This profile is in active compilation — some details are awaiting a cited source.
a family-owned Kansas City menswear retailer and in-house tailoring shop founded in 1908 by Abe Slabotsky, now run by Michael Jerwick (third ownership line, carrying on his late father Bruce’s tenure) from a River Market storefront at 306 Delaware St. Tier 1 — one of KC’s oldest continuously operating, locally owned businesses; a heritage retail/craft shop, not a chain. (First seed entry of the Tier 1 non-service-industry log.)
Description
Slabotsky’s Fine Menswear & Tailoring is a long-running, family-owned Kansas City menswear shop that pairs ready-to-wear and formalwear retail (suits, tuxedos, prom and wedding attire) with in-house custom tailoring and alterations.12 The business describes itself as “a brick-and-mortar, mom-and-pop, old-school tailoring shop,” and its trade leans heavily on wedding and event parties — outfitting on the order of 800+ groups a year — alongside walk-in retail and business-wardrobe clients.3
Founded in 1908, Slabotsky’s is one of Kansas City’s oldest continuously operating businesses, built across more than a century on fit, premium fabrics, and meticulous tailoring.23 It won the 2025 Couples’ Choice Award for Best Men’s Suit.1 In early July 2025 the shop relocated to 306 Delaware Street in the River Market, two blocks north of the Power & Light District.3
As a heritage apparel-and-craft retailer — selling and tailoring goods rather than operating as a restaurant/bar/hospitality business — Slabotsky’s is the inaugural entry in the Registry’s log of Tier 1 local businesses outside the service industry.
Ownership and history
| Period | Owner / operator | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1908 → mid-century | Abe Slabotsky (founder) | Began as a clothes cleaning/repair shop (1908; some sources cite 1914), expanding into men’s clothing sales.34 |
| mid-century → late 1900s | Slabotsky & Sons (Gordon Slabotsky) | Became “Slabotsky & Son(s)” when Abe’s son Gordon Slabotsky joined; the menswear storefront era is often dated to 1935.34 |
| late 1990s → 2024 | Bruce Jerwick | The Jerwick family ran JP Todd’s clothing stores until closing their last location in 1996; Bruce Jerwick then joined Slabotsky’s and eventually became owner, continuing it as a family business.3 |
| 2024 → present | Michael Jerwick | Joined the shop in spring 2024 and took over after his father Bruce Jerwick died in September 2024; carries on the business and co-launched the affiliated golf-apparel brand GH Monday (July 2025, with cousin Brad Jerwick).23 |
The official store dates its founding to 1908.2 Some historical sources place the founding at 1914, and the menswear storefront era at 1935; the exact first-year is recorded here as a known discrepancy.34
Links
- Website: https://www.slabotskyskc.com/
- Affiliated brand: GH Monday (golf apparel; launched July 2025)
- Listings: Yelp https://www.yelp.com/biz/slabotskys-menswear-and-tailoring-kansas-city-3 · Facebook https://www.facebook.com/p/Slabotskys-Menswear-Tailoring-100063651306840/
Sources
Disputes
(None active. Founding-year discrepancy — 1908 vs. 1914, with 1935 as the menswear storefront era — noted above and recorded as the store’s own “1908.”)
See also
- _Tier1-Non-Service-Local-Businesses — log of Tier 1 local businesses outside the service industry
- river-market
Footnotes
-
Slabotsky’s — official site (home) — https://www.slabotskyskc.com/ — asserts: menswear/tuxedos/custom tailoring; 306 Delaware St, River Market; “nearly a century”; 2025 Couples’ Choice Award — Best Men’s Suit. ↩ ↩2
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Slabotsky’s — “About” — https://www.slabotskyskc.com/about — asserts: “Founded in 1908”; in-house tailoring; now led by Michael Jerwick, carrying forward the legacy of his late father Bruce. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4
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Startland News, “Months after taking over century-old tailor shop, owner putts his new golf apparel brand in play” (July 2025) — https://startlandnews.com/2025/07/slabotskys-gh-monday/ — asserts: founder Abe Slabotsky (1908 cleaning/repair shop; some sources 1914); Slabotsky & Sons (Gordon Slabotsky); Jerwick family ran JP Todd’s until 1996, Bruce Jerwick became owner; Bruce died Sept 2024 (age 62); Michael Jerwick joined spring 2024 and took over; relocated to 306 Delaware St in early July 2025; “brick-and-mortar, mom-and-pop, old-school tailoring shop”; ~800+ wedding groups/year; GH Monday golf-apparel brand with cousin Brad Jerwick. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8
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KC History (Kansas City Public Library), “Downtown Storefront: Slabotsky & Son Fine Menswear” — https://kchistory.org/islandora/object/kchistory:63532 — asserts: historical “Slabotsky & Son Fine Menswear” downtown storefront; long-running KC menswear lineage. ↩ ↩2 ↩3
See also
- Registry
- river-market
- _Tier1-Non-Service-Local-Businesses
- Owner-And-History-Research-Toolchain