Ask Shop Clerk

Sorel Thongvan

Alexander McQueen, 417 W. 14th St., near Ninth Ave. 212-645-1797

By Denise Penny
Published May 21, 2005

(Photo: Brad Paris)

So is the store always empty?
It’s quiet, yes. It only takes a couple of clients to make really good business, and the majority is done over the phone—we have very good customers in the Midwest, where there’s obviously no McQueen.

Does that make it hard for you to shop busier places?
H&M drives me nuts, and the salespeople at Barneys have totally ignored me.

Have you met McQueen?
Yes. It was right after we closed the store and we wanted to kick him out, and then we said, “Oh, it’s you! You can stay.” There was one dress that wasn’t fitting properly, so he took a pair of scissors and started cutting away at it.

Some of the clothing looks intentionally ripped—that’s very haute.
People associate McQueen with his showpieces, but it’s not the majority of the clothing we sell. We sell suits you can wear to the office.

What are some of the most outlandish items in the store now?
We have a finger-piece that’s like an S&M thimble. It’s silver, you slide your entire finger into it, and it has a leather string attached. And we have thigh-high six-inch-heeled boots.

Do you wear McQueen?
In the store, I can wear the theatrical stuff, but in my life, I’m not as wild as that.