About Us
The Staff
Oscar B. Hult: Owner/Haberdasher
A native Oregonian, Oscar has lived and worked in Downtown Albany since 1986, moving here to take a position at the Downtown Sears store. Oscar has been involved in numerous community and historic preservation organizations and has sometimes been called an Albany Historian. A self-described men’s clothing aficionado, he enjoys reading about the history of menswear and looking at historic clothing. Oscar can be found wearing hats, suits or tuxedos any time he can. In Albany he is known to many simply as the guy in the hat.
Transform your wardrobe with elegant men’s clothing—shop The Natty Dresser for timeless mens clothing Albany OR. For more info, call 541-248-3561.
Tamalynne Hult: Owner/Proprietress
Tamalynne (also a native Oregonian) has a background in art and is the go-to color expert at The Natty Dresser. Her customer service ethic was honed in her years as a sales clerk at Emma Downtown, the fashionable women’s boutique that is just across the street from The Natty Dresser’s original location. She is highly adept at helping customers with their mens clothing Albany OR choices from casual to tuxedos.
Your wardrobe called—it’s begging for a makeover with the finest men’s clothing in Albany, OR. Visit The Natty Dresser or give us a shout at 541-248-3561.
Ronnie Gribble: Manager/Haberdasherette
Ronnie joined Team Natty as a very-part-time greeter at our various open house events. That gig turned into a full-time position as the person who makes sure that The Natty Dresser runs well. As manager, her role is to make sure that the right people are doing the right thing to give our customers top-notch service. Her background in cosmetics helps her choose the right colors for your skin tone. Originally from Montana, when she isn’t at The Natty Dresser she keeps busy with family. She and her husband Steve live in Lebanon and enjoy being with their grandchildren.
Suit up in style with great mens clothing Albany OR. Book your fitting at The Natty Dresser by calling 541-248-3561.
Michelle Belikoff: Haberdasherette
Michelle was born in Portland, Oregon and grew up in Los Angeles. She married her husband Mark in 1985 and spent 32 years homeschooling their 6 children. Prior to working at The Natty Dresser she was a barista for 7 years. Michelle is always willing and able to help customers who are looking for personal attention.
Looking for men’s clothing in Albany, OR? Look like you stepped out of a style magazine. The Natty Dresser has your back. Call us at 541-248-3561 to book your transformation.
James Pallatin: Assistant Haberdasher
James was born and raised in Folsom, California. He moved to the Oregon Coast in 2017 to be closer to his parents and soon found himself in the Willamette Valley. Even before coming to work at The Natty Dresser, James had an avid interest in classic mens clothing Albany OR. He enjoys combing thrift and antique stores for vintage pieces that he can use in his wardrobe. Along the way, James has learned basic tailoring skills.
Say goodbye to boring and hello to dazzling! Drop by The Natty Dresser for a men’s wardrobe overhaul, or call 541-248-3561 to start your style journey.
Laura Pennington: Haberdasherette
Laura was raised in Oregon where she has always enjoyed a tight-knit connection with her family. Her grandmother taught her to sew from an early age, and nowadays she fills up her spare time by designing dresses and helping her father with small alterations. She started working behind the scenes at the Natty Dresser, cleaning up and making sure everything was organized. As a sales associate, that desire for organization fuels her resolve to give every customer the perfection they are looking for.
Have a love for fashion and an eye for quality? The Natty Dresser is the perfect place for you! Call 541-248-3561 or swing by to find the style that fits just right!
Trinity: Haberdasherette
Trinity was born in Portland, Oregon, but spent most of her childhood in Las Vegas, Nevada. She later returned to Oregon to pursue her education and is currently completing her bachelor’s degree in Product and Apparel Merchandising at Oregon State University. With a strong passion for styling, Trinity loves helping customers look and feel their best!
Gerardo: Assistant Haberdasher
Born and raised here in Oregon, he is studying Business at Oregon State University. Outside of work and school, he enjoys playing golf and staying active. He considers this job as a great opportunity to connect with people in the business world and build relationships. Gerardo is passionate about developing his career locally and giving back to the community that shaped him.
SE Young Department Store Building History
Fresh out of the Civil War, S.E. Young started a menswear shop in partnership with Mr. L.E. Blain in 1865. By the 1880s, the partnership dissolved and the store they had started together became Blain’s mens clothing Albany OR. At the time that it closed in 1973, it was the oldest menswear shop West of the Mississippi River.
S.E. Young started his own shop in 1889 in the building that now houses the Albany Regional Museum. It originally sat on the corner of First and Broadalbin Street and can be seen in the photo to the left. In 1912 he and his son built a grand new building. Mr. Young was 74 years old at that time and unfortunately had only a few years at the new store. In 1915 he was struck down by an apparent stroke. He was thereafter confined to his home, and he passed away a few years later.
The building was sold to one of his employees, who with his brother operated the store as Hamilton’s Department Store starting in 1915. In 1925 the building was modernized with various upgrades, including an OTIS elevator. The Hamiltons ran their shop there until 1936 when the building was sold to the Frager family and leased to Montgomery Ward from 1937 until 1970.
Montgomery Ward installed the current pendant lights and the fans on the main floor. They also had the entire store fitted with a fire suppression system. The top floor was the women’s department, the basement housed children’s and home goods, and the main floor haberdashery was dedicated to menswear, just as it is today. In 1970 Montgomery Ward built a new building on Pacific Blvd.
The next tenant to occupy the space was The Broadway in 1973. The proprietors closed in the majority of the large windows and created a more “modern” shopping center with a restaurant called The Patio on the mezzanine level. They eventually closed in 1985.
Next came Sid’s Furniture from Salem. The top floor was used as warehouse space while the rest of the building was used for furniture display. In 1999 the building was remodeled and became Riley’s Billiards and Cafe. After 20 years the bar closed on New Year’s Day 2020.
The building was purchased by Oscar and Tamalynne Hult in May of that year. The eight-month remodel, headed up by Pyburn & Sons Construction, returned the building to its former glory by restoring the show windows and the mezzanine level windows on the front façade, wrapping the interior columns with wood, building a new wood-lined foyer, building fitting rooms, and painting. The Renovation won the 2022 Oregon Main Street Award for Best Brick & Mortar Renovation in the State of Oregon.
RETURNING MENSWEAR TO MAIN STREET
BUILDING AN AUTHENTIC OLD-SCHOOL HABERDASHERY
Located in the heart of Albany’s Downtown Historic District at 124 Broadalbin St. SW, The Natty Dresser is the largest independent menswear shop in Oregon.
Established in 2014, our old-school haberdashery has an ever-changing assortment of men’s clothing from casual to business attire, from hats to shoes and everything in between. Services include a shoe shine stand, tuxedo and suit rentals, custom suits and custom shirts, as well as alterations for men or women, whether you purchased the garment here or not.
Our brands include Hart Shaffner & Marx, Pendleton, Filson, Stetson, Mizzen + Main, Kahala, and Jack Victor to name a few.
For your convenience we serve Albany, Corvallis, Lebanon, Salem, and beyond. Live in Portland, Medford, Bend, or the Coast? We’d love to serve you too!
Building an authentic, old-school haberdashery
In January of 2014, Oscar and Tamalynne Hult were looking at starting their own business in their hometown of Albany, Oregon. Oscar had been working as the Executive Director of the Albany Downtown Association, the entity that oversees the local Main Street program.
The Hults had a short list of business ideas that they were convinced Albany needed—a toy store, an ice-cream/candy shop, and a haberdashery. Considerable thought went into each of those ideas, and they decided that toy stores were being driven the way of the dodo by the internet and that they would have to sell a LOT of candy to make the rent.
The census revealed that the amount of money people spent on menswear in Albany did not match the reported sales of menswear in Albany—which meant that people were going out of town to buy men’s clothing.
After deciding the course, the Hults started envisioning what their haberdashery should look, smell, and sound like. Starting with a storefront that had been vacant for over five years—and through a lot of blood, sweat, and tears—they peeled back layers of previous remodels and transformed the space into a shop that felt like stepping into the classic era of mens clothing Albany OR
The Natty Dresser was born!
The business was blessed to have the support of The Albany Downtown Association, the Oregon Main Street Program, and the Visitor’s Association. Working with the landlord and the city’s Landmarks Commission, the Hults added awnings and restored the tile entryway. These efforts won state and local awards for the renovations.
Fast forward six years and The Natty Dresser had outgrown its first location. The pandemic of 2020 was the perfect time to purchase the nearby S.E. Young & Son Department Store Building. The Hults signed the papers in May 2020, and after extensive renovations, the façade of the building was returned to its 1912 look.
The interior was also renovated, and missing stained glass was replaced by new windows that were made with glass from the same factory as the originals.
Under the restored 1936 ceiling fans and giant pendant lights, custom-built counters and paneled columns make the shop feel like a department store of the 1930s or 40s (once again winning both state and local awards for the renovations).
Customers helped move the shop from the old location into the new by parading racks of clothing through downtown. With God’s help the shop was able to open just in time for the 2020 Christmas season. Customers love the new old-fashioned haberdashery. mens clothing Albany OR
The Natty Dresser is now a regional draw that brings customers to Albany from all over Oregon to step back in time and experience shopping for quality menswear in a space that feels like it has been a part of the community for over a century. From here we help people in their personal journeys to dress well, be confident, and find success!
Why settle for ordinary when you can have extraordinary men’s clothing? Pop into The Natty Dresser, or call 541-248-3561, and dress like a legend.