Cavender’s Western Wear Named 2017 Retailer of the Year

Congratulations to Clay Cavender and Cavender’s Western Wear, The Headwear Association 2017 Retailer of the Year.

  

Clay Cavender made quite a stir when he traveled to Manhattan to accept The Retailer of the Year Award. “You turn a lot of heads when you wear a cowboy hat in New York City,” said Clay. Not surprising, Clay and his wife Jacqueline looked like country music stars when the walked into the Central Park Loeb Boathouse.

Clay Cavender accepts Retailer of the Year Award from Ricky Bolin of HATCO

With 77 western wear stores, Cavender’s is a household name in the southwest and a distinguished leader in the western wear industry. Cavender’s was started by James Cavender in Pittsburg, Texas in 1965 and today remains family owned and operated.

This year marks the 109th anniversary of The Headwear Association and we are honored to name Cavender’s 2017 Retailer of the Year. Ricky Bolin of Hatco presented Clay Cavender with award at our annual dinner.

Cavender’s stocks an incredible selection of hats in their locations across Texas, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri and New Mexico. The company is constantly expanding, and a new Cavender’s location in Huntsville, AL is opening soon.

  

Cavender’s is steeped in the philosophies of hard work, customer service, and common-sense. The Cavender Family operates five working ranches throughout Texas, gaining inspiration for products. They live the lifestyle. Cavender’s carries a full line of men’s, women’s and children’s western apparel, straw, felt and wool hats and a large selection of handcrafted western boots.

Their expansive collection of Cowboy Hats that includes styles from Cavender’s private label collection, Justin, Stetson and Resistol is unrivaled. Cavender’s also carries a variety of other hat styles including Children’s Western hats, Caps, Outbacks, and Western Fashion Hats from Scala & Dorfman Pacific.

Today, Joe, Mike and Clay Cavender have taken the reigns of the business running it with as much passion and perseverance as their 86-year-old father did the last half century—albeit with him still riding along side.

Clay is vice president of merchandising overseeing men’s soft goods and hats, and also is in charge of the development of Cavender’s private apparel labels including its newest brand, Rafter C. “If you look back through time, there’s a look that’s always cool and that’s a pearl snap shirt, a cowboy hat and a pair of cowboy boots,” says Clay.

Clay also designs and decorates each store with the help of his mother, Pat. In early 2017 Clay was able to work on a unique project when Cavender’s partnered with Luskey’s/Ryons in the historic stockyards. The 1896 building store was completely remodeled and opened in February as Cavender’s Stock Yards Outfitter; Cavender says it’s the “coolest western store in the best cowboy town in the world.”

“Pretty much everything you see in our stores has at least been seen by my eyes or touched by hands, or both,” says Clay. “I still love to see customers come through the doors for the first time and enjoy all the hard work our people put in to get a store open.”