When I first heard J. Crew was coming to Hong Kong, I was overjoyed to say the least.  After all, it is one of the best men’s retailers on the planet!  My favorite all American brand first washed on to Hong Kong shores last year at Lane Crawford.  However, the limited assortment mainly consisted of their basic line.  As with any fan of the brand, I had the basics covered long ago.  I wanted the good stuff!

And guess what?

THE GOOD STUFF HAS ARRIVED!!!!  All buttoned up in a fantastic store and NOT in a mall.

J. Crew recently opened its first Hong Kong menswear store.  In fact, Hong Kong is home to J. Crew’s first Asia Pacific store.  Last Friday night I had some extra time before meeting friends for dinner, so I swung by the 2,800 sq. ft. store, spanning 3 floors, in Central.  My first impression was it’s tiny.  Even though it’s backpack approved… it’s really small.  But, the mill-work and general finish out is top-notch.  Compared to the new men’s store I visited in Dallas a few months ago, this store is in a league of its own.  It’s A-Mazing!  And even more impressive than the beautiful store, which was perfectly stocked with everything J. Crew has to offer, this American retailer offered American service.  They greeted, offered assistants, and left me alone!  Again, A-Mazing!

The first two floors mainly house casual wear (including Wallace & Barnes), along with New Balance and Alfred Sargents IN. MY. SIZE.  Third floor offers business and dress suits, including the Ludlow suit and tuxedo line.

As with any American brand in Hong Kong, I was expecting the prices to be outrages.  However, after pulling several tags, I didn’t think they were as bad as Hong Kong’s Club Monaco or A&F.  That said, a friend of mine later shared he felt my assessment was wrong.  Sooo, I thought I’d do a little comparison.  I went online and visited J. Crew’s US site, followed by Hong Kong’s site.  Here are the results.

Above, I selected two items from the USA site,  and as you can see, the total came to $163.00 ($1,262.00 HKD).

Then, I selected the same two items on the Hong Kong site.  The results… Hong Kong retails were 27% higher.

I use a US shipper/consolidator that ships at a reduced rate, so international shipping for me would cost about $15 USD.  So, as is the case with everything in Hong Kong, buying online is still less expensive.   However, I’m sure I’ll be making purchases every once in a while here in Hong Kong, if for no other reason than to say I BOUGHT A PAIR OF SHOES IN HONG KONG THAT FIT, which I haven’t been able to say until now.  And also because I MISS SHOPPING.

So, will this non-logo, non-bling, American brand make the cut in Hong Kong?  This is what CEO Mickey Drexler had to say…

I do thank  J. Crew for taking a chance with Hong Kong in such a big way, and for also making online shopping easier.  Now, I can at least try on for sizing before jumping online and buying from their US site.

J. Crew Menswear Store     |     9 On Lan Street     |     Central     |     Hong Kong