Western wear shops feel economic pinch
Mexican clientele, many illegal, hit hardest by downturn

Raudel Sanchez shows off one of the most expenses boots in his shop, a "Lucchese" alligator boot, valued at $1,499 on sale at his store, Sanchez Brothers, a western ware store in Cicero.


January 3, 2010


The $5,000 chinchilla cowboy hats and $1,500 baby-alligator boots, now gathering dust, tell a story of good times gone bad.

In the best days, many Mexicans from small towns grabbed their slice of the American dream in Chicago not with sports cars but with high-priced Western wear that were upgrades from the tattered clothes they grew up in.

But now an economy in which Mexican immigrants could easily earn good money, with or without legal work visas, is being transformed because of the implosion of industries such as construction and tougher Immigration enforcement.

The clothing retailers that rode this boom are teetering because their Mexican clients are out of work or afraid of being deported.

The Tony Lama boots are being sold at a loss, marked half off, while polyester coats are selling better than the high-end suede versions.

This fancy garb always held deep meaning for Mexican newcomers, said Rich Alcala, president of the venerable Alcala's Western Wear on West Chicago Avenue.

The immigrants often grew up among the horses and cornfields, so the ranch wear is functional, not a costume, he said. Even when traversing Chicago's urban and suburban environments, their clothes were a taste of home.

"Many people in Mexico aren't going to be able to afford a nice Stetson hat," Alcala said. "So when they get here, get settled, get a job, they want to get rid of those crappy boots and get themselves the best they can afford.

"It's a sign of status, that they've made it."

During a building boom fueled by easy loans and low interest rates, many Mexicans found construction jobs at every turn, often landing overtime pay. After a share of the paychecks had gone to Mexico, many would unwind by donning their best Western clothing to dance in sprawling banquet halls.

Raudel Sanchez worked 20 years in meatpacking before he opened his first Western store in Back of the Yards in 1985. He got in just as the boom times were starting and eventually expanded his operations to Cicero and Aurora.

Sanchez said the money was flowing so freely that his store would cash paychecks from construction workers. He'd pay out $1,000 in cash, a quarter of which often would go right back into belts, dress shirts and the like. The four-figure hats would be bought on layaway or a handshake.

During the holidays, those workers would buy $200 hats by the half-dozen for relatives in Mexico, he said.

Of course, many of these paychecks were earned by illegal immigrants who had no official right to work here. For many critics of lax Immigration policy, the end of their livelihoods is a welcome development.

Last year, the Pew Hispanic Center reported that the unemployment rate for Latin American immigrants in the U.S. is growing at a faster rate than in the general population.

That means less disposable income: Money sent back to Mexico from the U.S. in October plummeted 35 percent from the previous year, the largest drop on record, according to Mexico's Central Bank.

A recent report from the Migration Policy Institute said that at the height of homebuilding over the last decade, about 13 percent of immigrants worked in construction, compared with 7 percent of U.S.-born workers. The collapse of that sector is the main contributor to the general economic insecurity among Mexican immigrants, according to merchants and analysts.

Israel Godinez, for example, typically used to buy at least one new hat every year around Christmas. This year, he can only browse.

"I see a lot that interests me, but I can't do it," said Godinez, 30, a roofer from Berwyn.

Sanchez has taken his line of $1,500 Lucchese boots off the shelves. There's no chance they will sell now, he said, although he used to move about one pair a month.

Sanchez said he sells other boots, including exotic ostrich or iguana varieties, at a loss to get customers in the door. He sells about one pair of Tony Lamas a week, compared with at least a dozen in the peak years.

"Only the cheap things are selling," Sanchez said. "But we don't want things too cheap because it cheapens our prestige that is based on quality."

Sanchez has pared staff and is considering renting out an upstairs apartment he uses for his dwindling stock.

Alcala, meanwhile, recently added a rack of $50 polyester jackets.

"If I didn't have that rack, I'd really be in trouble," he said.

Rick la Porte, a sales representative for 30 years for Stetson and other high-end hats, said the Chicago-area stores that rely on Mexican customers have suffered the most. Those that diversify their client base, perhaps by attracting women, can survive, he said.

Enrique Mendoza, the hat expert at Alcala's, handled a tattered black cowboy hat that a client had brought in for a $25 touch-up, more feasible than a $300 replacement.

"These guys, they always want the best," Mendoza said. "But the money can't go for hats right now. It's going for rent and for food."

oavila@tribune.com



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