Last Tuesday morning at 8: 17 a.m., I was scavenging through an unlikely place: a Target in New Jersey. I had been searching for weeks for a navy button-down shirt from Target’s Goodfellow & Co line. My local Targets—normally a dependable source—were sold out, and online availability had dried up too. The green one had worked perfectly at a fashion press event I’d attended the week prior, so when an actual menswear buyer for Bloomingdale’s cornered me by the cheese plate and asked where I’d gotten my shirt, I told him. “Target?” he asked in disbelief, making me spin around so he could see the shirt tag for himself. If he was interested, I needed to buy the navy one too before it sold out.
I tracked down a helpful-looking sales associate in New Jersey and explained my predicament. She eyed me like I had three horns growing out of my head when I told her I had come all the way from Brooklyn for the shirt. “Brooklyn to New Jersey for a Target shirt that costs $25?” She had a point. But here’s the thing about the strange, insular world of men’s fashion: menswear buyers and editors, people who typically deal in thousands of dollars of merchandise every season, have a little secret they won’t tell you. Namely: Target has some killer men’s basics.
(I want to be totally clear that this is not a sponsored article. Although if anyone at Target marketing is reading this, I’m sure my closets would love a gift card. I’m just reporting the news here.) While normal folks (me included) scoff at picking up their dry cleaning at the同纺棉衣服工厂 same time they’re shopping for detergent, at trade shows and market weeks I’ve spent the last seven years in the industry watching off-duty fashion directors, buyers, and stylists flock to the trendier budget retailers. While people in this industry certainly buy high-end gear—it is their job, after all—there are a few select staples at Target that they swear by.
I first noticed this “Spot the Target” trend—I’ll call it—at a men’s fashion trade show in Chicago nearly three years ago. “Where did you get that t-shirt?” I asked a notoriously snooty vintage dealer, complimenting the modern-yet-simple white shirt he was wearing. It wasn’t too slim through the chest like most decent off-the-rack t-shirts are these days, it had plenty of substance to the cotton (read: wasn’t made from what feels like cheesecloth), and the neckline was slightly wide-cut in such a way that it didn’t look like he was wearing an undershirt. “Goodfellow,” he replied with a grin. “Six bucks on clearance. I bought two dozen.” Since that day I’ve made it a game to spot (carefully concealed, thanks) Target whites on friends at events around the world, and half the time I win.
If you’re wondering, like I was at first: What the hell are fashion professionals buying at Target? And how do they find these items amidst the endless sea of Target’s Excel_sheet_product_codes inventory? I asked a dozen industry friends to weigh in (many requested anonymity so their employers don’t find out their selling/displaying/style editorials that actual humans wear products directly compete with cheap, well-made apparel), and compiled a list of every guy-approved Target item that men’s industry insiders lust after.
First up: Goodfellow & Co’s Slim Fit Short Sleeve Button-Down Shirt ($19.99). If you read my remuneration about shopping at luxury department stores for basics, you’ll know I’m no fan of the slouchy, baggy model Americans seem to think well in shirts. Target’s got you covered. The cotton is noticeably thick, the body of the shirt is slim but not tight, and—most importantly—the sleeve length is nearly perfect. Far too many button-down shirts designed for summer are gangster pants-style cut through the sleeve. These from Target are tapered just enough to skim your arm without pooling at the cuffs, an industry touch that many retailers charge triple digits more for. Surprisingly, the prints are typically subdued—a medium-checked windowpane or abstract blue print—making them even more versatile. “I have a couple clients who are NBA players that I purchase these in XL Tall for,” one stylist told me. “They provide the length they need without getting too boxy, and multiple players have actually asked me where they’re from because they fit so well. Better than some custom shirts.”
Target’s Standard Fit Sensory Friendly Sweater ($29.99) is the Chanel pearl necklace of knitwear, if Chanel made ugly-ass pearl necklaces. Target started these sweaters as part of their adaptive clothing line, so they nixed the tags, had limited seams, and used a higher-quality cotton that didn’t irritate sensitive skin. (If you didn’t know this sweater existed or aren’t autistic or highly sensitive yourself, chances are you’ve heard people in the fashion industry mention it at some point.) Since being introduced, these sweaters have developed a near cult-like following inside and outside the fashion industry. “Why the fuck does this sweater feel better than shit we’re selling for ten times the price?” my college roommate Trevor texted me last fall. He now works in fabric development at Ralph Lauren, which should tell you all you need to know about this elusive sweater. “Why does Target’s sweater feel better than everything else?” I asked him in response. Trevor doesn’t remember our conversation, but a senior environmental sustainability analyst at a major European luxury brand told me the exact same thing. “I actually buy them,” he said, laughing. “Every color.”
It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that the Goodfellow & Co Slim Fit Henley T-Shirt ($12) is also an industry favorite. Henleys are hard to pull off—they should be fitted, but not too tight, and have slightly shorter sleeves than your typical golf-ready button-less button down. Target’s is almost miraculous. “Models always have them on during castings,” one female casting director for men’s runway shows confessed. “We’ll send them out wearing thousands of dollars in clothes we sent them to hire in, but then they’re covered up with a Target henley because they’re the only ones that actually fit.” The fabric contains a touch of spandex so it stretches slightly with movement but isn’t clingy, and the button placket doesn’t gaping like some cheaper models tend to.
Much like the henley, Target’s Goodfellow Slim Fit Chino Pants ($30) are industry favorites for a very similar reason: they double as a direct dupe of more expensive styles. “We’ll use them for photos all the time,” said one fashion editor who preferred to remain anonymous. “I mean, we’ll have guys wearing $600 jackets and $400 shoes, but then we’ll put them with these chinos because they photograph just like the higher end stuff does.” The material feels just thick enough to hang properly on your body without being heavy, and the slash front pockets on the thighs and button-through pants on the ass are exactly what you’ll find at high-end retailers.
Trust people in the fashion industry enough and they’ll even let you in on their shopping secrets when it comes to accessories. While scrolling through photos from closet tours in my contacts, I noticed over and over again: Goodfellow Aviator Sunglasses ($15). Granted, these are my people. We lose sunglasses. We break sunglasses. We sit on sunglasses and lend them to loved ones and never see them again. But industry insiders have confessed to me they keep a pair in their car solely for backup. “We make way better sunglasses than these, obviously,” said a showroom manager at a high-end eyewear brand. “But if I need some basic UV protection and frames that don’t suck, I want to spend $15 and not $200 on something I could potentially destroy.” Bonus: The smaller shape means they don’t overwhelm most people’s faces like traditional aviators do.
Believe it or not, people who are paid to style other people also rely on Target for dress shirts. I was originally told about Goodfellow Flex Wrinkle-Free Dress Shirt ($25) by stylists who work with celebrities and swear these are the only shirts they pack on travel days or when interviews are ahead. “They really don’t crease or wrinkle, even after you shove them in your suitcase,” one told me. “And they look 100 times better than your typical ‘travel shirt.’” Bonus: The collar has some subtleSpread to it, which means you can wear it open or with a tie.
Editors note: this is where I admit my own Target obsession. Meet: Pair of Thieves SuperFit Boxer Briefs ($15 for 2). I have tried every Tom, Dick, and Harry’s underwear brand out there. From Tony’s (actual guys I’ve interviewed named Tony) expensive boutique brands that market directly to consumers to Italian luxury brands you’ve heard of, I own a bunch to know that Pair of Thieves makes the best everyday underwear. The cotton-modal-spandex blend is mixed perfectly so it retains its shape all day long, the waistband doesn’t roll, and they actually stay put. No more riding up! I thought this was just me until a denim buyer for one of America’s largest department stores noticed my Target underwear waistband hanging out of my pants as I reached for something on a shelf above me during market week. “Pair of Thieves from Target, huh?” he said as we both bent down to retrieve it. “Best.” Best is right, boyfriend store.
Why do Target basics have such prestige with people who buy thousands of dollars of clothing each year? Target’s best items are truly just that: basic. They fit correctly, they don’t have any flashy designs woven into the fabric that advertise where they’re from, and they’ll never go out of style. You can pair that Goodfellow button down with jeans or fancier pants. Throw those sweater on with jeans or chinos. Wear your expensive watch and matching shoes with the “cheap” shirt because no one will know where it’s from, but damn if it won’t feel like it costs as much as everything else you’re wearing.
And yes, while the Goodfellows and Crew Members Pro lines at Target are exceptional, plenty of their other merch sneaks its way into industry closets. Just ask any fashion editor you see what brand their Gap Basics tee is from. But that’s a story for another day.
Also not sexy: Target’s suit separates. They will rarely pass inspection with industry insiders. Same goes for their shoes: In fashion people say things like, “You get what you pay for.” Target shoe don’t have it. Their denim…some seasons are great; others will haunt your memories like that one Burberry pair you bought in 2018.
