What began as a pop-up venture storefront has developed into a successful, growing business for fine Italian suits and modern menswear, said retailer Rick Fortuna of Italy Direct in Katonah.
Opening in October 2011, Mr. Fortuna, a Pound Ridge resident for 18 years, had originally planned to be in the Katonah Shopping Center on Katonah Avenue only a few months, but things changed quickly after what he described as a very warm local reception in just the first four months he started.
“I decided to sign up for another six months, and every month things just kept getting better and better,” he told The Ledger recently.
As a sales agent working with Italian companies, he spent 30 years in the wholesale men’s clothing business, he said. “I used to sell, as an example, 7,000 suits and jackets a year just to Barney’s,” he said. Now the owner and sole operator of Italy Direct, he credits his success to a variety of factors, from his personal touch and fashion knowledge to a lack of local competitors, and to countywide recognition following favorable articles in Westchester Magazine and other publications.
“I have customers that come up from Larchmont, Mamaroneck, Irvington,” Mr. Fortuna said. “I even had a gentleman who came up from Nanuet last week to buy two suits and a jacket.”
Any potential competitors, he said, would find it difficult to compete with his 30% to 50% price discounts, his personal touch and the quality of his private label menswear.
“When you deal with a designer, you are paying for an inflated cost because you are paying for their marketing and advertising and all of that,” he said. “That is a pretty hefty number, because they spend a lot of money on that. There are hundreds of small family factories in Italy that have small production but have top quality, and these are the type of people I like to find.” Mr. Fortuna has traveled to Italy at least 60 times in his career, but no longer travels there. “I am too old to keep doing that,” he joked.
Fashion sense
Mr. Fortuna took a break during the interview to assist a customer, one he was clearly familiar with, and comfortably suggested outfits and fielded what some men might consider embarrassing fashion questions, such as what color jackets can go with what pants and shoes.
Building wardrobes and educating customers on men’s fashion are cornerstones of his success, he said. “If something doesn’t fit, I don’t care how bad you want it, I won’t sell it to you because a lot of my business is word of mouth,” he said.
His international taste and fashion sense are applicable around the globe, he said. Mr. Fortuna provides fashion for men so that whether they are in Westchester County, New York City or London, they will look like they are stylishly placed, he said.
The best suits come from Italy, without a doubt, Mr. Fortuna said. He acknowledged that not all of his suits are direct from Italy; some of his suits are assembled in China, but with Italian fabrics, which makes all the difference, he said. Additionally, his suits assembled in China are done so in the same locations as high-end clothing line Armani Collezioni.
“It is a quality factory,” he said. Many of the men who walk into his store have good fashion sense, Mr. Fortuna said, but his favorite customers are the ones who know the least, and he enjoys building their wardrobes and avoiding fashion faux pas. “They want everything to go with everything,” he said. “I can’t stand a navy suit with black shoes.”
Mr. Fortuna has noticed men are adapting to new trends with unconstructed and functional jackets, which is exactly the kind of casual and international fashion he and his store emulate. “You want to dress like a gentleman with an international twist,” he said. “If I were walking on the street in Milan they would think I was Italian. If I was walking on the street in lower Manhattan they would think I was a fashionable guy living in Manhattan. If I were in L.A. I’d fit right in.”
Beyond walk-in customers, Mr. Fortuna also provides on-site tailoring and off-hour personal meetings by appointment. For more information: 917-500-6222 or italydirectmenswear.blogspot.com.
Article and Photo by Reece Alverez
