Baldini for Men owner Luis Cepeda is celebrating his Manhasset clothing store’s first anniversary serving men of the North Shore.
Cepeda, who ran Dino Baldini on Madison Avenue in Manhattan for 25 years, moved his business to Manhasset after rent increases in the city forced the store to close.
Keeping a similar name, Baldini for Men opened on Dec. 10 at 376 Plandome Road in Manhasset, and Cepeda said he brought many of the same designer brands from the city with him to the suburbs.
As a former Manhasset resident now living in Plainview, Cepeda said he knew the area needed a store dedicated to dressing fashionable men. Without the high overhead costs of Manhattan life, Cepeda said he is able to offer looks at approximately 30 percent less than he could on Madison Avenue.
Cepeda said he mostly stocks Italian designers with which he has an exclusive arrangement for the area and only natural fabrics like cotton, wool, cashmere and silk.
“The Italian cut is a better fit, and natural fibers are always better for the body,” Cepeda said.
Cepeda said Baldini offers in-house tailoring as well as made-to-measure shirts, suits and sports jackets from the few thousand of fabric options offered. Cepeda said in his first year, he has garnered many repeat customers as well as new customers just discovering the shop.
“We can more or less fit anybody of any size and any shape,” Cepeda said. “With my experience in fitting, we can almost guarantee that when the garment comes in, it will be a perfect fit for the gentleman, and he’s going to look very well dressed.”
Baldini for Men carries Eton and Marol dress shirts, Italo Ferretti ties, Ravazzolo and Pal Zileri suits, handmade Artioli shoes, Alberto jeans and Gimo’s outerwear, giving Cepeda the ability to dress customers from head to toe in fashionable options made of breathable, natural fibers.
“We carry from a to z including shoes, socks and belts,” Cepeda said. “It’s a small store, but we have more merchandise than many but you don’t see it because it’s all hidden. You can come here naked and we can send you home fully dressed.”
