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Photos courtesy of Tom Beckbe.
Radcliff and Mary Menge, husband and wife and successful entrepreneurs, recently opened the flagship retail store for their clothing brand, Tom Beckbe, in Mountain Brook Village. The nicely appointed storefront features the couple’s stylish, high-quality outdoor clothing, as well as other outdoors-themed specialty items.
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Most successful entrepreneurs, especially if they create consumer products, seek to identify and fill needs — in some cases needs that they experienced themselves.
That was the case with Radcliff Menge, a Mountain Brook resident.
Menge loves the outdoors and grew up hunting and fishing with his grandfather in the Tensaw Delta of the Tombigbee River in South Alabama.
But he also earned a law degree from Washington & Lee University in 2008 and went to work as a mergers and acquisitions attorney in New York.
And he spent years searching for a classic waxed-canvas hunting jacket that was rugged enough for the outdoors but looked nice enough to be worn in the city.
Menge couldn’t find it, so he designed and produced his own Tensaw Jacket in 2015, while still practicing law in the Big Apple.
The idea was to have a jacket that was fully functional in the field — for example, rugged and comfortable and allowing for a full range of motion.
At the same time, the jacket is designed to “pair well with your business casual or formal business attire during the week, something you can throw on over a suit jacket,” he said.
Menge and his wife, Mary Menge, found a woman on the internet who could make a sample of the jacket, including a pattern.
“We thought it might have some commercial appeal,” Radcliff Menge said.
“People liked it,” he said.
The Menges then started their own Tom Beckbe brand.
They have gradually added lots of other products including a full line of field gear, bags, fleece layering, shirting and hats, and have long had a robust online retail presence.
In August, the couple had a soft opening for their flagship Tom Beckbe retail store in Mountain Brook Village at Canterbury and Culver Roads.
The grand opening for the 1,300-square-foot space was held Sept. 18.
Mountain Brook was a good location for the Tom Beckbe flagship store, the couple said.
For one thing, they have a short commute.
“We live in Crestline so it is convenient for us,” Radcliff Menge.
Tom Beckbe fits in well with the feel and ambiance of Mountain Brook Village as well.
“We felt like the timeless and quaint community … really is a good fit for our brand,” Mary Menge said. “We have great neighbors.”
They have also earned a lot of customers in the city.
“A core part of our customer base is in Mountain Brook who have supported the business since its inception,” Radcliff Menge. “We wanted to put it in the community where we live and that has supported us.”
The store has a workshop for engraving and custom hunting vest fittings.
The store features millwork from woodworkers Julian & Sons, including the “Loading Dock,” a bar in the rear of the store that features private whiskey lockers.
Products on sale include Tom Beckbe’s premium outerwear, fleece, shirting and accessories.
There are leather shooting gloves, sporting vests, field hats and angler shirts, as well as a women’s Tensaw jacket.
Radcliff Menge is from Winchester, Virginia, and Mary Menge is from Brewton.
They met in 2005 when they were attending Washington & Lee, where they both earned their law degrees.
They were married in 2009 and both practiced law.
Regarding the branding for the Tensaw jacket, the couple “wanted to root it in Alabama,” Mary Menge said.
On a colonial-era map of Alabama, they saw a French spelling of the Tombigbee River, “Tombeckbe.”
This allowed them to summon up the area where Radcliff Menge went hunting and fishing growing up, and the name of the river became the name of the brand’s fictional namesake.
“Since we were designing men’s wear, we liked the idea of using someone’s name, so we created that character, if you will,” she said.
“Tom Beckbe is a figment of our collective imagination,” Radcliff Menge said.
“He’s not a real person, but I think Radcliff’s great-grandfather and grandfather were big outdoorsmen and served as inspiration for the brand and the lifestyle,” Mary Menge said.
The most popular items at Tom Beckbe include the Tensaw jacket, the fleece wear and the vests.
Tom Beckbe also carries a wide variety of gear bags and travel bags that can be personalized in the store.
This fall, the Menges also have a new collection of shirting called the Wrights Twill, Radcliff Menge said.
When asked how the couple chooses or develops new products, Radcliff Menge said “there are two categories — stuff we like and stuff people ask us for.”
In the latter category is a strap hunting vest new to Tom Beckbe for the fall.
“It’s a simple product, but the design is just kind of clean and intuitive,” Radcliff Menge said. “People have asked us for this for years.”
The brand also designs and produces exclusive products with such Southern artisans as woodworker Alabama Sawyer, glass artisan Terrane Glass and knife maker Heartwood Forge.
There are collaborations with Wisconsin-based outdoor footwear brand Russell Moccasin Co. and South Carolina-based Jack Rudy Cocktail Co.
The store carries a curated assortment of rare or limited edition collectible sporting items, including art, books and hand-carved waterfowl decoys.
The Menges have also added a rewaxing service that will be available in-store only.
This fall, the store is hosting a series of indoor and outdoor events with fellow makers and sporting brands.
The majority of the company’s sales come from the online operation, Radcliff Menge said.
“But the store is giving it a nice run for the money,” he said.
The couple is pleased with the customer response since they opened the flagship store.
“It’s definitely been a nice mix of people who already knew about us and were very excited to come in and see what was new for fall and people who were new to the brand who saw something in the window that caught their eye or saw some of the press locally,” Mary Menge said.
Running a business inevitably brings some challenges, but the Menges profess to enjoy running Tom Beckbe overall.
“For Mary and I to go from practicing law to having the chance to flex our creative juices, it is fun and really gratifying to be able to fill a niche and meet new people who share our interests,” Radcliff Menge said.
“It is fun — not every day is fun, but it is creative and dynamic and no two days are alike,” Mary Menge said.
The Menges have no plans for additional retail stores at this point.
“We are laser focused on making this a success right now,” Radcliff Menge said.
