Like a lad magazine come to
life, Alpha appeals to a broad spectrum of men (and to any woman shopping for
her hard-to-please fella). The 1,200-square-foot lifestyle store dedicates a
small space to men's clothing, carrying local designers Band of Outsiders and
Christi Conaway, plus very worthy others, including leather-goods house
Lambertson Truex and British designer Paul Smith. The rest of the
concrete-floored, tin-ceilinged boutique addresses all the other elements of a
man's life, from grooming products to game gear for poker night. Alpha also
offers consulting services for the clueless bachelor who has to throw a dinner
party or just needs a wardrobe overhaul; the in-store stylists and specialists
may not be The Fab Five (is that a bad thing?), but they are available to
bitch-slap—er, advise—hapless chaps in need
