Meet the retailer: Pickings & Parry

Bringing tradition and heritage to Melbourne's North is destination retailer, Pickings & Parry.

The store brings together an exclusive curation of products, suited to men of refined taste. Its brands are difficult to find elsewhere in Australia, while the offering expands from clothing and accessories to footwear, grooming, luggage and stationery.

In store, you'll also find a barbershop. The store was one of the first in Australia to couple men's retail with traditional barber services, in a model that's since been echoed around the country.

Yet Pickings & Parry is certainly a one-of-a-kind space. We caught five with owner Chris Pickings to learn more about the store's offering.

Photography: Kamilla Musland

Tell us about Pickings & Parry. We offer an experience for all who come into the store. Whether it’s for a grooming service, to buy a jacket or to buy a gift for another, we try to create an interesting and welcoming environment with a product selection based on quality, origin, style and story. Our main focus is high quality, classic clothing and top end barber services.

What’s your point of difference? For many of our brands, we were the first store to carry their products in Australia and we curate our range in a very different way to most menswear stores. Our standards are high and we strive to keep them that way. We were also the first store in Australia to combine clothing and grooming in one space.

What other brands do you stock? It’s quite a list. Blue Blue Japan, Knickerbocker Mfg. Co., Nigel Cabourn, H.W. Dog & Co., Stevenson Overall Co., Oak Street Bootmakers, PF Flyers, Aero Leather Clothing, Filson, Barbour, Merz b. Schwanen, Sugar Cane, Sun Surf, Tailor Toyo, Tanner goods, Yuketen, Red Wing, Monitaly, Runabout Goods, Oliver Peoples, Rinouma, Buzz Rickson, Papa Nui, Otter Wax, Stetson, Juniper Ridge, Passion France, Bleu de Chauffe, Anonymous Ism.

What do you love most about Triumph & Disaster? The masculine yet natural fragrances, the quality and the presentation.

What sort of feedback do you get on the brand? Most folks who try the products love them. In particular, the new Fibre Royale has been incredibly popular.

What’s your favourite product in the range? For me, I use the Rock & Roll Suicide Face Scrub, Ritual Cleanser and Gameface Moisturiser the most regularly. But Fibre Royale is also a great product.

What’s the best part of Pickings & Parry’s location? Gertrude Street is great. It’s in vibrant Fitzroy and very close to the CBD, whilst retaining a small village feel. The stores along the street are eclectic and interesting, as are the people.

People love the store because… It’s interesting, friendly and the high quality products have a story and reason for being. The interior is also pretty special.

What keeps the people coming back? Hopefully, it’s our excellent product range and good service! Also, due to our brands being globally sourced, there’s always something new and interesting to check out every month.

What’s next for the business? Next year we are moving to a larger premises on Gertrude Street and opening our sister store, Heffernan & Haire right next door to it.