King of Jeans

Photo by flickr user stellaoella

King of Jeans, according to whoever Philebrity’s unsourced “rumor mill” is, may be closing. Sad face.

If you’re not familiar, King of Jeans is an clothing store down in the Passyunk East neighborhood that always seems a little surprised to notice that the block is now full of people in tight pants; it’s notable for having one of the most bizarre, Patrick Nagel-ass sign I’ve seen outside a West Philly salon. It is also the namesake of Philly band Pissed Jeans’ album “King of Jeans.”

There is a quote from a 2008 South Philly Review story on a new boutique on Passyunk East that would suggest the store is suffering in the economy:

Issac, a manager at King of Jeans at 1843 Passyunk Ave., who did not want to give his last name, said staying open is a great idea in theory, but in his experience, it just doesn’t work.

“I tried later hours and it hadn’t really been working,” he said. ‘We’re in a recession where people have a limited amount of funds. I wish them luck because anything that works will benefit all of us. It’s better to have a store than an empty store. Maybe they could start a trend.”

We called King of Jeans for comment but it rang twenty times at noon on a Wednesday and we gave up. Not a good sign?