Naperville couple offers $15 ties — and celebrites have caught on
By Jessica Sedgwick, jsedgwick@suntimes.com January 25, 2012 6:26PM
Seersucker, a big trend this spring, is part of the new Cotton Collection at TheTieBar.com. All ties are $15.
How to wear the
Color TIe clip
Greg Shugar’s advice on how to rock the color tie clip (also called a tie bar): “Start with a colorless backdrop (like the white shirt and gray chambray cotton tie at right) and use a similarly colored pocket square to further bring out the tie bar’s rich color. An absolute conversation starter.”
Article Extras
Related Stories
Updated: February 27, 2012 8:43AM
Men: Do you spend more than $15 on a tie?
You shouldn’t, says Greg Shugar, the Naperville tie-lover who co-owns the online brand TheTiebar.com.
He and his wife, Gina, were both lawyers baffled by the high prices of designer ties. They were also, as it turned out, lawyers who didn’t love being lawyers. They ditched the legal world seven years ago and launched the website where all ties — even 100 percent silk ties — are $15.
How can they only charge this much? Two reasons, says Shugar. “First, we design, we manufacture, we sell everything — there’s no middle man, I hate saying that, but it’s true. Second, we don’t charge more because we don’t want to.”
Fair enough — we’ll take it. And so will plenty of celebrities. Within the last year, the company has started dressing John Krasinski, Kobe Bryant and Daniel Radcliffe, who wore a TieBar.com tie during his monologue on a recent “Saturday Night Live.”
“It’s incredibly flattering. In January, GQ ran a full-page feature of our blue tie bar. I can’t even tell you, it’s so bizarre that they have taken to something that we created. I marvel at it every time I see it.”
Here are some of TheTieBar.com’s biggest sellers, including hot styles for this spring (see photo gallery):
Comments Click here to view or make a comment