I was truly sad to hear that at the end of this month Manny’s Millinery Supply will be closing their doors for good. This doesn’t hurt our immediate business since we don’t custom make hats but I don’t like hearing of any small business closing, especially one in the headwear industry. You can read the entire story at HatLife.com.

I don’t know where all the milliners will go to get their supplies but I certainly hope there will be somebody out there to pick up where Manny’s left off.

Aaron

Felt hats are made out of either wool or fur. Fur felt being the better option due to it’s feel and how it holds up better to the elements. For this reason it is generally more desirable among many consumers.

Decades ago most hat manufacturers used mostly beaver fur for their felt hats. As the raw beaver fur became more and more expensive the manufacturers started using more rabbit and wild hare and less beaver in the hats. These manufacturers kept their blends or recipes a highly regarded secret and still do to this day. In the last 18-24 months the price of the raw rabbit fur has gone through the roof due to the Chinese clothing manufacturers using more real fur. For this reason, RHE Hatco who makes hats for Stetson, Resistol, Dobbs, Charlie 1 Horse and Cavanagh has experimented with different kinds of fur. A couple years ago they started using Buffalo fur and continue to make select styles using Buffalo. The Buffalo fur is better than wool but still not quite as nice as the beaver and rabbit fur hats. This actually turned out to be good because it created a price point in retail that was missing. Previously you could spend $50 on a wool felt hat or $150+ for a rabbit fur felt hat. Buffalo fits right in the middle of that floating right around $100. This year the Stetson brand has introduced a few fur felt hats made of Kangaroo fur. They will be priced similarly to the Buffalo felt hats but I have yet to see and touch one to get a real sense of the quality of the felt. Once I get one in my hands I’ll be sure to right a review here so stay tuned.

Here’s one of the new styles called the Stetson Amaroo:

You can tell all your friends you heard it here first.

Gidde up ‘Roo,

Aaron

A couple days ago I wrote about having received the new Fall 2008 catalog of Stetson Fedoras. There really are some great additions to the collection this year. Stetson has added two new 100% beaver felt fedoras, the Baldwin and the Pelham. They have also added an open crown fedora and called it the Nostalgia. A rather appropriate name since it’s been years since Stetson offered an open crown fedora. For those that don’t know what “open crown” means it’s a term used to describe a hat, fedora or cowboy, where the crown hasn’t been pre-shaped. There are a few other new fedoras and you can see those on page two of the Stetson Fedora category of GetaHatOn.com.

Also added to the stable of Stetson fedoras is a special group called the “Modern Collection” which I think you’ll find intriquing. Those should be added to the web site in the next week or two. Here’s a sneak peek of one of the hats:

Since these are all brand new they are not available for delivery until some time in June but you can place your orders now to insure you get one.

Stay tuned for more exciting information about new hats and caps for 2008.

Aaron

Recently I announced that you would be able to purchase any style hat of Barmah Hat from Aaron Hats. We were to accomplish this by stocking some styles and whatever style we didn’t have in stock would be shipped directly to you from Barmah. Unfortunately, we’ve had to put this on hold for the time being as we’ve had some problems with incorrect hats being shipped from Barmah. We will continue to carry certain styles in the store and hopefully we can return to offering you the complete line as soon as these bugs in the drop shipping program get worked out.

Thank you for your patience.

Aaron

I recently picked up the January ‘08 issue of GQ Magazine and was pleasantly surprised to see a page dedicated to hats. In the magazine they talk about the different hat styles including fedoras, pork pies, panama hats, bowlers and more. So in the spirit of the magazine here’s some examples of the different hat and cap styles available for men at Aaron Hats.

The Fedora:

The Derby:

The Cowboy hat:

The Panama hat:

The Ivy cap:

The Newsboy cap:

I have just received the Fall 2008 catalog for the Stetson fedoras and am very excited about the new hats for 2008. Added to the Stetson line are two new 100% beaver fur felt fedoras and some really nice band treatments. I’ll post some pictures as soon as I get them digitally or scanned.

Stay tuned,

Aaron

I wanted to let you know that our shipment of Indiana Jones hats arrived and we’re fully stocked again. We also have another shipment due to arrive this coming week so we shouldn’t run out anytime soon. Also, we will be adding some new styles by the end of the month. Dorfman Pacific, the company that has the license for the official Indy hat, has created variations of the Indy hat and we’ll be carrying them all including the ballcaps and military style Indy caps.

Here’s a preview from the catalog for you:

Get an Indy hat on,

Aaron

There are many reasons to wear a hat including sun protection, warmth, fashion, style, the cool factor and it’s the perfect way to cover up a bad hair day. So if this is you…

pay a visit to Aaron Hats.

Get a hat on…for any reason.

Aaron

I want to take this opportunity to thank all our customers and readers of this forum for a great 2007. Aaron Hats once again broke sales records in 2007 and have only you to thank for that.

As I write this we are in the midst of another snow storm here in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. This storm will probably put us over the four foot mark for snowfall this winter. For those of you that don’t know Aaron Hats is in the middle of ski country so all this snow is very good considering the last few winters. If you would like to learn more about the White Mountains and the Mt. Washington Valley you can check out the Chamber of Commerce of which Aaron Hats is a proud member.

For 2008, Aaron Hats has many special things planned. I can’t go into detail just yet but can say that one of our projects will be to fill a big void in the headwear industry. Stay tuned for more details.

I want to wish you a safe, happy and healthy new year.

Sincerely,

Aaron