Designer Q & A - The Unknown Factory
This week's Q & A is with Eli and Moshe Azran owners and designers of The Unknown Factory.
1) Why do you think after 200 years jeans are still one of the most popular items of clothing?
Moshe: I think that there are a few reasons for the continued demand of denim, however, I believe the main two reasons are: The feeling you get when putting on a brand new pair of jeans and the versatility of denim in everyone's closet. You can dress up or down denim any way you want.
Eli: One word. Versatility. There's no other item that does not discriminate.
2) Last time I counted there were over 200 brands of premium denim jeans, what makes your jeans stand out from the rest?
Eli: It would be a bold lie to say we use the finest Italian fabrics, and have mastered the perfect fit, the truth is we all use the same fabrics [as other premium denim companies]. Quite honestly, if your jeans don't fit they don't belong in stores.
Moshe: Our details and washes stand out more than any other brand out there.
3) Who do you imagine is a typical customer?
Moshe: A confident girl that knows what she wants.
Eli: Underground, not into branding, but a label whore, who wears Louboutins, Carpe Diems, Rick Qwens. It's pretty trippy because I could probably describe "our girl" extremely well, its so important to know who you want to target, it helps you establish a true identity. I hate brands who flip-flop, There's nothing worse.
4) Where do you get your inspiration from?
Moshe: Anywhere, art, music, movies, scenery, weather, you name it and it inspires us.
Eli: As crazy as this sounds, it's from perception of what I think people are wearing. It's a way of looking at things.
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Designer Q & A - Chip & Pepper
1) Why you think after 200 years jeans are still one of the most popular items of clothing?
Cause there is nothing else to wear
2) Last time I counted there were over 200 brands of premium denim jeans, what makes your jeans stand out from the rest? do
Who taught you had to count? There are over 2000! Chip + Pepper are part of the original 5.
3) Who do you imagine is a typical customer?
Someone with money in their wallet.
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Designer Q & A - Nudie Jeans
1) Why do you think after 200 years jeans are still one of the most popular items of clothing?
Denim is closely connected with rebellion, democratisation and equality. It is the garment for a modern, or maybe post-modern age.
2) Last time I counted there were over 200 brands of premium denim jeans, what makes your jeans stand out from the rest?
I don’t know about the rest but we are truly passionate about denim. We are really denim freaks. Our jeans are made of a lot of love and then. And we share this passion for denim with our carefully selected suppliers in Italy, Japan, USA and Turkey. The love for denim is the needles eye everybody has to pass.
3) Who do you imagine is a typical customer?
We don’t.
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Designer Q & A - Denimfactoria
1) Why do you think after 200 years jeans are still one of the most popular items of clothing?
Claudia: Jeans are a very versatile piece of clothing: you can dress up or down, you can wear it by day or night, out to work, at nightclubs. Today we can wear jeans (almost!) everywhere.
Maribel:. You might own jeans from 10 years ago and they can still look amazing. You might wear a pair of jeans till they have holes all over and be falling apart and it is the one piece of clothing you won’t look like a nut wearing out in the street.
2) Last time I counted there were over 200 brands of premium denim jeans, what makes your jeans stand out from the rest?
Maribel: Our aim at DENIMFACTORIA is to create one of a kind jeans. We want every one of our styles to be remarkable and unique, we steer away from boring jeans (but we have nothing against boring jeans! We just don’t want to make them!)
Claudia: We care a lot about special detals. Our Alpha jeans have hand-embroided details for example and really huge, exaggerated cuffs.
We care about the environment and we give away a really cool reusable tote, 100% biodegradable, with the purchase of any jeans. We are really concerned with the amount of plastic bags used and discarded each day so if people reuse this bag it might help a bit.
3) Who do you imagine is a typical customer?
Maribel: a woman who wants quality and well-made jeans, with a great fit. Someone who likes fashion but is no slave to it, mostly someone who is on the hunt for fun jeans.
Claudia: Our customers vary a lot. I’ve seen women wearing our jeans very stylishly at nightclubs but I’ve also seen young professionals wear them to work and even 50+ women rocking them while shopping at Madrid’s Golden Mile.
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Designer Q & A - Work Custom Jeans
Why do you think after 200 years jeans are still one of the most popular items of clothing?
Since the time that Levi Strauss started it all, jeans have evolved from being an entirely functional work wear item to the one garment that is now coveted globally that defines American style and culture. Politics aside, people resonate with denim because it has been long associated with coveted attributes: from being a pioneer to rebellious rock and roller. It runs the gambit and consequently denim today has characteristics that have taken on cultural cues and nuances: there’s clean denim for the understated on one hand, then on the extreme side are more obvious, contrived styling cues you find on brands like True Religion, and of course, the plethora of brands that fall in between.
Last time I counted there were over 200 brands of premium denim jeans, what makes your jeans stand out from the rest?
We are all about provocative elegance. We push the envelope a bit for sure, but within the boundaries of iconic and classic styling. Our differences really lie in the details: our choice of fabrics, finishes and hardware. We put a lot of love into our jeans. Our fabrics are all hand selected directly on site at mills in Japan and Italy. Our hardware substrates are made of real gold and platinum. Quality and substance over fluff.
Who do you imagine is a typical customer?
She’s definitely following trends, but always wants to have core denim pieces to tie her fashion accessories together. She’s also a girl that doesn’t subscribe to predictable or historical fashion trends and paradigms. She’s just as apt to sport her Christian Louboutins with our jeans as she is to roll them up with a pair of flip flops. She doesn’t want to be defined or limited to how she can mix things up. She likes to keep things exciting. You’ll find her in LaPerla and Agent Provocateur when she peels are jeans off. She’s very Helmut Newton.
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Designer Q & A - Current/Elliott
1) Why do you think after 200 years jeans are still one of the most popular items of clothing?
Denim is an american tradition and somehow remains relevent and timeless year after year.
2) Last time I counted there were over 50 brands of premium denim jeans, what makes your jeans stand out from the rest?
Current/Elliott is a personal curation of our favorite denim silhouettes and washes throughout history. We choose to honor the tradition of denim and offer confortable, wearable, easy jeans inspired by historical bodies and washes.
3) Who do you imagine is a typical customer?
The Current/Elliott customer is anybody from a fashion darling in a chanel jacket and sky high stillettos or a mom at the park pushing a swing. We strive to create pieces we ourselves would like to wear day and night and jeans that a person who genuinely appreciates and collects denim would find authentic.
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