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July 22, 2008

Giblees to move next door, add women's clothing

By Ethan Forman

DANVERS — Customers of upscale men's clothing store Giblees will not have far to go when the store moves on Sept. 1.

That's because the store is moving about 25 steps west in the same plaza to an adjacent location that once housed In Home Furnishings.

"We are moving right next door," said Alan Gibeley of Ipswich, one of the store's owners.

The family-owned business, which employs 18 people, has its roots on Washington Street in Salem, across from the former Salem News building.

Now in its 60th year, the store caters to the needs of TV anchors, athletes, executives and politicians, Gibeley said.

The store counts U.S. Rep. John Tierney, Celtics players Glen "Big Baby" Davis and Tony Allen, and former Red Sox slugger Jim Rice as customers.

Giblees plans to consolidate its clothing store and its tuxedo store under one roof. The two locations are in the same commercial strip along Route 114 at 87 Andover St., but they are separated by the joke and costume shop Joker's Wild.

In the new space, Giblees will occupy 11,000 square feet, 3,000 more than the two stores combined, said Gibeley, who runs the clothing store with his father, Bob, of Topsfield. His brother Jeff, of Danvers, runs the tuxedo business.

The Gibeleys are buying the empty furniture store, which is a commercial condominium with 22,000 square feet on two floors. They plan to rent out the second floor.

In the new store, Giblees will carry women's clothing for the first time.

Ellen Turkanis of Marblehead plans to close her Atlantic Avenue clothing store, Suitable Styles, in the next couple of weeks to run Giblees women's clothing division.

"I was offered the opportunity to merge Suitable ... into Giblees," said Turkanis. "It's going to be all Giblees and we will be doing all the (women's) clothing and the buying." Her store manager will also be coming with her, said Turkanis, and so will the lines that sold the best.

Turkanis consulted with Alan Gibeley five years ago when she opened her store, and he then asked her about how to expand Giblees' offerings to women's clothing.

"Opportunity was knocking and this was the way to go in expansion," Turkanis said.

Alan and Jeff Gibeley's grandfather, Joseph Gibeley, started Giblees in downtown Salem. The store was originally called "Joe the Hatter," Jeff and Alan Gibeley said, because it sold hats.

Giblees later moved to the Liberty Tree Mall in 1970 and then moved out to Route 114 in February 1997. Two years ago, Giblees separated its tuxedo store from its clothing store.

Features of the new store will include detachable walls, giving the owners the ability to bring in Italian sports cars to be displayed during special events.

Why is it spelled Giblees?

The owners' last name is Gibeley, but the store is spelled "Giblees."

The sign on the original store on Washington Street in Salem was going to be spelled "Gibley's," but the descender on the "Y" would have hung down too low over the door, causing customers to bump their heads. So the Gibeley family changed the "Y" to an "E."

Later, owner Alan Gibeley hemmed the sign further by dropping the apostrophe.

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