Wes Gordon Hits Chicago | neapolitan collection

2011 March 23

Where has Wes Gordon been lately? That toddling town—Chicago! He shares his adventures in his latest column.

"This is a confusing time of the year for everyone, as evidenced by New York's latest fluctuations in temperature. The seasons seem to be fighting it out: one day it's sunny and in the high 60s, the next, it's snow flurries and thirties...one wears a big fur, another a tank top and blazer. But it's a confusing time of year for me especially, because I spend so much of it in the Delta lounge at LaGuardia on my way to and from trunk shows. My flatmate (Alessandra Codinha) keeps joking that she's rented my room out to someone from Craigslist. At least I hope she's joking...

Lately, my most frequent destination (events, trunk shows, luncheons) is Chicago, or as I like to call it because I'm a huge dork, "Chi-town". I'm lucky to be working with two fantastic stores there: Saks on Michigan Avenue and Neapolitan in Winnetka. Every time I return to The Windy City, I'm struck by how truly gorgeous it is. Every building is beautiful: something you can notice and appreciate because they've been given a little breathing room-- they're more spaced out than the on-top-of-each other-aesthetic we have here in New York.

This past week I was back in Chicago for our first trunk show with Neapolitan: if you haven't had the chance to visit this jewel-box of a store, go immediately! Situated in the heart of Winnetka (a John Hughes paradise), it's one of the most well-edited stores I've ever been in my life. They carry Dior, Bottega Veneta, Chloé, and now WES GORDON (not bad company, right?!). There's something about these smaller boutiques that I find so luxurious and intimate---a personalized retail experience. Neapolitan just nails it!

I stayed downtown in one of my favorite hotels, The Elysian. I don't know what I did in a past life to deserve this good karma but I was put in a gorgeous suite overlooking the city (Highlight: aside from the Asprey toiletries, the James Bond-esque TVs in the bathroom mirrors were rockin'! My last night in town was St. Patrick's day, which I thought was crazy in New York, but in Chicago is a whole other animal. The city has a large Irish community that comes out to celebrate en masse, even dying the river green. The merrymaking was great to observe from a distance, but thankfully Kelly Golden (the incredibly chic and gracious owner of Neapolitan) hosted a dinner party for us at her home so we didn't have to brave the streets. Kelly is amazing: to say that her perfect store is a reflection of her personal style is the understatement of the century. She's been a fantastic supporter of my line and I'm proud to call her my friend.

My jaunt to Chicago was practically perfect in every way: a great trunk show, an amazing meal, and an excellent night's sleep. Thanks to the different time zone/time change (I always forget to 'Spring Forward'!) I missed my flight back to New York, but even that was a happy accident, as I got to get another hour of Kindle in reading the scariest book ever. Can't wait for my next trip!