The Best Menswear Stores In San Francisco

Benny Gold is a local independent streetwear brand, producing cutting-edge style inspired by San Francisco and youth culture. The brand is stocked in stores around the world, but its flagship boutique is located right here in the Mission district of San Francisco. The brand has grown over the past decade to become one of the most popular streetwear labels around, proudly emphasizing ‘the importance of staying true to your passions, growing up without growing old, and a DIY work ethic.’ The Benny Gold collection features shirts, bottoms, outerwear, hats, bags, socks, and accessories. Come explore the shop, and perhaps walk away with some free stickers even if you don’t end up purchasing anything.

Black Scale is an edgy menswear brand with an emphasis on concepts like religion, government, and death. The company proudly ‘challenges the consumer to question the ideals of everyday society and to decipher the world objectively, disregarding the view of the status quo.’ Black Scale has brick-and-mortar stores in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, and Shanghai. The company is also known for collaborating with a variety of popular brands, including Diamond Supply Co., Android Homme, Hall of Fame, Frank151, DTA, High Point, Hall of Fame, and G-Shock. Come out to the Haight district location to browse through the selection.

Founded by Matt Revelli in 1998, Upper Playground is an independent lifestyle brand promoting progressive, creative lifestyles. Over time it has expanded to open locations in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley, plus Berkeley and Portland, selling a collection of men’s apparel including t-shirts, hoodies, outerwear, hats, and accessories. The store also sells sells books, DVDs, artwork, and housewares, collaborating with artists and illustrators from around the world to create its products. The company has also established partner art galleries, such as the Fifty24SF Gallery.

Handsome Oxford is a small second-hand store selling exclusively American-made vintage clothing and accessories in the Tenderloin neighborhood. The New York Times describes the experience of shopping at Handsome Oxford best, explaining: ‘Stepping into Handsome Oxford is like entering a closet-size time machine packed with gently used, mostly pre-1970s American-made men’s work wear and casual clothing. You’ll find wool Pendletons, college sweatshirts, a Levi’s western shirt with pearlescent snap buttons and more, all of it amid décor that runs to old bottles of false teeth adhesive, galvanized metal milk cans, and a hodgepodge of other junk shop finds.’ The shop also has a partnering burger joint in Japan.

FAZE Apparel, which stands for Fearless And Zealous Everyday, is a brand geared toward ‘people that are willing to define their own path and pursue their passions.’ Located in the Mission district, you can find a wide range of apparel here including button-ups, t-shirts, hats, beanies, outerwear, accessories, phone cases, and mugs. Visitors rave about the excellent customer service, with a staff that will go out of its way to help you out whether you have an issue with a return or you need advice on which piece to purchase.