You wouldn’t know it was a J.Crew store unless you looked for the label inside the clothes, and that’s the point. In an age when almost everything comes stamped with a corporate mark, the brand’s first menswear store in Manhattan’s Tribeca neighborhood feels like a step back in time to the dry-goods stores of yore. The neon sign outside stills reads “Liquor Store,” the name of the space’s former occupant, and much of the interior is a holdover from the building’s days as a low-key boîte as well. The bar itself remains intact, as do the fireplace and the restrooms in the back. The bottles behind the bar, however, are strictly for show.

Partners & Spade, Andy Spade’s new New York creative firm,  worked with the J.Crew design team to curate a shop that’s meant to feel like the man’s ultimate closet, complete with Borsalino hats, Alden shoes, vintage accessories, and books from the Strand. There are a number of exclusive collaborations as well, including luggage from Globe-Trotter and shirts from Thomas Mason. The J.Crew clothes have been bumped up a notch to match: the Tribeca suit features a more modern cut and high-end details like functioning buttonholes on the cuffs. To celebrate the opening, as well as the launch of Spade and Anthony Sperduti’s new book What a Man Should Know, the store will be hosting a series of lessons around the city throughout the fall, offering classes on wine pairings, chess, and figure drawing. Apparently a well-stocked closet alone just isn’t enough anymore.

J. Crew at the Liquor Store, 235 West Broadway, 212-226-5476

Photography Sarah Ahrens

KEYWORDS: Andy Spade, clothing, J.Crew, stores