After 26 years in Baton Rouge, Jim Mayer says he’s closing his family’s clothing store on South Sherwood Forest Boulevard, which has roots dating back to 1838. “We don’t know when the exact closing date will be, but we’d like for it to be over by Christmas,” Mayer says. “We’ve got a tremendous amount of inventory we’ve got to sell first.” After Mayer Co. Clothiers closes its doors on Saturday, it will stay closed until Wednesday, when the going-out-of-business sale will officially begin. Mayer says he and his wife, Diane, have decided to close the store to spend more time traveling with family. The marketplace has also changed so drastically over the years, he says, that it’s become very difficult for a family-owned clothing store like his to remain in business.
Mayer says it’s no coincidence the decision to close his business was announced to friends and family on this day, the third anniversary of an accident that nearly took his life. “Three years ago, I died three times and they brought me back,” he says. “I’ve made a wonderful recovery, and it’s really led me to realize what’s important in life. So this is not a sad day; it is another new start for me and my family.”
Mayer Co. Clothiers traces its history back to 1838, when C.E. Mayer opened a store in Frankin. Clarence Mayer, Jim’s father, later started a tailor shop in New Orleans, then moved to Helena, Ark., where he founded CE Mayer Company clothing store in 1921. Jim Mayer relocated to Baton Rouge in 1985 and founded the current store. —Steve Sanoski
