Where is it?
55 Oldham Street
Manchester
M1 1JR
History:
Wood opened its doors to Manchester’s fashion conscious Northern Quarter six years ago. They’ve since opened another store in Huddersfield, and a really rather snazzy online store as well.
Wood believes it is consistently at the forefront of menswear, and championed brands such as Barbour long before they saw the mass revival they are enjoying today.
But does the store match up to the claims? Is Wood the place to shop for originality and top heritage brands?
Wood, Oldham Street, Manchester
What do they sell?
In the store, very little. Online, everything you could ever want.
And here lies the crux of the argument.
As a physical shop that you actually have to leave the house to go and visit, Wood is pretty rubbish – it’s tiny, and there’s very little on offer.
What is there is quality stuff. Take a bunch of print and pocket tees, add a handful of fantastic coats and jackets, and a sprinkle of vintage rucksacks and you’ve got the recipe for Wood, the store.
Online is an array of quality heritage brands. We’re talking the likes of Heritage Research coats, YMC knitwear, Penfield shirts, and Superga pumps – you get the picture.
Who shops there?
When I visited on a Wednesday afternoon, I was the only customer. But then, it only takes 30 seconds to browse the entire range, so I can’t image people hang around in there.
The people wearing clothes from Wood are the same people wearing clothes from Oi Polloi. They used to shop at Urban Outfitters and Aspecto, but then they got a better job.
The shoe department, Wood, Manchester
Why shop there?
If you’re walking past you might as well pop in. After all, it’s only going to take you a moment to scan the rails and the small slice of the range in there might just be your thing.
Future:
The future of menswear (and Wood has already made the leap) has to be online.
If, like me, you don’t feel the need to try clothes on in store, shopping in town quickly becomes a tedious and stressful experience.
Wood has got things just how I like them. Have a presence on the high street to draw customer’s attention, show them a sample of the range, and let them go home and buy the clothes whilst sitting in their pants.
Ignore that purple striped vest, the rest is good, honest
Verdict:
The store is hardly worth entering more than once, but it is successful in its function as an advert for the superb online store.
The range does get a little hipster in places, and, as is always the case with menswear, you have to pay a premium price for a premium product.
It’s coming, so you might as well get on board. Cut out the middleman and go straight to your laptop – and if you don’t know your shirt size, you probably didn’t get this far down the review anyway.
You can follow David on Twitter @DavidPMcCourt
