Gathering Wool

Through a Continued Partnership With the Woolmark Company, Thom Browne Amplifies His Distinctive Mark.

- Joshua Glass

WALKING INTO

Thom Browne’s enormous New York headquarters, our photographer (a political photojournalist and fashion alien) jokes, “Were you feeling gray today?” The lot of us, Browne, in his usual three-piece, cropped suit, myself, and a wire-haired dachshund mascot, Hector, hold in a laugh as the world of silvery monochrome soon reveals itself.

Though the office has just been finished, it’s an impressive replica of Browne’s last space in the same Garment District building just a few floors up, which looked exactly like its preceding site and each store and merchandising outpost under the brand. A reconsideration of the American workspace concept (Browne was born in Allentown, Pa. to white-collar parents), the aesthetic is minimal and clean, grand yet stark. The architecture references 1940s Italian style, with reflective marble walls and linear surfaces—few if any circles exist. Most importantly, like much of his work, it’s consumingly gray except for the quick glimpses of red, white, and blue grosgrain ribbon.