ANDRISEN MORTON CELEBRATES 40 YEARS
It was a Who’s Who of fashion industry icons, customers and friends celebrating 40 years of fabulous fashion in Denver. More than 600 of Andrisen Morton’s biggest (and best-dressed) fans recently gathered at the store to applaud its success and toast the future.
Says Craig Andrisen, “You don’t get where we are today without a lot of help, so we’re eternally grateful to our loyal customers, vendors, sales associates, and industry friends. When Dave and I first started out 40 years ago, we were a couple of salesmen working at another store; we knew we could sell but we had no idea how to run a business. We thought all we had to do was open the doors and our old customers from the other store would come rushing in. When no one came, we had to start over, creating relationships from scratch. It was me and Dave, one part-time salesperson, one tailor, and his wife. Our most expensive suit was H. Freeman at $395; shirts from Troy Shirtmakers were $27.50 and Ferrell Reed ties were $17.50 (Robert Talbott wouldn’t sell us…) But we did it, creating four fabulous stores over the years that have evolved into one super-fabulous store.
“I think it works because Dave and I have different strengths and we respect those differences,” Andrisen continued. “Of course, we couldn’t have done it without support from our vendor partners, fabulous customers, dedicated team, and much wise advice over many years from our Forum store colleagues.”
Adds partner-in-crime Dave Morton, “There are two questions people always ask me: 1) How have you and Craig, such opposite personalities, managed to work together for 40 years? And 2) To what do you attribute the store’s success? I’m not sure I can answer the first question but the second is simple: we genuinely care about our customers. While each of our employees might have a unique way of doing it, our team is 100 percent aligned on customer-centricity. I truly believe that the human touch is not going away: people love to be recognized. They can buy what we sell on their phones but they shop in places that make them feel happy. This servant spirit is an art form: it’s intrinsic to certain people and we look for it when we hire. Everyone on our team is exceptionally good at finding and keeping long-term customers. And this, more than all else, is at the core of our success.”
Photos by Studio JK Photography
Looking back over my many years in this business, and always targeting the very best men’s specialty stores throughout the US, Craig and Dave’s store was a must stop and shop!! Their taste level over the many years was spot on impeccable. They set the bar..!! I was so honored to know these guys for many years and blessed to have had my designs in their store..!! True Hall of Famers in my book 😎
A warm congrats from the other side of the Atlantic- when I had the opportunity to visit AndrisenMorton for the first time back in 2016, I immediately felt being a part of the great atmosphere, welcomed by the team , the great people ! Big hugs from Norway 🇳🇴 to Lindsay and her great people- thanks for letting us be a part of AndrisenMorton’ s selection with WeNorwegians 😘 looking forward to see you next time in Denver !
It has been my pleasure to have met both of you over thirty years ago. You have assembled a store and staff that will always be remembered what is means to be “special”. Congratulations on forty fabulous years.