A Visit to Miller Brothers, LTD

Miller Brothers, LTD is an Atlanta staple for men’s fine clothing.  I stopped in the other day to see Gregg and Robby (the actual Miller Brothers).  They were having a Peter Millar trunk show, so it worked out well.  I love this store.  It has the ‘classic Buckhead’ feel as soon as you pull in the parking lot.  The stand-alone building has a great character.  Inside has a club feel – leather couches, a fireplace, and a well stocked bar.  Masculine artwork lines the walls, and the shopping experience is unique.  The store has multiple rooms; each with a different purpose – it’s like walking through three or four different closets.  Gregg and I chatted a bit, and I snapped some shots…enjoy:

What is the history of Miller Brothers?   Miller Brothers Ltd. started as a custom clothing business in 1996 but evolved into the retail store we have today.  Robby and I both have a long history in the clothing industry dating back to our teens.  We both worked retail locally and in Athens while attending UGA.   In addition to retail sales we have have management and wholesale backgrounds in Atlanta, Chicago and New York.  We dreamed of having our own store when we were younger but were not sure we would ever get there.  However, by starting Miller Brothers Ltd. as a custom clothing business (low start up costs) we were able to build a client base and grow.  After 10 years and a couple smaller shops we were able to buy a building and expand into the full scale retail business we currently have.

How has men’s style changed in the last 15 years?  Over the years we have seen ups and downs and trends change.  When we started suits with fairly broad shoulders and pleated trousers were the style followed by the dot-com boom when it seemed almost a badge of honor to wear flip flops, shorts and t-shirts.  This was not embraced at Miller Brothers or anywhere in the clothing world for that matter!  Men’s clothing has evolved and seems to have settled in to an understandable look for most.  Trimmer, slightly shorter, two button side vented coats are the norm with slimmer plain front trousers.  Our trouser business is over 90% plain front including jean or “5 pocket” models.  We still carry some pleated trousers for men that refuse to wear plain front.  Thankfully, there will always be men who appreciate nice clothing and enjoy dressing well.  Miller Brothers wants to take care of their wardrobe needs.  Most of our customers live in the Atlanta area but we have clients visit us from all over the country (a few internationally too).  People come to us because they know we have quality clothing with style, great service, excellent tailoring and they can trust us.  We don’t force clothing that does not fit a peson’s personality or taste but we will push our customers to try something new and branch out.  We work well with women shopping for the men in their lives as they are usually the ones driving a little more style in a man’s wardrobe.

We have classic roots but strive to have unique merchandise that you can’t find everywhere.  We pride ourselves on finding new lines on our buying trips.  We carry several brands that you can’t find anywhere else in Atlanta or in some cases the southeast.  Castangia and Tombolini are two clothing (suits and sport coats) makers out of Italy that we carry that have very limited distribution. Though not as well known as some other brands we are very proud to offer them to our clients.  In sportswear Bruli, Giannetto, Hartford and Gilded Age are not widely known but we do well with them .  Two of our more traditional lines are Bills Khakis and Peter Millar but we buy them differently with a very large selection.

Sport coats are what really drive our clothing business.  A tailored coat or less constructed “soft coat” is what most of our customers wear on a daily basis if not wearing a suit.  Our early favorites are a couple soft coats from Tombolini and they are selling very well.  They are usually worn with an open collar shirt and casual trouser.  We have also been doing well with variations of blue blazers.  We believe a blue blazer is the single most important item in a man’s wardrobe and worth investing in a quality one.  Even though we have a great sport coat business our suit business is strong too.   Most men in the financial world are dressing and suits and ties are worn at least four days a week.  We often hear that we have the best selection of ties in Atlanta so we are sure to have plenty of great choices for both suits and sport coats.  Ties are narrower these days too but we are not big on “super skinny” ties.  The majority of our ties are 8 or 8.5 cm. wide.

What do you guys like to do outside of the store?  We work hard to make our store comfortable for our customers but for ourselves too since we spend so much time here.  The wide screen television, sofa, bar, grill etc….  Away from the store we both love to travel and dine out as much as possible.  Over the last 14 yrs. I have coached youth sports at Top Hat Soccer and the Holy Innocents’ Episcopal and Peachtree Presbyterian church basketball leagues.  The last 10 springs I coached NYO softball but I am retiring.  Robby’s son, Sam, is soon to be four and is playing his first organized sport – tee ball at Buckhead Baseball.

Who can guess where this is from…

What is selling so far this Fall?

1) Soft coats from Tombolini.
2) Peter Millar Collegiate Collection.
3) Miller Brothers Private Label sport shirts.
4) Sweaters from Gilded Age and Hartford
5) Dark Brown “Patrick” loafer from Santoni.

This Tombolini sport coat WILL BE MINE.  Outstanding.

Upcoming events at Miller Brothers:

Sept. 13 – 15 Peter Millar Trunk Show
Sept. 24 – 29 Made to Measure Week featuring Castangia clothing and Emanual Berg shirtings.
Oct. 4  Bills Khakis Trunk Show

Miller Brothers LTD is located in the heart of Buckhead:
3207 Paces Ferry Place Northwest
Atlanta, GA 30305
(404) 233-8000