Julian’s To Stay in Downtown Chapel Hill

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Julian’s, the menswear retailer that has been a Chapel Hill landmark for more than 60 years, is opening a new store but isn’t moving far at all.

On Friday, international award-winning designer Alexander Julian and his sister Missy Julian Fox announced that the store will move across the street to a new location at 135 East Franklin Street. Its current address is 140 Franklin Street.

The current store will close on Feb. 17. The new location will open in late summer, Julian and Fox said in a joint statement. Julian and Fox are the children of Maurice Julian, who founded the store.

The location is where Alexander Julian opened his first retail venture – Alexander’s Ambition – in 1970.

"We want everyone to know that staying in Chapel Hill and preserving the legacy and relationships our family has built here are of paramount importance to us,” Julian said. “Our new home will most certainly reflect the warmth and stylish tradition our father forged with the original in every way possible. It'll definitely feel like home and that's the way he would've wanted it."

Fox and her husband Michael have managed the Julian store for the past 14 years. They recently announced plans to leave the business. Julian will take control of the business and put in place a different management team.