MARTIN GREENFIELD TRIBUTE: A BEACON OF LIGHT

MR magazine joins the entire menswear industry in celebrating the life of Martin Greenfield, a beloved custom tailor, and friend to U.S. presidents, Hollywood celebrities, athletes, and rock stars. Holocaust survivor, master of custom clothing, and family man with a strong belief in God, Martin was adored and admired, here and around the globe. He died last week at 95 years young.

Born Maximilian Grunfeld in 1928 in Czechoslovakia, Martin experienced a carefree childhood with adoring parents and siblings. His father Joseph was an industrial engineer, and the family was well off. But antisemitism was stirring in Europe and the Grunfelds were among the millions rounded up by Hitler’s Gestapo and forced onto a train to Auschwitz. On arrival, families were separated; Martin never again saw his mother, brother or sisters. Together with his father for just a short time, Joseph told Martin that should he somehow survive, he must embrace life for the entire family. And he did just that.

Martin, then a teenager, experienced atrocities too awful for words. But by street smarts and sheer will, he lived to witness the 1945 liberation of the camps and a visit to Buchenwald by Dwight D. Eisenhower. As fate would have it, the two were to meet again. Martin came to America alone and penniless in 1947. By the time he met Eisenhower again, Martin was a proud Jewish American with a thriving clothing business who disagreed with the president’s stance on Israel. As a subtle act of protest, he sewed notes about Israel into the pockets of the suits he was crafting for the president. Not long after, Eisenhower changed his position and became a great supporter of Israel. Imagine, the rabbi at Martin’s memorial service pointed out, an immigrant from the concentration camps conducting U.S. foreign policy with a needle and thread!

As editor of MR magazine, I had the privilege of knowing Martin from IACDE (International Association of Clothing Designers and Executives) events and from the selling floor at Brooks Brothers, where I’d watch him expertly measure customers and schmooze with store salesmen and execs. He had this uncanny ability to charm everyone he met; he genuinely cared about people and seemed to take as much pride in his relationships as in his craft. As his son Jay said at his dad’s memorial service, “Whenever I’d fly anywhere with Martin, there was always an empty seat next to me, since he’d be walking around the plane making new friends for the entire flight!”

A memory I treasure is from IACDE holiday celebrations: I’d watch Martin with a most radiant smile on his face, dancing joyfully with his beautiful wife Arlene. This was a man who knew he was the luckiest guy on earth! May his positive energy, passion for life, and innate kindness remain a source of inspiration for all of us.

Here, a few memories from those who knew him well.

Erik Wilkinson, chief sales officer, Eton

No one I know of exemplified a life well-lived more than Martin Greenfield. He was an incredible salesman, an astute businessman, a charismatic leader, and a genuinely kind person all wrapped in the body of a simple tailor who treasured the gift of life. He was an American patriot who never took for granted all that our great country offered him as an immigrant coming to America by himself, having lost his entire family in the Holocaust. As a young buyer during my many years working with him, he always filled me with confidence, gently teaching me lessons in both business and life, while embracing my wife and I as part of his family. I thank God for the opportunity to know this great man and will share his stories for the rest of my life with my children, my family and anyone who needs inspiration to be the best they can be, while squeezing every last drop out of the gift of life.

Cody Hammond, General Manager and MTM specialist, Isaia.

The end of an era. That’s what both The New York Times and Wall Street Journal wrote in their obituaries. How right they are!

I met Martin at the offices of Donna Karan. He was departing a meeting, Jay and Todd in tow. He was, as always, impeccably dressed, three-piece suit and cufflinks, tan, trim, striding out the door. If you’ve ever seen that photo of Frank Sinatra on the boardwalk with his bodyguards, that gives you an idea. Forever working, that was Martin. He made Donna’s collections of men’s suits, the famous crepe ones. He certainly cut a figure.

I traveled with Martin and spent many hours at the Greenfield factory. Together we dressed the Fox Sports guys and traveled stores doing made to measure. It was always a blast being with him. He had a boyish charm about him that gave off an air of getting away with something. He told me of sneaking onto the courts of a waspy, exclusive tennis club in Florida where he played several sets. Telling the story and smiling at the end, staring me right in the eye, like, we got ’em again! He never complained of the hours or tasks at hand. Once, we had a very long day at a show, we parted at the hotel lobby. I was beat and was thinking to have a quiet dinner at the bar. One hour later, there was Martin, showered, changed, and at the bar entertaining patrons, ever working. If you ever had to find Martin when you went to the factory, he was on the floor, his long-time receptionist, Michelle, would say. He had people who worked for him for 20, 30, 40 years. That alone tells you so much about his character. Be it a selling floor or a factory floor, that’s where you’d find him, tape measure around his neck, moving suits and sportscoats from tailor to tailor, pressing collars, all the details. You’d hear over the loudspeaker, ‘Martin, call on line one.’ He would pick up, talk a bit, in that heavy Czech accent, then get back to work. He would see me come onto the shop floor and barely look up. I would accost him. It was the only way you could slow him down. He would eat lunch that was delivered to his desk, in a bag from a local spot, a salad or something, and he would pour over whatever caught his eye. Stacks and stacks of papers surrounding him in that simple office, Jay, his trusted son and lieutenant, sitting across from him at the other desk. Photos and mementos of his life and all those potentates he dressed adorning the walls. He charmed them all. Bloomberg, Newman, Powell, popes, rabbis, designers, movie stars. All of them charmed by Martin, yet he treated King and commoner alike. They came not knowing the man and left wishing they did. We once went to see Shaq at the Four Seasons. He wore a brown, three-piece, chalk stripe suit. BROWN! The vest was double breasted. Some gal, of several in attendance, answered the door. Finally, Shaq appeared. Martin went right to taping him, smooth as 25-year-old scotch, settling down the big man in thirty seconds. He never chatted with the client but would go to work figuring out what had to be done. Only after the fitting was done would he speak to you. Always working. He worked on the shop floor well into his 90s.

History visited Martin as a child and stole his youth and everything he had or knew. It steeled within him a burning fire to build a life for those who lost that opportunity. He came to America and created a new persona. He left Maximillian behind and embraced his new life as Martin Greenfield, never looking back. Set with a dogged determination, persistence, hard work and every tool he could find to build. Indeed, he did. He built a family, a business, a LIFE, and an image that rose out of the ashes of so much loss and pain. And he did it all with style. The end of an era, indeed. Martin, you can rest easy now. The work is done.

 

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Jeff Farbstein, retail consultant, former Harry Rosen SVP
In the late 1980s, Harry schlepped me all over New York to look at stores; we wound up at the MG factory. Martin was making Ralph’s signature clothing at that time. The two men met for the first time and proceeded to walk through the factory. It was an instant bond, as if they’d known each other for years. They showed so much admiration for each other: the maker and the seller! Two icons now gone. I picture them in heaven, continuing the conversation about their mutual love for fine clothing.

Alexander Julian, designer
Martin and I were very close for a long time when he was crafting my tailored clothing. I particularly remember one week-long trip to L.A. to make clothing for Oscar nominees. Jack Simpson and I flew to LA with Martin and Arlene. I remember one particular fitting with Norman Lear: he and Martin had just met but the repartee between them was magical. I remember one dinner at Spago, Martin spotted Evander Holyfield and hurried over to his table to chat with him. Next day, Holyfield shows up at our hotel for a fitting, as if they were old friends. I believe that what Martin went through and witnessed as a young man in the concentration camps was what shaped his character as an adult: he loved people, loved his craft, and loved life! He was genuinely interested in everyone he met.

Alan Flusser, designer

Martin Greenfield was a wonderful human being. His passing marks another milestone in the men’s industry where our true dignitaries are found in diminishing numbers as they go off to that big closet in the sky.

Marty was always good to me and long supportive of my business. While we had our disagreements, I knew he inevitably had my best interests at heart. And no one spent more time trying to help others: It would be impossible to tally just how many people’s lives he made a substantive difference to. Suffice it to say he was genuinely interested in others and loved helping them on their way. He was a beacon of light reminding everyone of that halcyon period in menswear where spreading the tailored clothing word represented a higher form of fashion calling, one that aspired to safeguard social civility and mutual respect…and whose future would be more impactful than just business.

Marty certainly deserved his fortune of being able to live out his final years doing exactly what he wanted, surrounding himself with everyone he loved and who loved him. With my sincerest condolences and profound appreciation for Jay, Tod and especially Arlene who helped Martin realize his fiercely held dream of survival and success. He did his thing for longer and better than most men could dream of. I shall miss him dearly.

Eliot Rabin, founder, Peter Elliot

Martin Greenfield: a true legend in the world of tailoring. A master of his craft, a survivor with stories that shaped history, and an author who measured life not just in inches but in resilience and grace. Through business and friendship, we shared some great times over the years and the entire Peter Elliot family will remember him with profound respect and admiration.

Martin is survived by his treasured wife Arlene, his beloved children Jay & Cheryl, Tod & Bonnie, and his adoring grandchildren Amy, David, Rachel, and Sofia. Thank you, Greenfield family, for sharing this amazing man with us!