S.J. Crystal’s Men’s Shop, a Kenosha Retail Landmark Since 1896, to Sell Entire Inventory and Close Its Doors as Owner Retires
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: LEW ACETO (262) 656-9910
or ERIC WOOLSON (515) 681-3967
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2025
S.J. CRYSTAL’S MEN’S SHOP, A KENOSHA RETAIL LANDMARK SINCE 1896,
TO SELL ENTIRE INVENTORY AND CLOSE ITS DOORS AS OWNER RETIRES
KENOSHA, Wis. – S.J. Crystal’s Men’s Shop, a regional retail mainstay for 129 years, will sell its entire inventory and close its doors, owner Lew Aceto said today as he announced his upcoming retirement.
“If somebody would say, OK go back in time and pick out what you want to do with the rest of your life, I would pick out the same thing,” Aceto said. “I feel like I’m the luckiest man in the world, because I still enjoy coming to work every day and meeting new people and seeing all the new styles with every season. It’s going to be very tough to walk away from it.”
S.J. Crystal’s Men’s Shop, located at 5701 Sixth Avenue, will hold its public closing sale from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Thursday, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 5:00 p.m. Sunday. The store’s hours will be 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Monday-Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5:00 p.m. Sundays until the remaining inventory is sold.
The business, which was founded by Louis Crystal in 1896, has a rich history that includes seven different Kenosha locations over the years to mirror the city’s changing retail landscape. “His name was Louie, and I’m Lewie,” Aceto said. “There’s a symmetry there. I like the way that worked out.”
At other times, the store was located on 56th Street before moving to Sixth Avenue next to the First National Bank. It was at the Sixth Avenue location that Crystal’s daughter, Josephine, and her husband, Gabe Cohen, purchased the business in the 1940s. “They were wonderful people, really special people, and that’s when my dad came to work for them and the store was still called Crystal’s Men’s Shop,” Aceto said.
The business gained its current name when his parents, Sam and Joanne, purchased it in the mid-1970s. Eager to add their own personal touch while respecting the store’s heritage, they added the initials of their first names and S.J. Crystal’s Men’s Shop was born.
Aceto’s earliest store recollections date back to the late 1950s when he was already learning the clothing business as a kindergartner. “Dad would send one of the stock boys over to school to pick me up, and I’d have to come sit in the store. No matter what age you were, you’re not just sitting, you’re going to work. I used to dust hats because everyone used to wear hats back then,” he recalled. “I’d make boxes, fold clothes, vacuum the carpets and clean the bathroom.”
Aceto thought at one point that he would become a commercial artist and attended the University of Wisconsin Whitewater, where he had a double major in business administration and commercial art and that is where he met his wife, Donna. He continued to be drawn back to the family business. “I would drive home on weekends to work in the store and help dad and everybody else,” he said. “I loved the camaraderie. It was a great way to grow up.”
Between 1963 and the early 1980s, the store was located at 5720 Sixth Avenue. The store tripled its size with a move to Pershing Plaza in the early 1980s. With rents rising and revenues flat, Aceto decided in 2004 that it was time to return to the downtown to “the best corner in all of downtown.”
Like other independent clothiers with decades in business, Aceto has experienced the numerous ups and downs that come with economic boom-and-bust cycles and changing fashion trends. The business also rode out the COVID pandemic. Despite constant changes in consumer sentiment and retail clothing throughout the decades, S.J. Crystal’s flourished by providing stellar customer care.
Any company that has been in business for more than a century has countless former employees to its credit. Aceto is thrilled that a number of employees that have worked for him are eager to return to help with the retirement sale. “I’ve got all my varsity squad coming in to give me a hand. One of the guys is a retired police officer who worked here part-time for 30 years and saw three of our moves. My nephew, who worked here about 25 years ago, is coming back,” Aceto said. “They all want to come back and help out.”
While Aceto is closing the business, he doesn’t plan to slow down any time soon. “I plan on enjoying my time with family and playing golf. Life doesn’t get much better.”
# # # #
