Stag, the Austin menswear shop that has caught the attention of national pubs like Men’s Journal and GQ, is in expansion mode: A Dallas location opened November 21 in the Knox-Henderson neighborhood.
Currently it is housed in a temporary, 1,300-square-foot space at 4539 Travis St., but it will move into permanent 2,400-square-foot digs on Cole Street, adjacent to Trader Joe’s, later in 2015. Stag also opened a shop in Venice, California, in September. The Dallas store is its third.
Co-founder Don Weir describes the Stag philosophy thusly: “We’re of the mind that menswear shouldn’t be too precious and that good style is timeless. Be it a pair of washed or raw blue jeans, a wool cardigan, a leather jacket or a pair of lace-up work boots, those pieces never go out of style and, if bought well, can live in a guy’s closet for years and years to come.
“Above all, we focus on personal style over trends and take pride in putting together what we think is a unique assortment of well-made, long-lasting and all-around beautiful goods.”
Stag opened in Austin in 2009, offering a blend of eclectic apparel, accessories, grooming essentials and home goods. The store stocks up-and-coming brands alongside established designers and mixes contemporary art with one-of-a-kind vintage finds. The Austin locale is reflective of its South Congress address, offering “everything the frontman for a cowboy band could need,” according to Men’s Journal.
Weir says the Dallas outpost is rooted in the same ideals as the original in Austin, but the product offering varies a bit, and the shop itself has a more refined aesthetic. “For us, one of the fun parts of running a shop is getting to know our customer and neighborhood and city’s style and evolving our store over time, and we look forward to this store developing its own special character as we join the Knox-Henderson community.
“In terms of local elements, we’ll open the shop with several one-of-a-kind art pieces from Texas-based artists and plan to incorporate some Dallas-specific art in the coming months,” he says.
When asked why Venice came second, Weir says that they had their eyes on Dallas and Houston (which is coming in 2015) for a couple of years, but they weren’t finding viable options in terms of real estate. “So we turned our attention to Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice — one of our favorite streets in the U.S. and a market that we feel works well for Stag’s aesthetic and offering. The space that we found out there is really beautiful, so we jumped on it.”
Weir says they are open to the idea of future locations, but for now they are happy with four markets. “Right now we’re just focused on earning our stripes in Dallas, Venice and Houston and taking care of things back home in Austin,” he says.
Stag is now open on Travis Street.
