HAT COUNSELLOR - Are they extinct?

[rlk]

 

[Johnnysan]

We have a whole Lounge full of them here!

 

[Brad Bowers]

Love it! It's the stories of the men behind the hats that really brings their history to life. Nice to get some Baskin history, too, since it seems like a third of all Dobbs hats we see here and on eBay came from that store.

Brad

 

[monbla256]

....'fraid so, dead as the proverbial DoDo Bird Heck, the Dept. Store as it was is basicly gone today as well Interesting read as to how things were (WELL BEFORE most of us were born ) and will not be again I'm afraid

Onward thru the Fog

 

[Mobile Vulgus]

As a "profession" (if it ever was a real profession and not just this one store's kitchy idea) it is assuredly a long gone era. Gone like gas station attendants in uniforms that pump your gas for you and clean your windshield while they do so. Gone like wearing a suit to a sporting event (or, heck, even to Church in some parts of the country!). Gone like 5 cent cigars and 5 cent comic books (did you know comic books are about $5 a piece now-a-days??)

Just gone.

Sadly.

 

[Pompidou]

I think M.V. pretty much hit it on the head, with a summation by Johnnysan. It's dead as a profession, though I'm willing to bet rather than die completely, it simply merged into the duties of fashion consultants as a whole - the guys who pick out outfits for the rich and famous. Certainly not a mainstream career, by any means. That said, so long as hats make a resurgence, people will be confused as to how to wear them right, and if they google fedora like I did, they'll land here. TFL is the modern day hat counsellor. In person careers are becoming e-hobbies by the dozen, and modern communities like this replace the Fred Kellies of the past.

 

[danofarlington]

TFL is the modern day hat counsellor.

Maybe so, but the counsellor is schizophrenic. Any given question will get you eleven different answers. We would sow confusion more than assurance. However, that may be more accurate than any one person's opinion anyway. So pick your poison--a know it all consultant who may be helpful or not; or the opinionated masses here.

 

[rlk]

When I bought my first Fedora in 1978 at the Stetson Store near Herald Square in NYC they still had such a man. I came in with no definite idea what type of hat I wanted. He suggested colors and dimensions, and tried them out on my head. Then he adjusted the shaping and finally steamed and brushed the hat before I left the store(wearing the new hat) after the sale was completed.

 

[frussell]

When I lived in Houston, the man who ran the Hat Store (which I believe was a continuation of American Hat Co.) would give just such advice, on western and dress hats alike. He had been working with hats since boyhood, and had excellent taste on what would best suit your face, body shape and wardrobe. Several times I just went in and told him "I want a hat, what do you suggest," and always came out happy. I believe his name is Gary (Cohen?), and he still runs that store. Frank

 

[buler]

Does anyone have a sweatband stamp die? I would think some of these have survived....

B