wholesale meat market, once a

rough and raw part of Manhattan, would evolve into a hotspot of

nightclubs and high fashion boutiques.

And across the East River, theWilliamsburg-Greenpoint cor-

ridor, connected to Union Square by the popular "L" subway

line, is witnessing a transformation of its old industrial water-

front with new housing, waterfront promenades, and parks.

Brooklyn's emergence as a mecca for music is reflected in the

number of new bars and perform-

ance venues located in the city's

most populous borough.


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The Content Capital The challenge facing

Yorkers is to develop new industries that can create jobs and wealth in the coming years. That's what makes New York different from other large cities: it doesn't stand still, in good times or hard times. Although no one can pre- dict precisely what the future will bring, we can already see that pro- ducing content for digital distribu- tion will be critical to the city's long-term future.

Mobile communications makes it possible for every person to have access to news and television programs throughout the day. And New York, the original home of radio, television and the publishing industry, gains from height- ened demand for information that is digitally distributed around the world.

Today, six national broadcast television networks are based in New York as well as 78 cable networks, including HBO and Showtime. During the 2008-09 television season, eighteen primetime episodic series that film in NewYork City are being carried on broadcast or cable networks such as "30 Rock," "Gossip Girl," "Life on Mars," "Law & Order," "Rescue Me," and "Nurse Jackie."

New York is already the center of non-fiction television: almost all the news, sports, business and food programs that fill the cable channels emanate from New York. Although no professional football teams play in New York City, professional football is actually a New York media industry: the games are played in stadiums all across North America, but the decisions about which games to broadcast on television or to transmit live via cell phones, are made in NewYork City. The Internet Hook-Up

Even the internet has helped strengthen the city's economy. The 200 newspapers and 350 magazines produced in New York City are read by far more people around the world online than in the city itself. And the internet has been a central factor in the growth of self-employed individuals in NewYork City. According to Appleseed, Inc. a leading consulting firm, since 1990, self- employment in New York has almost doubled from 399,858 to 767,820. This growth is, in part, a result of the ease of starting one's own business with access to the internet.Today, one does not even need a telephone line to serve global markets, just a seat in a Starbuck's or a public park equipped with WIFI.

Moreover, NewYork, with its abundance of graphic designers and writers, is home to a plethora of internet-based businesses. Artists and craftspeople have always flocked to the city, and they have been a vital factor in the continued growth of the 220,000 small businesses clustered in neighborhoods throughout the city.

New Why New Yorkers Walk Fast

New York' has consistently demonstrated its resiliency and capacity to bounce back from the brink of disaster. In the 1970's, the city lost population and almost went bankrupt. In the 1990's crime soared, with more than 2500 homi- cides in 1990 and TIME Magazine publishing a cover story, "The Rotting of the Big Apple." In the late 1980's we saw the collapse of Drexel Burnham Lambert and scandals in the junk bond industry. In 2000, the "dot-com" sector col- lapsed. And, on September 11, 2001, the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center led many to wonder whether New York City could survive as a place to live and work.

New York is more than a place; it's a way of life. New Yorkers will find a way to get through the current recession and

to emerge stronger than ever. New Yorkers are driven by the desire to succeed, to pursue a specific passion, to be part of a high-energy city where there is always something new to do.

In an age of advanced telecommunications, people can work anywhere. They choose to be in New York because this is the most productive environment in the western world. You can meet face-to-face with more people in a day in NewYork than in any other city. Each time you meet someone you are conveying a message about yourself.There is a reason NewYorkers pay so much attention to their clothing, their eyewear, and haircuts. You never know how a chance encounter - the type that happen so often in NewYork - could result in a job, a contract, or a new relationship.

The density of people and ease of getting together — despite the traffic and crowds — makes it possible to conduct business in coffee shops, bars, hotel lobbies, offices and even health clubs, without traveling very far. Grabbing a cab or taking a subway is a lot quicker than getting on the San Diego Freeway.This is what attracts people to New York, and it is what will ensure our city's future.There is a reason why NewYorkers walk so fast; they are trying to get somewhere before the next guy does. Professor Mitchell Moss is a longtime

Rothman customer, and the Henry Hart Rice

Professor of Urban Policy and Planning at

New York University's Robert F. Wagner

Graduate School of Public Service. Mr Moss's

essays have appeared in The New York

Times, New York Post, and The New York

Observer, among others. His articles are

available at www.mitchellmoss.com.


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Editor's

Magazine

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Clothes Make the Man??? Note:

will

Rothman's

always offer

informative pieces on fashion.

However, we are fully aware that

some of you completely reject the

concept of "rules of fashion," and

that does not bother us one bit.

We will never take ourselves too

seriously. With that in mind, we

offer this counterpoint to our arti-

cles by columnist for the

Larchmont Loop (larchmont-

loop.com), and Rothman's cus-

tomer, Jon Sawyer. As the lawyers

say, "The following article does

not represent the views or opin-

ions of Rothman's blah, blah,

blah…" Please send your "I am

truly offended…" notes directly to

Jon.

They say the clothes make the man, which I have to be hon- est, I hope isn't true, because when I look in the mirror it never looks like my clothes are really putting in an effort. It's not the colors, or style, or anything. My clothes just look like they have given up.

Part of the problem is I got the "Guy With a Big Belly Continental Divide" thing working. Every time I put on a pair of pants I have a choice to make: do I wear them high up on the Belly Equator, which makes me look quite similar to Uncle Joe, who moved kinda slow at the junction…or down below at the Belly Low Lands, which makes me look like a pregnant Dennis the Menace.

I say it is a choice, but the truth is, with gravity and all, after the first fifteen minutes, the above the belly is more an aspira- tion than a reality. Eventually, the old trousers sink down, which forces me to do the fat guy pants pull up, which, as we all know,

never involves a straight pull up,

but rather movement forward

and back from the sides of the

pants, making you look like you

are actually screwing your pants

on.

Often guys with the belly

will also do a slight knee bend,

as if we are saying to ourselves,

"if those damn pants aren't

going to come up, I'll just have to

go down and get them." And for

some reason, it always seems

that when a heavy dude pulls up

his pants he has about $100 of

change in the pockets, or more keys than Schneider, which sets off a massive jingle, notifying everyone in the room that a fat guys is pulling up his pants.

I know what you are thinking: "Jon how about a belt, or per- haps suspenders?" A belt never works, it is the biggest letdown in dressing up. Belts are bound to disappoint, like the promise of Crazy Glue or that vibrating football game we all had as kids. That game looked amazing when you took it out of the package, but soon it was dented in the middle. As soon as you turned it on, all the men would just amass in the center in a big prayer circle. As a Jewish kid, that was very disconcerting.

Suspenders are not the solution, either. I just

end up walking around with a couture wedgie. I

know that there is the whole power suit, Larry

King, Gordon Gekko aura with suspenders, but

it is hard for me to truly feel like I can swim with the sharks, when I am wearing an article of clothing that is so

36 rothamn's magazine

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as a kid.

Can you recall the social strata of sneakers? For instance, growing up on the playground, if you were wearing Puma Clydes, or Adidas Gazelles, the presumption was you knew what was going on, you were probably a pretty good athlete, and your dad had a decent job. If you had on Converse Pros, the guys would assume that you were strong, a good rebounder type, and maybe had a nickname like Tree or Truck. Come across a kid in the 1970s who was wearing Chuck Taylor's, and you could assume a tough kid, with a father that made him keep his crew cuts even after the Beatles. Invariably, this kid usually had

about six brothers and had

to fight the last

sausage

for for breakfast,

related to Urkel, and leaves me just a striped shirt way from being in the cast of Godspell.

The good news is that guys built like me can make our fashion statement with shoes. Our shoes define who we are, our beliefs, and most importantly, where we were picked when choosing up sides for kick ball

which meant he had no trouble throwing an elbow or two in any game you

played.

Alternatively, if you showed up wearing P.F. Flyers, above the age when people cared about decoder rings, you were probably destined for a childhood of playing right field. If you wore sneakers that had anything to do with boating, or looked like loafers with two little strips of elastic, you were the type of kid

that if you ever got on base in

baseball, you would never know

when to run. On a fly ball you

wouldn't tag up, you'd start to

run to second, and everyone

would yell, "Get back!" Then

you'd get back and everyone

would yell, "Run!"

As we got older, we occa-

sionally had to start wearing

"real" shoes. The other kids

knew that you were wearing

these under duress, but you still could not show up with the shoe with the buckle at the end of that little leather strap across the top. Those were a great example of how our mothers' used to say they loved us, but then make us wear stuff that got us beat up.

But back to me. Unlike fashionable clothes, I can wear any shoe now, and from the pant cuff down to the floor, I can look as good as George Clooney. Mostly you will find me in sneakers, probably trying to salve some wound from childhood footwear mistakes.Yet, I still judge guys by their shoes. For some reason, I do not like men with tassels on their shoes. Seems like it would be the same guy with an underscore in his email. Just so smug!

"Unlike fashionable clothes, I can wear any shoe now, and from the pant cuff down to the floor, I can look as good as George Clooney."

Photo courtesy of Ballin 38 rothamn's magazine

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Our election windows appeared on the evening news and were photographed hundreds of times each day.


Taxi accident on 9/12/08 at Rothman's Union Square. Angry Hillary Supporter?

The evening train to NorthWhite Plains. Our advertising at work?

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No. 1 Always keep a dress shirt at the office. You never know when you're going to get caught in the rain or sweat on an unexpect- ed walk in the heat of summer, or after an overnight stint in the airport and delayed flights, be faced with the dilemma of going home to change and risk missing the meeting or showing up in a rumpled shirt. A white dress shirt is best, as it should go with anything you may be wearing on the day you need it most. A spare tie will come in handy one day too.

No. 2 Even though athletes, rock stars, and rising film actors may show you otherwise, stick with the traditional two or three- button suits. Never button more than one button on a jacket, though do button when you'll be standing for a more than a few minutes or walking. It makes you look serious, and it takes twenty pounds off your silhouette.

b y g a r y wo l l e nh a up t

Fashion Rules! It's oh so easy to play by the rules at work. Here are ten to live by...

No. 6 If you're going to wear jeans to the office, make sure they're a dark wash, rip- and tear-free, and paired with a blazer and a beautifully tailored dress shirt. Metal studs, ornately stitched back pockets, and holes are often frowned upon.

No. 7 The only thing that belongs on the back of your chair is your back. Jackets should hang on a hanger. Keep a wooden hanger on the hook on the back of your office door or hanging from the wall of your cubicle. If the company doesn't provide a coat hook, buy one yourself. It's just that important.

No. 3 Show some cuff.That means never let your suit sleeves reach beyond your shirt sleeves. Experts disagree by how much. It can vary by the length of your sleeve and the cut of the jacket. But somewhere between one- quarter and one inch of shirt fabric should show. That sliver of fabric provides a much-needed contrast to the uniformity of the suit fabric. It shows you pay attention to the details.You know what you want and know how to get it, or at least know how to take good advice from the smart people.

No. 4

No. 5 Certain articles of casual

clothing may rise to the occasion, taking on a higher level of style that allows you make do in an emergency or conform to a group of people. For

example, you can dress up polo shirts, khaki shorts, blue jeans, white sneakers, and, forTexans, cowboy hats and boots.

On the other hand, there are also articles that you can never dress up: sports jerseys, track pants, white tank-tops

T-shirts, Birkenstocks, and flip-flops.

Go casual with grace. Nobody likes a guy who wears a suit to casual work events.There's a line between being boss- ily stylish and being uptight. Show some leadership and be one of the gang on occasion. It will be all the more memorable for its rarity, like your Karaoke rendition of "Mama Mia." Loosen up and pair some wool or cotton trousers with a sport jacket, a sweater, or both, and lose the tie.

No. 8 You can't go wrong with the traditional white dress shirt. However, it won't kill you to mix things up every once in a while. Pinstripe shirts are good. Windowpanes

work well too.

No. 9 Chalk stripe suits say "heavy hitter" like few

other clothing choices. Chalk is not the same as pinstripe; it has broader vertical lines woven into char-

coal flannel with the soft, dusty look of tailor's chalk.Watch for it on a host of commentators during election season.

No. 10 Looking for your own personal style? Relax. Know yourself and know what you like.That will be your signature.


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Recession Proofing... By Peter Tsihlias of Dion Neckwear

Dion Neckwear Ltd. is a family- owned, Canadian business and a mainstay for well-dressed men for over 40 years. Dion creates neckwear and formal wear that bears the distinct Dion look and quality on which specialty North American

retailers have come to rely. We recently spoke with Peter Tsihlias, Chief Executive Officer.

The new season brings new

challenges. In these trying

times, we not only have to be

concerned with our new

collections (whether it is

the best ever, with

the latest colour

'combinations

of design and

fashion), we also have to bare

ADVERTISEMENT

We may be in a recession right

now,or could slip into one

awareofthe devaluation of the

in mind that we are in

Our greatest concern is how

To maintain our quality while

Keeping our prices from escalating.

come to grips with the

marketplace. Quoting Mr. Burt Tansky,

president of Neiman Marcus on therecession

we are facing… 'Don't trade down, don't panic, stay focused.

Work on customer service and stay true to the

history of your brand. In tough times,

the

customer appreciates when you maintain

standards of quality and service."

I am a true believer in Mr. Tansky's ideology

And we at Dion must maintain the quality and

service to protect and preserve

our brand.

All great enterprises

move forward in

a recession,

and the

weaklings

move

back. With

our

team's

effort, this

collection is

one of the

strongest we have

ever put together,in both

design and colourations. There is no reason

why this won't be our best year ever.

New

accounts are coming aboard - switching from

their current neckwear vendors, as they see

great value in Dion. Our existing

clientele,

continues to praise our quality, service and

commitment to our brand. Their referrals

to

other mens wear shops in our industry

prove

this point.

As with the principle of compound interest,

a little investment, applied consistently, will

pay great dividends down the road.

w w w . d i o n n e c k w e a

r . c o m S T Y L

E • Q U A L I T

Y • S E R V I C

E

next week...and need to be

US dollar towards the Euro,

the constant increase of

fuel prices with fuel

surcharges…the

list goes on and on.

I don't wish to go on

about these difficult

times,

as I am an optimist,

but

even optimists have

to

realities of our uncertain


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ÜÜÜ°ÀÕvÕÃ°Vœ“

Available now at Rothman's the ultimate "outercoat"

THERE ARE TIMES EVEN A ROTHMAN'S MAN CAN'T MAKE IT TO THE STORE.

now shop online*

www.rothmansny.com *just launched with many improvements still to come

I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y D O U G L A S F R A S E R

Air Dempsey Venetian in Black and Brown

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rothman's fall '08 magazine

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