Black Fleece: Style for a short generation?

It’s on. Brooks Brothers is gearing up to launch the fall collection of Black Fleece the second week of September with an “exclusive, by-appointment-only” trunk show with Thom Browne at their Madison Ave. store. It started yesterday and ends tomorrow (Call 212-885-6811). Fashion Week Daily reported back in July that on a much grander scale, BB’s already embarked “on the largest print ad campaign push in the company’s 189-year history — an estimated $7 million initiative”? As the inimitably venerable “oldest surviving men’s clothier in the United States” prepares to drop $7 mil on him, Thom took a few moments away from finishing up his spring Black Fleece collection to answer some “Random Questions” from The Fashion Informer yesterday. Stuff like “What did you eat for lunch today? Tuna salad on white toast,” and “What was your favorite subject in junior high school? Phys Ed.”

Why should short men care? As I’ve raved before, Thom Browne’s own boutique line of “shrunken” suits may look kinda idiosyncratic (many would say bad) on Thom, his super-tall models, or even men of average height, those same suits look absolutely proportional on small men. So I’ve been hoping that Brooks Brothers’ Black Fleece would maintain his perfect-for-short-guys silhouette and sizing — at half the price of a “real” TB.