By Elie Robinson
As we approach our one-year anniversary since opening the flagship store of Under 510 in Cedarhurst, we reflect on the year that was and the year to come. Our humble beginnings started with just 11 button-down shirts. The evolution has been rapid as we expanded into jeans, polos, ties, shoes, and now have stretch chinos and stretch dress pants with more styles of all our products.
Our previous lives were in e-commerce where one rarely gets to speak with customers, so the store has been a great opportunity for us to interact, get feedback, and see immediate gratification when a customer completely transforms his look in our store. Many customers walk out wearing our clothes instead of the clothes they wore when they came in.
Our customers have also been a huge part of the process of developing new products. As many mothers have discovered, our shorter length (inseam) pants, which run from 26 inches to 29 inches, are a natural fit for most young men as they transition out of boys’ clothes. Many have vented their frustration about their sons growing out of the “boys’” size 15/16 and having too big of a gap between that and men’s sizes. With input from these mothers, we made our chinos and dress pants with waists starting at 26 inches and already at the lengths perfectly fit for this transition.
We just received our chinos, and many of them were sold as we were unboxing them. One of the most common quotes we hear is, “You have no idea how easy you made this with perfectly fitting pants. I don’t have to go to the tailor.”
We also hear, “I’ve never seen a pants size 26” X 26.”
“You take returns? Even on sale items? For money back and not store credit?”
But our favorite quote is, “You should really be charging more.”
As part of our mission to bring perfectly fitting off-the-rack clothing to shorter men, we believe that the price points should be competitive with traditional big box retailers. We shouldn’t have to pay a “short tax.”
Chinos are priced at $50, or two for $80; jeans, $50; button-down shirts, $40 (seven new styles including four solids); dress pants, $75; sneakers, $30; polos for $25 or two for $40; ties, $20 or two for $30.
Stop in to experience your transformation. Most taller guys welcome, too.
Elie Robinson is the founder of Under 5’10. For more information, visit Under510.com. For questions and comments, email support@under510.com.
