The Grand Dame of Chestnut Street: Why Boyds Still Reigns After 80+ Years
In a world of fast fashion and online shopping, the Rittenhouse landmark proves that some traditions are worth keeping—especially when they come with white-glove service.
Some stories begin with grand ambitions.
Others begin with necessity, with hope, with a single moment of courage. Boyds story is the latter kind—the kind that becomes legendary not because it was planned that way, but because it was lived that way, one day at a time, for 86 years and counting.
Walk past 1818 Chestnut Street today, and you’ll see what looks like it’s always been there: a substantial presence, elegant windows, the kind of storefront that makes you instinctively check your reflection before entering. But, like all great Philly institutions, Boyds earned its place here, brick by brick, suit by suit, generation by generation.
In 1936, a man named Alec Gushner arrived in Philadelphia from Russia. Two years later, in 1938, he opened a “big & tall” men’s clothing store directly across the street from where Boyds stands today. It’s kind of cool to think of Center City in the late 1930s, where an immigrant owned a small shop specializing in a very specific fit need, so it’s hard to think of it as the foundation for a retail dynasty.
However, Gushner understood something fundamental about the business of clothing people; that it’s never really about the clothes. It’s about that moment a customer walks out feeling like the best version of themselves.
The Move That Changed Everything
For decades, Boyds focused exclusively on men’s fashion, becoming the go-to destination for weddings, television appearances, courtroom proceedings, and bar mitzvahs. Then came 1990, and with it, the Pennsylvania Convention Center project. Boyds relocated to 1818 Chestnut Street to make way for the Marriott hotel.
But 1990 brought more than a new address. As part of the move to the other side of Broad Street, and after five decades of dressing Philadelphia’s men, Boyds expanded into women’s fashion.
The Art of the Craft
The store includes an expansive expert tailor shop, where the ancient art of taking something good and making it perfect still happens daily. Watch a tailor mark a hem or adjust a shoulder, and you’re watching a conversation between fabric and craftsperson that predates shopping carts and checkout lanes by centuries.
This is what sets Boyds apart in an era when “retail” increasingly means scrolling through thumbnails at midnight, where clothing is still a tactile experience. The weight of quality fabric. The whisper of a well-constructed lining. The way a properly fitted garment makes you want to stand differently, move differently, feel differently.
Nowadays Boyds offers tailored clothing (of course), sportswear, dress shirts, ties, men’s accessories, women’s designer and contemporary clothing, shoes and handbags. It’s designed to be a comprehensive wardrobe universe under one roof or, more accurately, across multiple floors of carefully curated luxury.
The Family Legacy
Now in its third and fourth generations, the torch is carried forward. Because to be the fourth generation in retail means your great-grandfather’s customer might have been your customer’s great-grandfather, and you’re not just selling clothes; you’re maintaining relationships that span lifetimes. It means you remember Mrs. Johnson’s preference for certain designers, and you know exactly which style will work for Mr. Chen’s frame.
In an industry increasingly dominated by algorithms and automated recommendations, Boyds offers something that’s become increasingly unique: human memory, knowledge, and care.
The Last of Its Kind
In an age of “dressing down and click-and-buy, in an environment where the big chains have killed off the mom-and-pops and Amazon is killing off the chains,” Boyds in Philadelphia holds the torch as the last great clothing store, according to the New York Times.
“Last” is kind of a heavy word. It carries the weight of things ending, of eras closing, of traditions fading. But at Boyds, “last” also means “lasting.” It means you don’t have to mourn the passing of a certain kind of retail experience because it’s still here, still thriving, still doing what it’s done since 1938: paying attention to how people want to look and feel.
The Rittenhouse Advantage
The store includes on-site parking with self-service spaces reserved exclusively for clients directly across the street. And if you’ve ever tried to park in Center City, you know this amenity alone is practically a love language. Boyds isn’t just asking you to shop there; they’re removing the friction, smoothing the path, making the experience as elegant as the merchandise. It’s also served as THE location for their famous tent sales.
Walk through Boyds today, and you know that you’re walking through layers of history. The 1931 bones of an automobile dealership. The 1938 spirit of an immigrant’s dream. The 1990 evolution into a broader vision. The 2025 reality of being a fourth-generation family business in an industry where “family business” is increasingly an oxymoron.
More Than Merchandise
The real story of Boyds isn’t about the brands on the racks, but believing that quality and service and craft still matter. Alec Gushner couldn’t have known, when he opened that small “big & tall” shop across the street in 1938, that he was planting seeds for nearly a century of retail excellence. He was just trying to dress people well, to treat them right, to build something solid.
Eighty-six years later, his great-grandchildren are doing exactly the same thing, in the same neighborhood, with the same commitment to quality and service. Case in point: Gerald, their first ever brand, named after Boyds’ second-generation owner. Designed for the current generation with suits priced at $795, customized, and delivered in 2-4 weeks – the quickest turnaround for a brand that’s obsessed with ensuring every detail is perfect for their client.
THIS is the Grand Dame of Philly retail. Not because she’s the biggest or the flashiest or the trendiest, but because she’s still here, still elegant, still committed to the art of dressing people beautifully for the lives they want to live.
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