FROM OUR NOVEMBER ISSUE: MILESTONES – 10 YEARS! LETTER J, NEW YORK, NY

The entire MR team proudly presents our November 2024 issue. If you haven’t received a hard copy, please page through  our digital version, and we’ll continue to post individual stories here on  MR-mag.com. If you haven’t been getting MR in print, be sure that you are on our mailing list for future issues by completing  this form. 

Everyone thought Jason Somerfeld was crazy when he decided to open Letter J ten years ago in West Chelsea instead of bustling SoHo, but he saw something they didn’t. “The cool places are more of a destination; people love the discovery,” he says. “I wanted to open in an area that’s in a very artistic part of Manhattan that caters to that demographic…it felt young in energy.”  

It turns out the bet paid off. The store has become a destination for international customers from London to Japan. Somerfeld describes it as “casually sophisticated” with pieces that can be dressed up or dressed down. Leaning into the destination store vibe, they don’t sell online and carry brands you won’t find in a ton of other retailers. Eleventy, Herno, Mason’s, and Chanel’s Orlebar Brown are current best-sellers.  

Somerfeld credits much of the decade-long success to not only selling an eclectic mix of casual and more elevated clothing but styling customers and teaching them how to wear these pieces in different ways. “We really pride ourselves on the in store experience,” he mentions. 

Although COVID-19 and the supply chain issues thereafter proved to be the most difficult time in the store’s tenure, they managed to bounce back. Although they have a social media presence, it’s really word-of-mouth that has been their biggest referral source. “Our business has been rewarded with the audience who shops here telling people such wonderful things about the store,” Somerfield explains. 

Given the diversity of brands, they’ve garnered an audience that includes fathers and sons shopping together, 18-year-olds bringing their mom in for their opinion, and financial professionals wanting to look stylish yet sophisticated. He says they “sell to a mindset, more than an age.”  

As for the future, Somerfeld has his eyes on Miami Beach, where he sees a similar artsy, burgeoning area. He’s considering a hotel or an area with a similar aesthetic to the current store.  “I am very hands-on and like to be in the store, so it’ll depend on if I want to divide myself in two.”