The Hat Store has been a Texas Tradition since 1915 and it's part of Houston's history. The family business started as The American Hat Company, that was founded by Sam Silver in 1915 in Houston. Silver taught his sons how to customize hats, and they taught Silver's grandson Gary Cohen.
Cohen opened The Hat Store, located on Chimney Rock and Richmond in the Galleria area. In 2018, he sold it to Russell Molina's family, who have preserved and kept the tradition going.
The Hat Store has employees called Hat Shapers. They cut, shape and clean hats. The Hat Shapers say they know they've done right when the customer smiles. One of their Hat Shapers, Anthony "Tony" Leal, has been shaping for about 6 years now. Leal started in High School and picked up the craft more during his time in college in East Texas and the rest is history!
To learn more about creating a custom hat, visit thehatstore.com.
You can also follow them on Instagram @thehatstoretx