Gothenburg is a friendly and laid-back kind of place, a heady mix of hip neighbourhoods, Michelin-starred restaurants, a vibrant cultural scene and some of the best seafood in the country. It also happens to be home to one of the coolest vintage stores on the planet – undeniably the GOAT of Göteborg, in any case – which emerged from a recent makeover on 4 May this year ‘with the same soul, yet 100 per cent reimagined’, says owner David Asseraf.
Asseraf has made sourcing niche vintage and military garments an artform over the past four decades, and is rightfully proud of being ahead of the sustainability curve well before it had even entered mainstream conversation. Now, David has handed the baton over to his son Nathaniel, who not only gained valuable business nous working in the Ralph Lauren store on Boulevard Saint-Germain in Paris, but has amassed a cult following on Instagram and, let’s be honest, is the guy every bloke wishes they not only looked like, but dressed like. You can count his brother Noam as part of the equation too – the pair now run and manage the business day-to-day, and not only do the brothers collect and curate the wares at Broadway & Sons, but they model them too, stylishly pairing vintage heritage alongside more modern tailoring for the store’s e-commerce presence. They even did a recent collab with Polo Ralph Lauren for the brand’s Spring Training collection, while Nathaniel still finds time to run Casatlantic, his niche online lifestyle brand, inspired by the cultural richness of mid-century Casablanca, selling cooler-than-cool men’s ready-to-wear high-waisted trousers, shirts, shorts and knits.
While it will always carry military surplus, Broadway & Sons tries to adapt to trends and shopping patterns where possible, so if there’s suddenly more demand for workwear, for instance, they’ll go all out and source the best in the world. Expect to find the very finest offering of vintage blazers, Western jackets, perfectly faded Levi 501s, high-waisted chinos and army tees rubbing shoulders with Yale cardigans and heavy-gauge letterman sweaters.
The flagship store’s shop sign is even crafted from machine-stitched disco font letters much like those that would hang above a commune – replacing the previous awning canopy. Windows are riots of colour with cool Hawaiian shirts vying for attention with distressed denim and rare Converse All Stars. Inside, beautifully arranged racks of nostalgia-evoking garments are intertwined with Kentia palms, neon signs and vintage cash registers with Lady Love by Piero Piccioni playing in the background. It’s the kind of place you could never leave empty-handed.
Korsgatan 7, 411 16 Gothenburg, Sweden; Tel: +46 31 13 77 70; broadwayandsons.com
Lee Osborne is a menswear consultant and creative director of Secret Trips
