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What is CLADmen.com? And will you use it?

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CLAD as hell:  Esquire dives into online retail.

Publishing.  It’s not an easy business.  More people are starting to believe that the words and pictures we’ve always paid to see in newspapers, magazines, and books, should forever be free if accessed on the internet.  The hell they thinking… that writers and photographers work for free?  I thought only Postal Workers and UPS drivers did that.

Kidding.  Mostly.

Since the revenue streams for Esquire, GQ, and pretty much every other magazine on the planet have slowed, these magazines are probably looking for new ways to make money.  You’d think this is part of a strategy to do just that.  Here’s how a few popular publications are going about it:

J.C. Penny?  Really?  Indeed.  But of course, it’s not quite that simple.  CLAD doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to what they are and who’s participating.  This is from their easy to find “about” page:

CLAD is part of a strategic promotional relationship between Hearst Magazines and J.C. Penney Company, Inc., designed to create the next generation of online retail business.  J.C. Penney is an investor in CLAD, not an owner.

So J.C. Penny is on board but there’s nothing J.C. Penny looking about Cladmen.com.  Designers available are the likes of Hugo Boss, Billy Reid, and Varvatos.  Suits and watches seem to average in the high hundreds, and shoes are $150 and up.  It’s not Old Navy, but it’s not… well it’s not Park & Bond either.  Leaning heavily that way though.

CLAD isn’t overflowing with a variety of stock, but the site is clean and there’s a sale section.  They’re also doing the “get $25 in credit every time one of your referrals signs up and makes a purchase” thing.  And of course, since this is the merging of content and retail, there’s a portion of the website dedicated to “damn good advice.”

But will you use it?  Or will CLAD quickly become forgettable, just like Park & Bond did for some of us?  Leave your take in the comments below…

Also know that there’s a $50 off $150 code: ESQ, which appears on the back of the mini promotional magazine “The Clad Report” (inside this month’s Esquire.)  But it doesn’t seem to be working right now.

Comments

  1. When I got my issue of esquire a few months ago it had a coupon code for the launching of CLAD in it. I redeemed it and got a free Esquire Big Black Book out of that. That is the only good thing I have to say with regards to CLAD. Never gonna visit the site again, too rich for my blood. 

  2. Park & Bond really has some nice stuff on the site. Everything Brooks Brothers is pretty affordable but CLAD is just ridiculous with prices. A henley for $100?! No thanks.

  3. This sort of website is a lot like Mr. Porter for me – that is, fun to look at, but mostly more than I would probably spend. But that’s not to say that some will not find it reasonably priced…

  4. The content section reminds me of theMANual (Gilt).  Everything suggested is a little(lot) overpriced and you feel like you’re being talked into buying something more than having a post/article on fashion.  Unless there are particular things on sale, I have enough sites shooting me daily emails already.

  5. Looking at the site is like flipping through an Esquire.  You enjoying seeing neat clothes but you know you’d never realistically drop $1,700 on a sports jacket.

  11. Did the same thing, and discovered the Big Black Book is not for the normal guy who wants to dress well. Very overpriced and over the top styles.

  12. Totally agree with the comments here. If you are going to have big prices, you need the big justification – its an awesome brand? its going to last me really long? its made of hair from the chin of baby Mongolian sheep? Lets see if it differentiates itself from Gilt in a tangible way, I think it needs to to survive.

  13. I signed up and got the book as well.  The book was disappointing and offered little more than what one finds in a typical issue of Esquire.  I shop for deals at a lot of retailers.  This is just another store-front, not a source of stylish and affordable menswear.  The only way I’d visit CLADmen.com is if Joe points out a good deal being offered.

  14. Guides like the big black book are great for everyone. They are wht they advertise a GUIDE. Use your own common sense to put together outfits that fit these styles within your budget.

  15. I’ve been envisioning the perfect blazer, and then I saw that Clad had collaborated to create exactly what I was looking for. Too bad it’s about thrice what I think is twice what I would actually pay for a blazer.

    But seriously, look at it. 
    http://www.cladmen.com/apparel/suits-and-jackets/clad-exclusive-navy-travel-blazer.html
    It’s brilliant. Everything I want in a blazer. Rolled 3-button design. Patch pockets. Single vent. Blue and textured, not dark and shiny.

    I’m sure I could have a tailor make me one just like it for way less than the $1895 they’re charging.