GORGEOUS UNWORN Long-Sleeve Lambswool Polo Shirt from Cable Car Clothiers.
Made in Scotland!
"Much like its namesake, this is the type of store that gives San Francisco an irresistible allure. Step through its doors and you step back in time—way back. Cable Car Clothiers is an anomaly in an age where museums or old photo albums are often the only medium able to connect one with his roots.”
--Alan Flusser, *Style and the Man*.
Founded in 1946 Cable Car Clothiers--which was then called Vet's Mercantile, and focused on army surplus clothing--is located on Sutter Street in San Francisco. In 1954, as army surplus began to dry up, it strated to focus on British clothing, catering initially to the now weathier veterans who had acquired a love of classic British tweeds and woolens from being stationed in Blighty's Home Counties during the war. Named, obviously, for the cable car line that ran by it, in 1970 the decision was made to expand its reach through mail order. Beautifully produced, the catalogue reached a circulation of 2 million, and made "CCC" an inconic men's clothier.
The success of the catalogue led to further success--CCC acquired its main San Francisco rival, Robert Kirk Ltd., in 1972.
It's willingness to embrace new means of marketing, its insistence on quality (and, given its extremely high costs for its beautiful clothing, its likely high margins!) has meant that CCC has survived when so many traditional clothiers have failed. Indeed, CCC is not only surviving, but flourishing, keeping true to its original 1950s mission of offering absolutely beautiful traditional high-quality clothing with a classic British or Ivy slant.
This recent long-sleeve knit polo shirt--perfect for wearing under a tweed jacket in the early Fall--is a beautiful example of why CCC has the status that it does. Made in Scotland from thick, luxurious lambswool that's been very tightly woven this shirt is in immaculate, unworn condition. It has saddle shoulders, and the collar is perfectly constructed to have a beautiful liquid roll. It has a *four* button closure at the neck; three regular buttons, as is traditional, and then a very small fourth button on the right-hand side of the collar that secures with a knit loop at the top of the placket. (I've included two pictures below to try to show how this work!) This ensures that the collar always stays in place, and is the sort of detail that only appears on the very best clothing items.
This is a truly beautiful item--although I have doubts that its beauty justified its original price tag of around $400!
But while around $400 would be rather silly, $39, boxed, shipped, and insured in the USA is more than reasonable--and offers are very welcome!
Chest: 21
Sleeve: 33
Length (BOC): 26