When George Zimmer was ousted from Men’s Wearhouse, the men’s suit chain he founded in 1973, speculation abounded over why. While the man who starred in the company’s TV spots for years and made his tagline, “You’re going to like the way you look. I guarantee it,” part of the American lexicon, isn’t quite ready to spill all the beans—for that you’ll have to wait for his upcoming tell-all book—he’s not content to just ride off peacefully into the sunset. Zimmer craves the action of starting a new business, and so he has. Behold zTailors, an on-demand mobile tailoring service modeled along the lines of ridesharing giant Uber. Just push a button on the old smart phone, and a tailor will be at your door. Recently, I caught up with the Oakland mogul, whom I first interviewed for this space in 1995.
Paul Kilduff: How did you determine there was, forgive the pun, über-demand for tailors?
George Zimmer: I’m not really sure. Of course, everybody now shops online for clothing, and regardless of what we would like to admit, a lot of it doesn’t fit. We just hang it in the closet and wear it as infrequently as we can. The idea of tailoring is just not top of mind. There also is the advent of Uber, and I know it’s been around for five years, but I’ve only been using it for about two years. Then there’s the legacy that I have of being a cross between the Godfather and the Pied Piper of tailors for decades. I guess I just put it all together and thought there must be a business in here some place.
PK: Tech people are not known for their sartorial splendor. I think Mark Zuckerberg took off his hoodie when he got married. Techies aren’t dressing any better. Does that concern you at all?
GZ: No, because it’s not just suits that require tailoring. One of the things that people don’t realize until the zTailor asks them about it is how many shirts do you have that need to be taken in? Because tailoring is something that for the upper-income part of society is deemed to be so inexpensive—even home or office service is inexpensive—that it makes sense to taper a shirt. We’ve done two dozen for one customer. It’s like going to the dentist and having them work on the different quadrants of your mouth. That’s how we like to approach your closet, because we think there are billions of dollars hanging in everybody’s closets that really don’t fit exactly right. I don’t think we need to have an up-tick in the sartorial splendor. Steve Jobs looked just fine. I think actually Mark Zuckerberg looks just like the kid he is. And he’s a billionaire.
PK: He can dress however he wants.
GZ: I’m not impressed by clothing. I do appreciate “well dressed.” I think men dress well to impress either women or their boss, and if you’ve already made it, and you’re no longer trying to impress, why spread the feathers of your peacock if you don’t have to.
PK: I can see a big future in taking in shirts, but what about hoodie maintenance?
GZ: Interestingly, I grew up when suits were worn as uniforms to work and then jeans and T-shirts were what we wore in the evenings and weekends. Now the Millennial has kind of reversed that and wears jeans and T-shirts to work, and then, when they want to go out at night to a club and party, they put on a suit. No shirt and tie; just an open-necked shirt. Obviously I think there’s a sociological bounce-back against our parents, and it probably just goes on indefinitely.
PK: I remember reading when you split from Men’s Wearhouse, people were coming up to you on the street asking, “What happened, George?” They missed you. Is that level of concern still there?
GZ: No, not concern. I think people are curious about how a founder, a TV icon, gets fired. People want to know. I would like to know. I think that the bottom line is no matter what anybody says, when Watergate became part of the American lexicon it was, “Follow the money.” The most current filing of the CEO, whom I hired as the tie buyer, is that he’s going to earn this year about $10 million, $9.6 million—that’s if he maxes all his bonuses. I earned, and I know this seems hard to believe, over the entire 40 years I spent in the company, the same amount.
PK: In one year he’s making as much as you made in all that time? Is that what you’re telling me?
GZ: That’s right.
PK: Geez.
GZ: The last half of that time, I donated my salary to employees’ children’s college scholarships, so that really just represents 20 years. But even there it’s still outrageous. You know, it just comes down to is when I was a kid, the CEO was in the same neighborhood as the successful lawyer or doctor or architect or accountant, and today the CEO is more likely to be found with a movie celebrity or a sports star. There’s a reason why that happened. People don’t usually turn money down. I have some virus which has infected me which makes me do this. This is not a secret. I feel almost like I’m saying, “Has anybody noticed the Emperor’s not wearing any clothes?”
PK: In regards to the people now running Men’s Wearhouse?
GZ: Yeah. It’s interesting to me, how we come down on prostitutes like a ton of bricks, yet it’s cute what business executives will do for a buck. I call it the difference between “conscious capitalism” and “crony capitalism.” It’s not rocket science. I have an undergraduate degree. You do not have to be sophisticated to understand this. We’re all working some place for the most part, and we should all give a damn how employees are treated. Why is that so hard to balance against maximizing shareholder returns?
PK: I read that you still wanted to do the Men’s Wearhouse commercials, but the board didn’t want you to. True?
GZ: No, that’s not accurate. In fact, that’s the first time I ever heard that. My original partner, who is long retired, before this issue even surfaced, he used to say, “George, you should make these commercials.” I go back to the ’80s when he used to say that. It makes me smile. No, they did say they thought that I was getting a little gray in the tooth and maybe the Millennials didn’t relate to me. But actually my experience is that those people are my biggest fans, because they look at me as a success story. I took the suit from the runway to Main Street.
PK: You and your group would have been great owners of the A’s, and you have always been an Oakland booster. If Oakland’s sports teams left, would it make a difference?
GZ: That would not be a positive. I personally don’t think they’re all going to leave. In fact, I don’t think anymore that one will leave. My office is in downtown Oakland. It’s a Brooklynization of Oakland. There’s now a “here, here” as opposed to “no there, there.” It’s the sunny side of the Bay, and prices are right. I think Oakland’s going to be a place to be.
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For more Kilduff, visit the “Kilduff File Super Fan Page” on Facebook.
Age: 66
Birthplace: New York City
Astrological sign: Scorpio
Motto: “A stitch in time saves nine.”
Book on nightstand: Beyond Physicalism: Toward Reconciliation of Science and Spirituality edited by Edward F. Kelly, Adam Crabtree, and Paul Marshall and Becoming Steve Jobs: The Evolution of a Reckless Upstart into a Visionary Leader by Brent Schlender and Rick Tetzeli.
Website: www.zTailors.com
