In a nutshell
A sunlit, wood-and-wool flagship that drapes Buck Mason’s California minimalism over a SoHo cast-iron shell, turning a T‑shirt brand into a full lifestyle proposition where wardrobes, coffee and books quietly sell the idea of modern American classics. Styled as a blend of SoHo loft, with mid-century Danish design and furnishings, and soft clothing (soft colours, soft silhouettes and soft materials) this is a coming together of themese that are seen in their other stores but never so well integrated.
In their words
“Our largest retail flagship to date has just opened in the heart of NYC’s historic SoHo District. The two-story space comes complete with a Fast Times coffee shop and a curated library of over 1,000 vintage books. The ground floor is dedicated to the brand’s expanding womenswear collection and serves as the first women’s flagship in the country, while the upper level houses the full menswear line in a loft-style setting.” [Source: the store page].
Brand Background
Buck Mason was founded in Venice, California, in 2013 by Sasha Koehn and Erik Allen Ford, starting out of a 350-square-foot garage with a tight edit of locally made jeans and tees, and a stated aim of creating “updated, modern American classics” that would stand the test of time. The brand’s early success came from obsessively iterating a single T‑shirt and a small range of denim, selling directly online and positioning itself as an antidote to fast fashion through fit, fabric and subtle design rather than logo or hype.
Over time, Buck Mason expanded into Oxford shirts, sweats, outerwear, knitwear and accessories, building a reputation for unfussy, high-quality wardrobe staples that read as “quietly put together” rather than fashion‑forward.
Physical retail has become a key part of that story. After opening its first Los Angeles shop in 2015, Buck Mason has gradually built a network of more than 30 stores across the United States, including multiple New York locations such as the West Village and Flatiron, each designed as a neighbourhood outpost rather than a cookie‑cutter chain. The company also introduced a women’s line in 2021, giving rise to mixed‑gender and women‑focused formats and deepening the brand’s appeal beyond its original menswear core.
The SoHo flagship at 486 Broadway, which opened in July 2025 in a space previously occupied by Madewell, represents the next stage in this evolution, as the brand’s largest flagship to date.
Visit Field notes
The street‑level floor is devoted entirely to womenswear, marking Buck Mason’s first dedicated women’s flagship in the US, while the upper level is a loft‑style menswear space that reprises the brand’s original West Coast aesthetic in a New York setting, with natural wood, neutral textiles and generous daylight.
Crucially, Buck Mason has layered hospitality and culture into the concept. The flagship houses a Fast Times coffee shop overlooking Broadway and a bookstore‑style wall of more than 1,000 vintage and out‑of‑print titles, curated to echo the brand’s interest in American culture, design and craftsmanship. Vintage watches are also sold on site, extending the “modern classics” proposition into accessories and giving the space the feel of a clubby, lived‑in lounge rather than a bare retail box.
The store converts nooks and crannies into cosy seating spaces. From the unpromising turn of the stairs (soft seats and lighting), to the central corridor upstairs being fitted with Eames chairs and stools, and the Friends-appartment style facing sofas over looking Broadway, there is an effort to make this a 'hang out' location. The space is dressed with mini bar areas, vinyl cache and vintage stereos (MacIntosh of course, plonked on the floor as if you were visiting your cool uncle's Maine boathouse...).
You can imagine the designers saying a phrase like "Local coverage and social content highlight how this mix changes the tempo of the store: visitors are encouraged to linger with a coffee, browse books and then drift into trying on jeans or tees, rather than being funnelled through a fast transaction". I'm sure it was well meant, and on a relaxed autumn afternoon, with the sun slanting through the generous windows, that is true. However, on a Saturday, when the store is heaving the bag-toting, shuffling tourists, the vibe is more that of your grandparents hosting a birthday party for teenagers and having to hide all of the breakable treasures!
For Buck Mason, the Broadway flagship serves to signal a shift in sophistication and style - from the tech-bro t-shirt to “America’s next great everyman label”. This is achieved in a quiet way, sited near global, high-marketing icons, this store projects a calm, neighbourhood feel.
The store is a neat study in how to scale a basics‑driven brand into experiential flagship territory in a relaxed way - coffee, books, watches, warm materials, design signalling - but together they create a differentiated, accessible yet gentle aspirational rhythm on one of Manhattan’s busiest fashion corridors.
Checkout
- Midcentury furnishings, tucked-away adult bar, MacIntosh hifi...
- obligatory cafe
- library
- vintage watch feature
Other Reading
- "How Buck Mason Became America's Next Great Everyman Brand" - GQ article
- "Our Story" - on the Buck Mason website
- NYC-Map's review of the store, useful in particular for the photos of how the store looks when busy
- Linked opening announcement
- The store's page on the Buck Mason site
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