Harrison's will formally close by Labor Day

Harrison's Men's Wear in Tarentum will close by Labor Day after more than 80 years of supplying tailored suits to Valley men.

Since J.H. Shoop & Sons closed last November, Harrison's has been one of the Valley's last family-owned men's clothing stores. Malcolm's Quality Clothes in Vandergrift is still in business, and Bartolacci Brothers Ladies and Men's Tailors in New Kensington is open by appointment.

Harrison's co-owner Rodney Duster said pressure from the Pittsburgh Mills mall and a shift in men's fashion toward more casual attire slowly has unraveled his business.

"No one wears suits anymore," said Rodney, who bought Harrison's about 10 years ago along with his brother Gary.

Gary said Harrison's was doing all right until the Mills opened last July.

Within a year, the Mills and its department stores siphoned off the foot traffic Harrison's needed to keep from falling apart at the seams, said Gary.

"We're simply a victim of the times, as a lot of small businesses are victims of the times," he said. "We're like the last of the dinosaurs. When we're gone, there won't be anymore."

Mills General Manager Dave Macdonald said he couldn't say whether competition from the Mills helped to close Harrison's.

"We're committed to providing area residents with a quality shopping experience," he said.

Harrison's is set to have a going-out-of-business sale in mid-July, according to Gary. It now is open by appointment only.

The store will close when its stock is gone or when Labor Day rolls around, whichever happens first.

A gradual move away from formal work wear also contributed to the Dusters' decision to hang up their business, said Gary.

"There was a time when teachers wore a coat and tie every day. Today, it's not so," he said.

"Go to your churches, go anywhere, and how many times will you see someone that is dressed up?"

Lois Huff, an analyst at Retail Forward in Columbus, Ohio, said, while men's fashion is becoming more casual overall, pockets of formal resistance exist.

"The work uniform of American men is decidedly casual compared to what it was a decade ago," she said.

"But there's a revived interest in a more structured look, a more tailored look.

"It's slowing that movement toward the casual, but the casual is still happening."

Huff said conservative businesses like banking and retail are holding strong against the casual trend.

Certain geographic areas, such as New York and Pittsburgh, also are fighting the good fight against polo shirts and khakis in the workplace.

Audrey Guskey, a professor of marketing at Duquesne University, said men's fashion is more casual around Pittsburgh than it was four or five years ago, reflecting the national trend.

But citizens of Allegheny County have the second-oldest average age in the country, she said. This makes them less likely to trade in their sport coats for turtlenecks at work.

"Even the young people who are here tend to have a little more conservative viewpoint than the people in other major metropolitan areas," she said. "And that, of course, is reflected in how we dress."

Ray Dauer, of Tarentum, said he's been a Harrison's customer for about 50 years, and he's disappointed to see casual wear tearing up traditional men's fashion stores.

"The young people don't want to be wearing suits anymore," he said. "They prefer to walk around in jeans. I don't know what the kids think anymore, really." Additional Information:

Thing of the past

Some of the men's clothing stores from around the Valley that are no longer in business:

Archie Millers, New Kensington.

J. H. Shoop and Son's, Freeport.

Ben's Clothing, New Kensington.

Richman Brothers, Harrison.

Bennett's, Leechburg.

Berkey Clothing Store, Tarentum.

Miller Brothers, New Kensington.