An Interview with Sid Mashburn

Who would have thought one of the most exciting menswear shops in America was in…Atlanta? Take one step inside Sid Mashburn’s Buckhead boutique however and you’ll realize it’s true. Sid has created the perfect marriage of Southern gentleman and Northern savvy in his namesake store and line of suits, shirts and shoes, all with an uncanny attention to quality. Our correspondent, RJ Duggan traveled down south to speak with the man himself about the things and places he loves.

Q. What are you wearing today?

Sid: Sartorio jacket, Sid Mashburn pants, Sid Mashburn belt, Belgian shoes (54th, btwn Park & Lex). Matt has on a pair of wingtips he wears with jeans, we wear dress shoes fairly indiscriminately, suits, jeans, kakhi’s. Then he’s wearing a sharp, blue Hamilton shirt, Hamilton from Houston.

Q. What was the last big purchase you made on clothing?

Sid: That would be a Sartorio suit

Q. Was that custom?

Sid: No, I’m an off the rack kind of guy

Q. Have you had a custom suit made?

Sid: Yes, in 1985 I had a red, silk, seersucker, suit made by Nino Corvato for Catania clothing on lower 5th avenue, it was seriously Uncle Sam.

Q. Where is your favorite place to shop?

Sid: Tokyo, I like Beams or United Arrows, but boiling it down to one spot is tough because I like Italy a lot too. There are lots of stores that I like for a lot of different reasons, but probably my favorite store in the world is Deyrolle in Paris. That to me is one of the coolest, most inspiring places because when you’re around clothes and fashion all day, you lose your hankering for shopping for clothes and at the end of the day you may be looking for something else that really peaks your interest. I like A. Giemme in Cuomo or Eral 55 in Milan.

Q. Favorite store in New York?

Sid: I can’t afford anything in there, but I like BDDW, they do furniture, as well as the Persian shop on 54th and Madison.

Pete: It’s a museum you can shop in.

Sid: Oh and Barbara Shaum, she does beautiful leather stuff.

Q. What are your favorite brands?

Sid: Russell, I love, Sartorio, I love, Atkinson is pretty special, APC a lot too, things with soul. We like for there to be an inherent utility in things, and all of these brands tend to carry that.

Matt: Levi’s, Quoddy, Atkinson.

Q. What do you want to be known for? What are you most proud of in your recent work?

Sid: Just a quest for taking care of people, that’s really what Sid Mashburn is about, taking care of people, and to do that is providing the best quality product we can for the best value. Its passion, people and product. If you don’t have the passion you can go do something else.

Matt: I think when someone walks out of this store they should feel happier than when they came in, not feel like they were sold, more like they were educated.

Sid: And taken care of.

Q. Where do you grab a drink after a tough day?

Sid: A Schlitz or Pacifico out of the refrigerator in the back

Q. Favorite restaurant in New York?

Sid: La Tazza D’oro, “Cup of Gold” on 8th and 15th street, sort of a dominican coffee shop.

Q. Your order?

Sid: Roast chicken, beans and rice and a cafe con leche for dessert with some plantains

Q. What’s next for Sid Mashburn?

Sid: In fleshing out our products, we will have Sid Mashburn suits coming in September. We started with shirts, trousers, shoes and sweaters, and now suits. We’ve wanted to do suits the whole time, as you can tell I’m kind of big on the “whole package”, I don’t want to be a classification store.

Q. What is your dream collaboration?

Sid: Honestly, I don’t ever want to do Sid Mashburn with anybody else, I want it to just be me or them, because everyone is doing these “so-and-so” for whoever else, and I would rather it just be my label or their label. Even if we do things for somebody, I don’t want it to be a Sid Masburn for Russell, I would rather it be a more opague relationship, it just seems too celebrity, I’d rather keep it a bit more pure.

Q. First Design job?

Sid: David Cameron at J. Crew for 5 years in the mid 1980s and early 1990’s

Q. Where do you get your inspiration from?

Everywhere, the other guys here at the store, music, friends, family, travelling, but if I had to hone in on what I’ve always had a vision for is a sort of 1960’s cross between the beach boys and woodstock, in a funny sense, a preppy/hippy thing.

Pete: Sid is from Mississippi though, so there’s always going to be something southern about what he does. He wouldn’t be Sid Mashburn if he didn’t.

Sid: Clothes as a statement in New York come off as heavy, not effortless. Too heavy, too moody.

Q. What will you never wear?

Sid: Jumpsuit, or pajamas, and only a t-shirt when i’m working out.