When Napoli’s was founded in 1972, the business had no intentions of selling running sneakers.
But the clothing store, which specializes in custom, high-end clothing for men, has adapted to a changing retail market. Ongoing trends such as increased casual wear and a larger focus on custom-made items were accelerated during the pandemic, said Tom Napoli, one of three partners. What hasn't changed is high-quality service and items, he said.
Still, the business, located at 6815 Main St. in Williamsville, has adjusted while maintaining its original niche.
“We have confidence in being retailers,” he said. “People say it’s dead. It truly isn’t, if you know how to offer service and have the right product for your market.”
Adding casual clothing
Napoli’s, which has 15 employees at its sole location at 6815 Main St., Williamsville, started to add casual clothing seven years ago. Balancing casual with the store’s traditional high-quality, tailored clothing was easy, Napoli said, because they cherry-picked brands that met their standard of quality.
Then, as many worked from home during the pandemic and retailers permanently closed, Napoli’s ramped up its offerings with confidence that business would improve, based simply on his family's years of retail experience.
“We know we didn’t do anything wrong,” he said. “It’s not a direct reflection of poor operations or not having the right product. It was Covid. It was a global shutdown. Nothing ever lasts forever, so we knew eventually it would turn around.”
By doing so, Napoli’s sidestepped the supply-chain landmine that many retailers have faced. He estimated if the business didn’t put in large orders early on, it would have half the products it has now. Though the casual wear trend started before 2020, the pandemic showed Napoli’s was going in the right direction and needed to buy more, he added.
The adjustments seem to have paid off. The business had strong first and fourth quarters in 2020. While 2019 was Napoli’s best ever, 2021 is on track to surpass that, Napoli said.
Focusing on made-to-measure and appointments
Napoli’s continues to adapt, bringing on a new partner and emphasizing made-to-measure items and shopping by appointment.
Rico Marotto recently joined to form a three-person equity partnership with founder Joseph Napoli and son Tom Napoli. Marotto had worked at Napoli’s for about 20 years and started his own men’s clothing business before the pandemic.
Tom Napoli said they decided reuniting was mutually beneficial, so Marotto will bring his made-to-measure specialty and intimate shopping atmosphere via appointments to Napoli’s.
Napoli's wants to be known for everything from off-the-rack to made-to-measure to a large assortment of casual and not-casual clothing, Tom Napoli said.
The team is setting up part of the 7,000-square-foot retail store for appointments, where Napoli’s personnel can pull pieces and have a curated corner set up.
“You have to be more fluid, I think, today than ever,” Tom Napoli said.
