For Immediate Release
July 7, 2013
Contact:
Pete Erskine, Kim Erskine or Topher Mallory
207 563 8399
Mexicali Blues named Best of Men’s Clothing Store & Women’s Boutique by Down East Readers
Newcastle, Maine – Mexicali Blues was named Best of Men’s Clothing Store & Women’s Boutique in this year’s Best of Maine Down East issue. From shopping to eating to playing outdoors, Down East readers and editors selected their statewide favorites this year and Mexicali Blues made the list.
Winners of the “Best of Maine” awards are selected for one of two categories: the Readers’ Choice or the Editors’ Choice. Ideas for the annual Editors’ Choice Best of Maine Down East are collected throughout the year as the magazine’s editors and contributors travel the state. The Readers’ Choice nominees are identified and voted on by Down East readers. Individual categories include Outdoors, Food and Drink, Culture, Family, Lodging, and more.
“Maine is such a special place for so many people,” said Down East Editor in Chief Paul Doiron. “Whether you’re a native or have been visiting for years, everyone has a Maine favorite. The ‘Best of’ awards are the perfect way to celebrate these well-loved people, places and more, and the results might introduce you to another Maine gem!”
The full list of “Best of Maine” winners appears in the July issue of Down East, on newsstands June 25.
About Mexicali Blues:
A love of music, a passion for travel, and a mindful devotion to fun.
That’s all it took to launch Mexicali Blues back in 1988. What started with a breezy road trip and one tiny storefront in Portland, Maine, has since grown into six shops, an online retail and social hub, and our very own brand of unique and adventurous clothing, jewelry, and gifts. We believe in responsibly importing eclectic goods that you won’t find anyplace else. And yeah, we’re still super devoted to fun.
Owners Pete and Kim Erskine are Mexicali’s original seekers, surfing street markets and bazaars from Bangkok to Lima in search of exotic and wearable treasures. Our buying model has its roots in Mexicali’s very first inventory, a trove of funky, handmade clothes and accessories that Pete picked up during a post-college ramble through Mexico and Guatemala.
Back then, we supplemented our imported wares with a lot of Grateful Dead merchandise—we even took our name from one our favorite songs. Today, you’ll still find plenty of Grateful and hippie-fied goods around the store, but Mexicali has come a long way since that first little shop, crowded with concert tees and road-trip loot. (For starters, we don’t close up anymore just because, hey, it’s nice out.)
We’ve spent twenty-five years expanding our global aesthetic, filling our shelves with everything from colorful batiks and tie-dyes to exotic gemstone jewelry, bohemian skirts and tops, and Eastern-inspired décor. Our apparel and accessories are handpicked and imported without any middlemen. We’re committed to creating and maintaining long-term and mutually beneficial relationships with the artisans and families who create our products. Pete and Kim have known many of our vendors for a decade or more, and a highlight of their travels is the chance to visit workshops and catch up with old friends.
We believe that world culture and community culture are two sides of the same peso. Our travels and our website take us all over the world, but our stores and our hearts are back home in Maine. We think globally and commune locally. From our flagship store in Newcastle to our two shops in Portland’s Old Port to our heart-of-town locations in Freeport, Raymond, and Bangor, you won’t find Mexicali Blues at the mall. We love where we live, and we’re proud to sponsor local concerts and events for environmental and educational causes.
In the many years since that first road trip, we’ve been all around this world, taking in its colors, scents, and sounds, and then bringing some of it home to share with our friends. We’re a little bit crunchy and a little bit conscious and a little bit chic. That’s Mexicali Blues. Clothing that fits your mind, jewelry to accent your life.
About Down East:
Down East Enterprise, Inc., is a multimedia company based in Rockport, Maine. The company’s flagship publication, Down East: The Magazine of Maine, is the largest paid circulation magazine dedicated to the Pine Tree State. A digital version of Down East was launched in February 2013. Down East has been the authority on Maine for nearly six decades and today continues to capture the reader’s attention with an insider look at contemporary life in Maine. People who love Maine love Down East.
Down East Enterprise, Inc., currently publishes Shooting Sportsman, the world’s largest magazine dedicated to wingshooting and fine guns and Fly Rod & Reel, a quarterly publication for fly-fishing enthusiasts. Down East also produces Web sites, mobile apps and video programming via the Down East Channel.
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