Specialty shops, all by design

Portland offers the rare attentions of curious, meticulous curator types

October 30, 2011|By Jonathan Levitt, Globe Staff

PORTLAND, Maine - Two years ago I stopped into David Wood Clothiers in the Old Port here and splurged on a getup. I’m not exactly the sartorialist, but David Hodgkins, the clothier himself, was in the shop, and he has a way of steering even sweatpants slovens like me toward what he calls the “dressier side of the wardrobe.’’ I walked out bedecked in twill trousers with leather piping around the pockets, a proper dress shirt, and a cashmere cardigan with wooden buttons.

In 1978 Hodgkins opened David Wood Clothiers (229 Commercial St., 207-773-3906, www.davidwood.com), a half floor below street level, on a busy corner in the center of town. He stocked the store with the best of everything: Michael Drake’s handmade ties from London, Alden tassel moccasins made in Massachusetts, leather goods by Martin Dingman from Arkansas, shaving gear from Edwin Jagger in Sheffield, England, Shetland wool sweaters from Harley of Scotland, and all manner of custom pants, suits, tuxedos, shirts, and sport coats.

This summer Hodgkins moved the shop a few blocks away to a bigger space on Commercial Street, across from the harbor and next door to his other businesses: Barbour by David Wood (featuring the venerable English brand known for waxed cotton outerwear) and Portland Dry Goods Co. (the more casual side of David Wood featuring heritage brands such as Woolrich and Red Wing shoes).

Last week, in search of a suit for a winter wedding, I went down to the waterfront to flip through some Southwick tweedy swatches. Hodgkins was there. Dressed for work as usual, he was wearing horn-rimmed glasses, a wild boar print tie, and a checked double-breasted blazer with an argyle pocket square. A measuring tape was slung around his shoulders. I knew that I was in good hands.

David Wood Clothiers is a place to buy clothes, but it is also the realization of a philosophy and a sensibility. To shop here is to be guided by a specialist, somebody who can make sense of all of that would otherwise be just out of reach. This is true of any great shop. The best of them can feel like a cabinet of curiosities with shopkeepers refining and curating, editing through the seemingly infinite so that we have a head start. This city is home to many such shops. Here are a few of the best.

Chellis Wilson

This place is more art installation than conventional shop. The space, small and sunny with a tin ceiling and ebony floors, is tucked away on a quiet side street and filled with a spare and carefully arranged selection of clothes, books, textiles, and furniture.

Owner Barbara Merritt describes it as “a retail adventure, committed to strong aesthetics and integrity of production.’’