Lauren Stovall didn't always see her place in the family business.
Her father, Tony Stovall, is co-owner of Hot Sam's, a men's fashion fixture in downtown Detroit since 1921.
"I had many opportunities growing up to work in the store," said Lauren, who is 38. "(But) I didn't see my place in the store. I wasn't really that interested in men's fashion."
But she loves history, and when she moved back home from Florida in 2009, she started to see her father's shop as exactly that — part of Detroit's history.
"I started appreciating my father ... kind of thinking, 'You guys really did something here!'" she said.
Now, she works at Hot Sam's as the shop's legacy preserver. Her job is to connect the old and the new, to help tell the story of the brand's past while bringing it into the future.
This year, Hot Sam's celebrates its centennial — during a global pandemic, from a location just off Campus Martius that normally depends on foot traffic from downtown office workers, most of whom have not been to the office for almost a year.
The pandemic has disrupted plans for marking the occasion that had been in the works for years.
"I'll be honest, it's not ideal," Lauren said, expressing a sentiment that many who have had to postpone or reimagine birthday dinners, anniversary trips, weddings and graduations likely find extremely relatable. But the team at Hot Sam's is committed to celebrating however it can.
To recognize a legacy Black-owned business during Black History Month, Crain's spoke to Lauren and Hot Sam's co-owners Tony Stovall and Cliff Green about how they're commemorating and connecting the history of Hot Sam's to the community — and to a new generation of customers.
This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
Crain's: Give us a brief history of Hot Sam's.
Lauren Stovall: Hot Sam's is the oldest men's clothing store in downtown Detroit. It was opened in 1921 on Brush Street, right around the corner from where we are now. The building is no longer there — it's a parking structure now. It was opened by the Freedman family, specifically Sam Freedman. My father Tony Stovall started working there in 1974 as a salesman, then Cliff Green came in shortly after as a salesman. Both of them were top salesmen at the store.
My father had an opportunity to buy the store — a conversation with the then-ownership. But he wanted a partner, so he invited Cliff to come on this journey of ownership with him. They both bought the store in 1994.
We moved into 127 Monroe, which is where we are now, in 2004. This is what's so great about a 100-year-old business — this business has survived, especially economic turns. Back in 2004, it was a great opportunity to move and get into a new establishment. There were new people coming to work in that area — it was a new clientele coming to downtown Detroit. So it was nice at that time to downsize. I look around now and think — oh, the things we could do with that large space!
My vision, in terms of looking in the future, is to really position Hot Sam's as that one-stop shop. For me, I see a barber shop, a shoe shine, some grooming for men. We can't have that in this space. But what's so great is that we are still here.
We are in our 100th year and we are still amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but in this celebratory year for our business specifically, how do we acknowledge this great feat of surviving and thriving for 100 years while we're in the middle of yet another economic turn?
This is the irony of it: This is who Hot Sam's is. We are a business that survives. You don't make it to 100 without having to survive a recession, a Depression. When I think about it — we are right in line with who we are. A resilient business. Because we've had to be. So we're right back in that space. We have to figure out how not just to survive, but thrive.
Crain's: How are you telling the story of the history of Hot Sam's to a new generation of customers?
Lauren: Look at what my father and Mr. Green were able to do. It's one thing to work your way up the ladder, but you worked your way up the ladder and then you bought the business? It's really an American dream story — you, too, can buy the very store that you work at. My generation, younger generations, are interested in that, motivated by that. That stirs something up in them, that you can overcome odds and start here but really work your way all the way to ownership.
And I think it's important to know that it's not as glamorous as one might think. My father and Mr. Green have overcome a lot, and had to endure a lot, to be here. I think people like to hear that story of grit to grace.
Crain's: Can you tell me some of those stories of overcoming adversity?
Tony Stovall: Where do you want to start? From the very beginning there were issues. I worked at Hot Sam's since 1974. I was a top salesman, and I was feeling good about myself — so I'm thinking about leaving and starting my own store. And the previous owners, the Freedmans, asked me a question that was so odd to me. They said: "What are we gonna do?" I said, "Pardon me?" He wanted to know what they were gonna do if I left. I thought I was pretty important, but not to that degree. So they saw I was serious, and they asked me, "Would you buy Hot Sam's?" I didn't want to do it by myself, so I called Mr. Green. So from '94 to now, me and Mr. Green have been partners.
It has never been easy, but it's a commitment of love. There's an old saying: If you do something you enjoy, it's really not like work. I enjoy what I do first. I believe in the opportunity where — me and Mr. Green, both from the perceived "rough side," the East Side of Detroit — you can make it anywhere. You have to believe in yourself. Detroit is not an easy place. They don't give you nothing in Detroit. You have to earn it. And almost everybody in Detroit thinks they can dress. Who do you think you are, that you're gonna buy the store and dress the city? Lo and behold, we were blessed to be able to do that.
You're talking about ups and downs in the business? When I was a top salesman, I'd get a commission check every week. When you're the owner, you have a sales staff, they get the big check, and you've gotta pay them. Then I gotta go back into the office and pay the taxes, and the mortgage ... being an owner is a totally different responsibility.
I think one of the things that gave us longevity — a lot of us get stuck doing things a certain way. When we first started doing this in '74, everybody you knew wore a suit. You had to look good to do a presentation, going to funerals, going to church. Now there is no dress code. How do we fit in?
I have three lovely daughters, and Lauren just caught the bug. And she was pressing me about changing. Now we're downtown, you see all of these urban, young, white millennials — we have foot traffic, but they're not coming to my store. Finally I had to listen to Laruen who's saying, "Dad, maybe we need to do some things differently." She said: Let's take a survey of what these people downtown even want. And that never crossed my mind.
We were slow to adapt. My daughter really pushed the accelerator on us to adapt. It's rough to change, it really is. Me and her — we still butt heads every now and then. But I want to bridge the gap of my age, and my daughter's age, and use my wisdom, and her ingenuity and new technology to take us to the next level. We've been here for 100 years. We want to be here for another 100 years.
It was three generations of Jewish folks named Freedman who were very successful in (this) business. Detroit is 85 percent Black. How come we can't do that? I really want to help tell that story, and show that you can.
Crain's: I always think of Detroit as a place that has so much style. I wonder what you think about the role style has played in Detroit's history, since you've been in the business?
Cliff Green: When I started in retail in 1967, I looked at many films from the '30s and the '40s — and I was really taken by the well-dressed men, because every well-dressed man had a dress shirt and a dress hat, and when they went out they had an overcoat. That's the style I like, that's the style that I was brought up on. But over the past 10-15 years, with relaxed Fridays, or "dress-down" Fridays, styles have changed a bit. The guys are not really into dressing as much as they once were — the young men usually follow the actors or the basketball players and whatever they wear. We've had many different trends over the last 20 years, from the baggy pants to the real slim fit now — but my impression now is as long as a guy looks presentable, with a nice pair of pants, a nice shirt or a nice sweater, it's acceptable.
The industry has changed. The industry is geared more toward the younger guy, because they're the ones spending the money now. Many guys in my age group and older have passed on — so therefore fashion as we once knew it is no more. However, you still have guys like myself, like Mr. Stovall, who came up in the '60s and '70s that are still dressers. There's nothing like seeing a well-dressed men.
Fashion now is what you make it — you can make it whatever you want it to be. You can dress up, dress down, casual, relaxed. Back in my day, we were ashamed to wear blue jeans. Now, guys are wearing blue jeans for $500 with holes in them. Gym shoes? We only wore gym shoes during gym period. Now they're spending $1000 a pair on gym shoes.
Crain's: Any other thoughts you'd like to share on your 100th anniversary?
Green: I know we look good for 100. What can we say? But it is a blessing for this store to have been able to serve the community (for 100 years). I don't think there's any other store in Detroit, or even in Michigan, that can say that. It's truly a great honor. Hopefully we can continue that, and pass that on to our children, and maybe our great-great grandchildren can say the same.
Crain's: Do you have kids who are involved in the business?
Green: I have eight children — most of my kids were involved in the business at some point in time. They chose to do other things. But they still have the flavor and the flair of what we do. The door's always open, if they want to come in and work or day or two a week. ... My grandson, he was 7 at the time, I taught him how to answer the phone. "Good afternoon, Hot Sam's, how may I help you?" So a customer calls, he answers the phone, the person on the other line says, "Can I speak to a salesman?" My grandson says, "You're speaking to one." The customer asks, "Can I speak to an older salesman?"
So we're trying to train them, as well, on how you conduct business.
***
Hot Sam's is located at 127 Monroe St. in Detroit and this year began selling clothing and accessories on its website. While anniversary celebrations are planned throughout the year, Lauren said Detroit City Council plans to declare March 19 — the store's 100th "birthday" — Hot Sam's Day.
"and" - Google News
February 27, 2021 at 07:30PM
https://ift.tt/2O1Dl9g
Grit and grace: Hot Sam's Detroit celebrates 100 years - Crain's Detroit Business
"and" - Google News
https://ift.tt/35sHtDV
https://ift.tt/2ycZSIP
And
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Grit and grace: Hot Sam's Detroit celebrates 100 years - Crain's Detroit Business"
Post a Comment