Rivet Magazine

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For an industry that sells more than one billion units a year, no one really talks about denim. For a society consumed with news and data, the denim industry is underserved. The denim community is rich with personalities and stories. Some stories that want to be told, some that should be told and many that are intended to never be repeated.

Rivet Magazine is going to be the platform to share all these stories.

Unlike our web properties, which are formatted like most traditional news sites, Rivet, published both digitally and in print, reflects the creativity and appreciation for detail that the denim community craves. Just as a great pair of jeans requires an artistic eye, this publication will be packaged and designed with that spirit in mind.

Today we process our news as headlines: read on the way to work, in the elevator and while we stand in line to pay for lunch. However, not all content is meant to be consumed this way. Some stories need to be longer; some deserve amazing photos and illustrations; some should have a shelf life of more than a few hours.

Rivet is a collection of the hard work, innovation, data, trends and also the failures and triumphs that make up our industry. Enjoy it.

Thank You,

Edward Hertzman

From ThePublisher

EDWARD HERTZMANPublisher

ANGELA VELASQUEZ Editorial Director

CLEO LEVINAssistant Editor

MATT VITONEContributing Editor

TONYA SCHWOCHERTContributing Editor

SIDDIQUE ISLAMContributing Editor

TIMOTHY CHANDesigner

CELENA TANGDesigner

MARCIA SONDEIJKERContributing Photographer

JOEL FERTELAssociate Publisher

MICHAEL CARAVAGLIACOO, Director of Operations

ERIC HERTZMANDirector of Business Development

TO CONTACT HMG:212.967.3065

On the cover: White Oak selvedge, vacation patches by 3x1

JUST DESSERTSRihanna and Manolo Blahnik are redefining what it means to dress as a “rhinestone cowboy” with a six piececollection of opulent denim heels and boots available beginning May 5. The Denim Desserts collection includes the “Dancehall Cowgirl” bootie with crystal designs inspired by Rihanna’s hand tattoos, an embellished strappy stiletto and a pointed toe stiletto coated with iridescent, denim-hued sequins. The showpiece is a thigh-high stiletto boot retailing for $3,995.

BADGE OF HONOR Customization has become the new frontier in denim.

Scott Morrison’s 3×1 has led the charge with itsbespoke services, and now the brand is offering a less

expensive way to add some special sauce to jeanswith a line of patches. The limited edition patches come in

themes suited for four personality types: therebel, the sarcastic, the optimistic and a vacation pack for

the escapist (as seen on our cover). Patches aresold in sets of three and are available at 3×1’s New York

store, online and at select retailers for $30.

BLUE BEAUTY With the help of Instagram and Pinterest, denim-inspiredhair color and “denim smokey eye” have become a trend for spring. Topshop is adding nails to the mix with a line of nail polish inspired by six of its most popular washes. The collection spans summer-friendly staples like white and pale blue, to a trendy shade of ’70s blue, to deep indigo.

T H E D I S PAT C H

R I V E T A N D J E A N S . C O M / M A Y 2 0 1 6


Lenzing and Jeanologia Challenge Conservative Denim Design Innovation and creativity go hand in hand in Lenzing’s and Jeanologia’s new 4S Denim capsule collection. Based on the core four—softness, stretch, science and sustainability—the men’s and women’s line was developed to stir creativity in the industry by presenting new ways stretch denim can appeal to both the premium and eco-conscious consumer.

The collection uses denim from Advance Denim, Atlantic Mills, Blue Diamond, Orta Anadolu and Toray International.

“We are trying to employ modern fabrics and modern laundry techniques to innovate and create new ideas,” said Michael Kininmonth, project manager at Lenzing. “In the market today you will see indigo styles and non-indigo styles in stretch constructions, but a lot of the finishing is quite conservative. We have tried to challenge that via the themes that run through this collection."

For the collection, Jeanologia Designer Carme Santacruz used different washes to show how each fabric performs, both in terms of aesthetics and performance. For example, Santacruz said, “Three or four years ago, nobody could have imagined creating men’s fabrics with 30, 40 or 50 percent stretch.” She added, “We’ve created our men’s styles to look like a traditional vintage jean, but in terms of touch and how they wear, this line is totally different.” The collection in split into three concepts that tap into ongoing and future trends in the market: DudeRanchers, Tech Artisans and Deconstructing Denim.

In Dude Ranchers, Jeanologia and Lenzing revisitedthe American West with a blend of subtle fading, crosshatch and neppy effects created with a laser. InTech Artisans, the goal was to create handcrafted looks culled from textile history with modern technology and new digital denim tools. For Deconstructed Denim, Jeanologia examined 20th century artistic movements by applying Cubism-like laser treatments to women’s skinny jeans and playing with shading on high-waisted pencil skirts and matching jackets. –Angela Velasquez

T H E D I S PAT C H

01No.

Bangladesh Denim Expo, the two-day denim trade show in Dhaka, concluded April 26 with high hopes to attract more global buyers, particularly

from the United States and Europe, using the latest sustainable technologies and fashions.

Organizers, exhibitors and buyers expressed their satisfaction with the expo and how it will helpBangladesh make its denim business more sustainable through reducing environmental risks. “The aim of Bangladesh Denim Expo is to improve the country’s reputation as a reliable denim manufacturer. The expo has been successfully doing this and it has already become a much awaited event in the international denim calendar,” said Mostafiz Uddin, the show’s founder and CEO.

Tonello Managing Director Flavio Tonello said Bangladesh should continue to explore ways to use less water, recycle water and use safer and cleaner chemicals to facilitate the overall development of the sector. “It will help Bangladesh boost its denim exports in the global market,” he explained. “Producers use less water for better products. Washing our garment with safer chemicals is important for the denim business.”

Echoing Tonello, Berke Ayaemir, production development manager of Orta Anadolu, said there is no alternative other than to establish a greener denim industry.

Ayaemir said entrepreneurs will have to establish sustainable practices in order to grow their business.

In recent years, Uddin said more state-of-the-art“green” denim mills and factories have joined the industry with outstanding capabilities to meet present and future market demand.

However, competitive pricing has also contributed to the growth of Bangladeshi denim exports in the global market in the recent years. “The exports of Bangladeshi denim products have increased significantly in the global market recently due mainly to lower prices offered by the local producers,” explained Amy Leverton, designer, denim trend analyst and author of Denim Dudes. She said Bangladesh is becoming more important sourcing to the global brands and retailers particularly from the United States and Europe because a good number of denim units have already been set up in theSouth Asian country.

Attendees also lauded the show’s focus on trend analysis, saying that it has helped guide them in their designs and orders. A specially designed trend zone was set up at the expo to present the latest evolutions and fashion that will rule the denim world for the next seasons. Leverton added, “Local denim makers should focus on latest style to grab greater market share in the Western world.” •

Bangladesh Denim Expo TALKS SUSTAINABILITY AND GROWTH

BY SIDDIQUE ISLAM

T H E D I S PAT C H

KATO: A JAPANESE ORIGINAL MADE IN THE USA

T H E L A B E L


Apart from traditional clothing like the kimono, perhaps no piece of clothing is more closely associated with Japan than a pair of jeans. Denim artisans can work for years just to perfect the craft of cutting, sewing, and dying, working with the finest

fabrics to produce something that is elevated to the status of art. Keeping this tradition in mind, Kato, the namesake brand of the legendary designer Hiroshi Kato, is bringing these traditions to American fans, and this year will expand its U.S. efforts with new innovations in comfort selvedge denim.

Rivet recently caught up with company representative Yu Fukushima to chat about the brand’s history, and what Kato has planned for 2016.

RIVET: Tell us a little bit about Kato for those who might not be familiar.

Fukushima: Our designer, Hiroshi Kato, launched the brand in 1999 in Kyoto, Japan. His expertise is in fabric and wash development, working with the likes of Ralph Lauren and other well-respected designers and mills all around the world. This is reflected in our collection, as we utilize the best and most innovative Japanese fabrics with soft hand and comfort in mind to create our garments every season. “Factory Direct” is our concept with an emphasis on quality and craftsmanship. Kato is our interpretation of classic, closet staples in modern silhouettes with vintage inspired design details.

RIVET: Can you give us some insight on how the jeans are made? What makes them unique?

Fukushima: We make and wash all of our denim in-house in our factory in Gardena, Calif. Every piece from cutting and sewing to wash, is done by hand by experienced “artisans” who are the best at their trade. Our distinctive fabrics and washes, combined with our attention to details, from the signature orange accent thread from Japan, to small design and fabrication details that one might not notice at a glance, make our garments unique.

RIVET: Why do you think more and more Westerners are discovering Japanese denim?

Fukushima: I think Japanese denim has been trending for a long time now in the U.S. It is not really a surprise, as Japanese denim is synonymous with quality and attention to detail. Combined with simple and traditional designs, I think the Western world is discovering Japanese denim and really falling in love with how jeans should really be made.

RIVET: There are several respected denim brands coming out of Kyoto/Kansai region. What is it

about that area in particular that has such a history with denim? How does Kyoto play a part in Kato’s designs?

Fukushima: The Kyoto/Kansai region is the historic home of many Japanese fabric mills and dye houses, especially indigo. There is a long, rich history and culture of denim in this region. We merchandise our collection specifically for the Western market, but we keep Kyoto in the back of our minds every season. Kyoto is the “old, historic capital” of Japan and this is from where we draw our inspiration. Through our collection, we strive for “beauty in simplicity” that is synonymous with Kyoto, and our goal is to showcase the wonderful and special quality of Japanese fabrics to the Western world.

RIVET: Your product is “designed in Japan, made in the USA.” Is there a difference between Japanese denim and American (or European) denim? If so, could you explain?

Fukushima: The major difference between Japanese denim and American or European denim is fit, as Westerners and Japanese have different body types. The interesting thing is, depending on the fabric, a certain fit may feel and look like a different fit. So our conclusion was to make fits for the American and European customer, making minute adjustments based on fabric. We own our own factory in L.A., so we are always experimenting with new fabrics, washes and fabrications. All of our denim, and for that matter all of our fabrics, are sourced in Japan. Our inspiration, traditional and simple aesthetic, and our attention to details and quality come from Japan, and we arrange the wash and fits according to the U.S. and European market.

RIVET: Finally, can you tell us what’s new for Kato in 2016?

Fukushima: For 2016, we developed and introduced a brand new 4-way stretch Kaihara selvedge that is exclusive to us and made in the USA at a more competitive price point than anything else in the market. Aesthetically, it is a traditional selvedge jean, however the 360-degree stretch makes it an “every day jean” that can be worn for any occasion. According to our research, the slim and skinny fits are the most popular now, but many consumers have some preconceived notions that they are difficult and uncomfortable to wear. We found out through numerous fittings and questionnaires that there was a significant demand for a jean that looked “traditional/vintage” on the outside but comfortable to wear. Therefore, we decided to release this 4-way stretch Kaihara selvege. •

KATO: A JAPANESE ORIGINAL MADE IN THE USA

By Matt Vitone


Based in Stockholm and launched in 2004, Cheap Monday has been making cool, well-fitting skinny jeans for men and women since back when guys thought it was still cool to wear oversized denim hanging off your butt.

To be certain, changing trends have helped the Swedish brand break the U.S. market like never before (sales were up 60 percent over the last year), but for Selina Vargas, Cheap Monday’s head of U.S. sales, the focus is still very much on crafting quality garments for prices most consumers can actually afford. RIVET: Cheap Monday is famous for its ‘Tight’ style. Tell us about it.

Vargas: The first jean Cheap Monday ever designed was the ‘Tight’ jean, which was made to be kind of rebellious against the whole premium denim market happening when we first launched – jeans being sold in the $200 to $300 price point. The founders were against that and

wanted to create a premium product at a lower price point. So that’s really where the Cheap Monday brand came from – offering quality fashion denim but at an affordable price for the average consumer.

RIVET: Most of your styles retail around $100 or less. How do you make this possible? Vargas: The [design team] sources the best possible quality fabric for the price, and try to be very minimal when it comes to the treatment and the washing, to bring down the pricing. They have a very conscious approach to the denim, because the washing and the treatment of the denim is actually really harmful. All of our fabrics are made to be comfort stretch, so we do not offer any type of raw, or non-stretch denim. RIVET: Skinny jeans have come back in a big way lately, especially for men. Has this been a good time for the brand? Vargas: Absolutely. The brand right now is [having] a resurgence. The company initially launched in the U.S. around the end of 2006, beginning of 2007. I was hired a year ago to help open up their first U.S. office, and for the past year the focus has been Cheap Monday having an office here and being able to manage and control the distribution [domestically] to be sure we’re placing it in the quality of stores we feel represent the brand properly. And it’s been great, because Cheap Monday hasn’t been as present here in the U.S. in the last few years, so we’ve definitely seen a pick-up now. Due to just the savviness

of the consumer, and them wanting to get the most bang for their buck, I think that Cheap Monday has created sort of a niche for itself, [offering] that quality product, but not needing to pay over $100.

RIVET: You guys have been around for over a decade now. How has denim changed in that time and how has Cheap Monday been a part of that?

Vargas: Denim has made many different changes in the marketplace. I have to say, what Cheap Monday has actually done is not necessarily change who they are–they always want to offer a quality product at a price that’s affordable to the average consumer–but we don’t try to chase every single trend that’s in the market place. If you talk about the collection, of course, that’s different, because that’s always evolving and always changing, but I think Cheap Monday is just that cool, classic pair of jeans. For us it’s about what we believe and what kind of product we’re putting out there as a brand. Our consumer

is creative, and a part of pop culture, and we want to bring them quality products without overcharging them.

RIVET: You mention Cheap Monday’s conscious approach to denim. Is the brand doing anything else to reduce its environmental footprint? Vargas: One of the things Cheap Monday is doing now, and this goes back to the brand’s roots, is being conscious of our impact on the environment. And so we’re offering organic denim. About 50 percent of our denim for Fall ’16 will be organic. It’s one of the new initiatives we’re working on, and by 2017, 50 percent of the entire collection will be in organic cotton. RIVET: What’s new for Cheap Monday in 2016? Vargas: For 2016 one of the things we want to focus on is what we’re good at. And as a collection, sometimes it’s really difficult, because I think a lot of collections try to be good at everything, and you get really lost when you’re unable to focus on what you’re good at. And what we know that we’re good at is obviously denim, so that’s a given, but we’re also fantastic at outerwear and we’re fantastic at knitwear, so we’ve really focused the design team on offering quality, well-designed jackets and knitwear. I think those are two of the biggest categories that will stick out when you see the collection this year. It’s a very Scandinavian approach when it comes to the collection. Very classic in silhouette, but we’re always trying to offer that edgy detail or trim. That small, minor detail gives it that Cheap Monday feel. •

By Matt Vitone

WHAT'S DRIVING CHEAP MONDAY'S RESURGENCE IN THE U.S.?

laire Lampert and Stacy Daily, founders of online vintage shop Where I Was From, have a taste for cool denim. On the site, you can find classic pieces with creative wear-and-tear that makes them all the more enviable—torn pocket 501s, hand-stitched patchwork Wranglers and a pair of 519s worn to shreds.

The site is a combination store and creative studio, and the two functions come together as each item is shot for a lookbook or as part of an editorial.

Where I Was From’s latest brand is called B Sides: clean and minimal patchwork jeans made from repurposed vintage styles. Since going to market this spring, the brand has developed close collaborations with three New York boutiques: Assembly, No.6 and Oroboro. B Sides will soon launch internationally with 15 retailers. Rivet asked Lampert and Daily a few questions about making and selling their vintage denim duds.

RIVET: Where do your buyers go to look for vintage denim?

Lampert: The Southwest regularly, and occasionally in other parts of the country. Once we came across an amazing collection in Minnesota, of '50s and '60s Levi’s an old hippie had stashed away. We believe the story starts with the sourcing, an attribute you can really feel in the jeans.

RIVET: What are the difficulties of selling vintage clothing online?

Lampert: Once it’s sold, it’s sold—difficulty is in the inventory.

Daily: And in addition to having edited inventory, the biggest hurdle is with our sell-through versus the speed

By: CLEO LEVINC

VIN

TAG

ET H E R E TA I L E R


By: CLEO LEVINwe can bring pieces to market. We invest in each piece that we collect, style and shoot, and turn through inventory relatively quickly. We tend to have a ‘sold-through’ perception for our clients which is both exciting and frustrating.

And then there is the difficulty of letting go. Claire and I have a few pieces that will stay with the studio. A handwoven Grecian gilet that is best worn inside out to expose the vertical trapunto; an ancient comb our photographer brought back from Ecuador that sits with tiles we collect on our travels; and a few of the original jeans we collected on our first run to the Southwest, some black flags, shredders and overdyed violet gams.

RIVET: Who does the handwork on the B Sides jeans?

Daily: The vintage denim is collected in the Southwest and hand-worked in our New York studio. We carefully consider the silhouette and provenance of the original jean and make every effort to not disrupt them in our design. It’s a lo-fi approach, which is more interesting to us than chasing trends. We do the handwork and fretwork ourselves in the studio and work with a group of artists and local sewers to re-construct the jean.

Lampert: The beautifully worn denim is approached with a keen vision on construction–resulting in a modern interpretation of traditional patchwork.

Daily: The mark of the brand is made in our studio from a piece of repurposed leather vachetta strapping, shop scraps from friends in The Springs on Long Island who are apron and bag makers. Each piece is hand-tooled and hand-stitched into the back waistband with natural cotton yarn. •

MINERS

By: Cleo Levin

ITALYTO

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March, Italian denim mill Candiani celebrated the grand opening of its Los Angeles Design Center. The facility, located on South Hope Street in downtown Los Angeles, houses a small laundry and a development area where Candiani will research and create new innovations in fabric and washing for the premium denim community. As one of the world’s most sustainable denim mills, Candiani aims to set a new standard

in sustainable practices in the denim city. The laundry will consume less water than any standard dry cleaner in the L.A. area. About 37 percent of Candiani’s overall business takes place in the U.S. With new opportunities to work with local designers and brands, Candiani Global Manager Alberto Candiani expects the mill’s U.S. segment to grow, saying, “The Design Center will help to make our fabrics more present and more used in our customers’ lines. Furthermore [a strong U.S. dollar] is finally allowing us to be more competitive.” Rivet caught up with Alberto Candiani and found out how the Design Center further cements Candiani as a go-to partner for premium denim brands and what the mill hopes to achieve at its new California home.

CANDIANI PLANTS ROOTS IN CALIFORNIA

ITALYTO

IN

L.A.

RIVET: Why was it important for Candiani to open a center in the U.S.? Candiani: For many years now L.A.-based brands have represented over 30 percent of our business. L.A. brands are generally more excited about fabric innovation than the rest of the world. Our Design Center will be the perfect place where brands can explore our latest innovations in the most sustainable way. Over 15 years ago, Candiani played a big role in the emergence of the L.A. premium denim industry. It all started with our fabrics, and we intend to maintain our position and identity as the best high-end denim supplier.

RIVET: In terms of innovation and design, what is L.A. lacking?

Candiani: L.A. is lacking technological and sustainable evolution. Some steps have been taken lately, but the whole industry is going to move much more in this direction in the future. Of course it takes big efforts and investments, but L.A. is still one of the denim capitals of the world, and has to lead it. If we are able to give this push toward more sustainable practices in L.A., we will raise the bar of global premium denim—big time.

v a r i a n t 2


RIVET: What are some of the design center’s capabilities? Candiani: We wanted to differentiate our offering in such a small and competitive market as L.A. Ideally we would make exclusive fabrics all the time for all of our customers, but unfortunately that is not always possible. However, at the Design Center we will be able to work on exclusive interpretations and custom-made looks. The design Center is where fabric meets wash, or better, it’s where the "magic" happens, and the designer becomes the “wizard.” Together with the designers we can guarantee exclusivity and diversification. The truth is that we know our product better than anybody else, and our Design Center is there to share with the customers the best and most environmentally-friendly way to use these fabrics. Each workshop result will be kept secret with the customers, and we will share with them all the details and information about the developments we made together, so that they can replicate the process and achieve the same effect at their own facility.

RIVET: Is the L.A. center the same as your center in Italy?

Candiani: After we saw the success of our Design Center in Italy we decided to create a fully “interconnectable” twin structure in L.A. because the U.S. market represents an important share of our business. The facility in L.A. reflects Candiani’s core values: made in Italy, innovation and sustainability. And like the one in Milan, it is the perfect place to work on exclusive and custom developments with our clients, starting from a deep knowledge of the fabric and all its potential once it gets washed and transformed into a pair of jeans.

RIVET: Water is a big concern for California. How are you addressing water conservation at the center?

Candiani: Absolutely, this is also one of our biggest concerns at the mill, especially when it comes to indigo dyeing. Of course we won’t have this issue at the Design Center in L.A. since we’re not producing fabric there, but as we will be washing there. All the laundry machines are from Tonello and Jeanologia, which are the most advanced in saving water. We are proud to say that if everything at the Design Center is working at full capacity, the amount of water consumption of the facility will be less than 50 percent of a standard downtown dry cleaner.

RIVET: In terms of design, what do you hope to achieve at the L.A. design center?

Candiani: Having such a strong partnership with our main suppliers Tonello and Jeanologia we will always have the latest technology and laundry techniques at the Design Center. We will also teach our “less is more” concept, taking full advantage of every single fabric to achieve many different looks in the cleanest way possible. Also, we will have some of the Italian technicians coming over regularly in order to bring and share inspiration, know-how and manual technique to the L.A. facility. The goal is to diversify and differentiate our customers image, supplying everything they need from fabric to treatments in order to strengthen their product and to reinforce their identity.

RIVET: How are your U.S.-based customers different from your European customers?

Candiani: The U.S. brands are more receptive when it comes to innovation and fashion trends, the Europeans are more into sustainability and treatments. Now that these two things are coming together I see a massive opportunity to link them up, and think that Candiani is perfectly placed to be a significant part of this. •

Jonathan Cheung, Levi’s head of design, talks Cone Mills

one and Levi’s are the bread and butter of American denim. The partnership began with the “Golden Handshake” in 1915 when Levi’s

obtained the exclusive rights to Cone’s Shrink-to-Fit denim for the production of its 501s.

The 501 has since become a cultural icon that’s been worn by everyone from rock stars to cowboys.

Cone now works regularly with the brand on developing new fabrics and recreating past designs for Levi’s Vintage Clothing.

Rivet spoke with Jonathan Cheung, Levi’s head of design, about Made in America, denim’s influence on high fashion and the future of jeans.

RIVET: What qualities does Cone represent to you and how do these qualities enrich Levi’s products?

Cheung: Authenticity. Levi’s and Cone. It’s the source, the mother dough. A partnership that’s been in place for over 100 years. Built on trust, built on quality.

RIVET: In what ways are Cone and Levi’s cut from the same cloth? How do the two entities complement one another?

Cheung: Haha… they are literally cut from the same cloth aren’t they?

They are both great American companies who have defined the most iconic piece of clothing in human history—the denim jean. But let me tell you a little story about a conversation I had with Brad Johnson [group manager at International Textile Group, Cone Denim Division] the last time I was down at White Oak. He’s someone I hold in great respect. One evening, after work, I asked him what was it about Cone that meant the most to him.

By: Cleo Levin


(continued) After taking a pause, he replied, “You know, it’s about people. It’s about the people.” I think that says everything about the company, and Cone’s history and culture.

A couple of weeks ago, I interviewed some design students of different nationalities and asked them what their perception of Levi’s was. They all replied that they believed that Levi’s is intrinsically a company that ‘does the right thing.’ They spoke about Levi’s record on equality, workers’ wellbeing and sustainability. You can draw the parallels with Cone right there.

RIVET: What does Made in America mean to Levi’s today when apparel manufacturing is increasingly moving overseas?

Cheung: It’s a living, unbroken link to our heritage. When you watch those Draper looms shimmy on the wooden floors at White Oak and watch them throw those shuttles back and forth to create the special XX denim for the 501, it’s magical and incredibly special.

RIVET: What have been some notable product collaborations with Cone in Levi’s history?

Cheung: We work together every season to develop special fabrics together. Levi’s Vintage Clothing (LVC) develops historical reproductions of our denim at White Oak. There’s a gorgeous, lightweight loomstate denim out this spring that was specially developed for LVC. Then this fall, we’re launching something historic in our Shrink-to-Fit denim with Cone. Something that’s never been done before on Shrink-to-Fit. As it’s coming out this fall, I’ll hold off from speaking about it too much, but I’ll tell you this much, it’s beautiful.

RIVET: Apart from its history, what makes White Oak selvedge a special product to design with?

Cheung: It’s just a beautiful fabric. It wears really well and looks better with time. I’ve not seen a White Oak denim that wasn’t gorgeous. And selvedge is just such a practical, common sense, utilitarian design. It’s just wide enough to make a pair of jeans with. Nothing more. Beautiful in its simplicity of thought.

RIVET: In what ways do you think Cone and Levi’s have inspired other brands and designers?

Cheung: You can see the influence trotting down the catwalks this year. Designers like Demna Gvasalia for Vetements and Virgil Abloh’s Off-White are literally using old Levi’s in their collections. I think the 501 is the designer’s jean. All the fashion designers I know hold it in

THE 501 HAS SINCE BECOME A CULTURAL ICON THAT’S BEEN WORN BY EVERYONE FROM ROCK STARS TO COWBOYS. THE 501 HAS SINCE

BECOME A CULTURAL ICON THAT’S BEEN WORN BY EVERYONE FROM ROCK STARS TO COWBOYS.


the utmost respect. It’s the ultimate, affordable designclassic. And if you look at other brands that sell jeans—well, you can see the 501’s DNA right there. Levi’s and good old red-cast XX denim from Cone.

RIVET: How knowledgeable is the Levi’s customer about denim and its origins? Do you think that the Levi’s customer is conscious of the fabric used in his jeans? Is this a growing trend?

Cheung: The customer is pretty knowledgeable and growing in knowledge all the time. It’s definitely a growing trend to know the background of the products that you buy. Whether that’s coffee or your jeans. In a world of almost unlimited choices, the choices you make are more important. People increasingly place value on companies that share their values.

RIVET: What has made denim an ongoing important part of American style?

Cheung: I’d like to look at it from a slightly different angle and say that denim jeans, and by that I’m talking about the Levi’s 501, is America’s greatest contribution to style. Full stop. Period. I can’t think of anything in the history of clothing that’s been so influential. Why did that happen? It’s partly to do with timing—jeans exploded in popularity postwar, just when the USA emerged as a cultural superpower.

So jeans were adopted by rock stars and actors and represented freedom of expression, counterculture and cool. That cultural connection is still going strong—if anything there’s been quite a resurgence.

RIVET: Denim is closely tied to history and nostalgia, but how do you see the next generation changing or influencing denim for the better?

Cheung: The future belongs to the young. I have every confidence that the next generation will make denim better. They will introduce new technologies, new innovations and make the production of denim more sustainable than ever. They’ll shake things up, and they should.

RIVET: What is your favorite Cone item you own?

Cheung: That’s a tough one. I wear 501s made with Cone denim most days. There’s a pair that I have that are around 20 years old—these Cone denim, Made in the USA 501s became my wife’s jeans when she was pregnant with our first child. I still wear them. I reckon we can do another 20 years together. •


BLAUWAMBITION


D e n i m m i l l s a n d b r a n d s p u l l e d b a c k t h e c u r t a i n a t B l u e p r i n t ,

t h e t w o - d a y B - t o - C d e n i m f e s t i v a l a n d m a i n e v e n t o f A m s t e r d a m

D e n i m D a y s , A p r i l 11 -17. O r g a n i z e d b y t h e H o u s e o f D e n i m i n

c o l l a b o r a t i o n w i t h M o d e f a b r i e k , K i n g p i n s , H T N K F a s h i o n a n d

t h e c i t y o f A m s t e r d a m , B l u e p r i n t p r o v i d e d a n o p p o r t u n i t y f o r

c o n s u m e r s t o d i s c o v e r d e n i m i n n o v a t i o n s a n d c r a f t m a n s h i p a n d

m i n g l e w i t h t h e i n d u s t r y . — A n g e l a V e l a s q u e zAMBITION


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HelloAmsterdam

The Good“Everyone is saying the glory days for denim are over, but we just have to focus on creating solutions for the end user and pull them back to denim,” said Ebru Ozaydin, Calik head of sales and marketing.

Invista reported that 78 percent of consumers surveyed expressed interest in purchasing a winter jean that could help keep them warm. At Kingpins Amsterdam, the company debuted two new technologies aimed to fill that demand, Thermolite Infared and Thermolite Dual Layer.

Thermolite Infared technology is solar-activated by the sun or artificial light using Near Infrared (NIR) yarns. The yarns absorb the NIR rays to raise the temperature of the garment, keeping the wearer warmed by two degrees Celsius. Thermolite Infared is also designed to reduce drying time.

Theromolite Dual Layer is based on a patent fabric construction that creates open spaces within the fabric, trapping air to help keep the wearer warm. The fabrication is slightly thicker, but it is lightweight and offers insulation close to fleece-level warmth.

Calik, much like the rest of the denim industry, is in the midst of a renaissance. The mill split its A/W 2017-18 collection into 13 lines that fall under six umbrellas of product, or solutions: performance, true denim, aesthetic, functionality, sustainability and touch and feel.

Four-way stretch has become a ticket for denim to enter the activewear scene, but mills are discovering that more innovation is needed to perfect the fabrication. Last season, Calik rolled out Elastech, a fabrication developed to eliminate the headaches and limitations of stretch denim, including puckering

By Angela Velasquez

The third edition of Amsterdam Denim Days (April 11-17) began with Kingpins Transformers, the conference series devised by Kingpins Show Founder Andrew Olah to draw attention and bring solutions to the denim industry’s environmental and social challenges. The conference’s theme, “Garbage: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” examined ways to reduce waste, yet it also served as a metaphor for the remainder of the week as mills unveiled their Autumn-Winter 2017-2018 collections at Kingpins Amsterdam (April 13-14). There was plenty of “good,” from Tonello’s collaboration with Candiani to make chemical-free Safe Garments, to Berto’s beautiful “Indigo Gentleman” collection, yet it remained clear that there was plenty of “bad” on the sustainability front that mills need to suss out as experts revealed the “ugly” side of the denim industry.

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By Angela Velasquez

and shrinkage. The Turkish denim mill is following up that solution with Curve, an innovation for women’s skinny cuts that works like a makeup concealer hiding the wearer’s flaws.

Curve technology blocks extreme stretch-out along the weft while creating a push-up effect for the bottom without sacrificing comfort. The innovation also eliminates unflattering creases along the back and puckering lengthwise along the inseam.

Candiani is famous for its refined and authentic denim, but the Italian mill has placed an emphasis on creating “new dimensions of stretch” with a trio of elastic constructions: Warper, Sling 360º and Shaper-X for A/W 2017-18. With Warper, Candiani changed the conventional direction of elasticity from weft to warp, focusing on the stress points of a jean, like the knee, waist and back area. The elastic warp allows the fabric to follow the body’s movement, offering the wearer greater freedom of movement and offering designers more elasticity to explore a whole new realm of designs and fits. The rigid weft, meanwhile, facilitates distress treatments to guarantee an authentic vintage denim look.

The mill applied its premium stretch technology, Sling, to both the weft and warp in its range of Sling 360º denim designed to ease mobility. The fabric’s 4-way elasticity is finished with a treatment that creates control of the elasticity and low growth. Meanwhile, the mill is offering its most flexible yet stable stretch denim fabrication

Vintage blue by ADM, eco-friendly trims by YKK and refined details by Berto tell a dynamic A/W 17-18 story. , quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam,

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with Shaper-X, which guarantees overall shrinkage below five percent.

“Stretch needs to perform. It can’t bag out,” confirmed Jack Mathews, Artistic Denim Mills (ADM) director of sales and marketing. Over 95 percent of ADM’s collection is stretch denim. The mill has stopped showing separate men’s and women’s collections because there is so much crossover.

Mathews says the demand for stretch fabric and denim with a “peach skin hand” continues to come from the premium end of the denim spectrum, however, he says there’s interest in 100 percent cotton, spurred on by the Generation Y-led trend for marble-looking denim and vintage weights.

Not enough can be said about consumers’ demand for comfort, stretch and variety. Part of Berto’s three-part collection for the season included denim for the workplace—a concept that presented refined, professional indigo attire with an emphasis on yarns like Lycra Dual FX. “People get bored,” added Berto Marketing Manager Arianna Morimando. The mill also

presented denim in a Pitti-perfect collection with dandy-inspired styling and a collection that revisited denim’s roots with heavier weights.

Cone continues to see interest in nostalgic fabrications, including denim with ’70s and ’80s mid-tones, reported Kara Nicholas, Cone Denim vice president of product development and marketing. To offer the best of both the vintage and athleisure worlds, the mill is adding stretch to the throwback fabrication, but in a way that ensures the maintenance of its authentic look. The mill also expanded its Natural Indigo Collection featuring indigo produced in Tennessee by Stony Creek Colors to include wide-width fabrics, Tencel blends and higher stretch denim for A/W 2017-18. The collection maintains the original true indigo shade from the initial selvedge collection, but with added comfort.

For the athleisure-minded consumer, Calik debuted Knitrogene, a knitted fabrication with a traditional denim surface including twill lines but with a plush-like interior feeling. For the consumer in search of true denim, the mill launched D’Enovated, a line of rigid and comfort stretch denim with vertical slubs, subtle cross-hatch and salt and pepper effects. The line offers the orange peel look some Millennials and Generation Y consumers are discovering for the first time.

Denim designer Roy Slaper and Artistic Fabric and Garment Industries (AFGI) presented an exclusive collection made at AFGI’s factory in Karachi, Pakistan. The Roy x AFGI Collection was designed and created to showcase the mill’s new fabric developments and garment-making capabilities. For the line, Slaper focused on authentic American fits and washes with details like back knee whiskers.

AFGI Director Hasan Javed said the line is more American than the rest of the mill’s collection, which tends to skew European. Javed added that it was important for AFGI to have someone like Slaper help show the rest of the industry what its fully-vertical facilities can achieve.

Retro and Americana color stories were rampant at the show. Prosperity introduced Sweet Indigo, a purple retro tone derived from sugar. ADM calls its vintage shade Parliament Blue, a color that


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Mathews said ties back to the ’70s look comprised of wide flare legs and frayed jeans. The shade is bright with limited yarn character.

Mills reported that black is coming on strong for A/W 2017-18, as well as shades of gray. Prosperity debuted a new gunmetal, a darker option than what was trending for S/S 2017 for the winter season. Cone also introduced black back selvedge.

Green was top of mind for companies like Tonello, which, in partnership with Candiani, presented a new sustainable collection called Safe Garment. The chemical-free collection just uses some pigment for effect and water brush for added brightness. “When you start with a good base like Candiani denim, you can do great things,” said Alice Tonello, the garment finishing company’s marketing and R&D manager.

At Kingpins, Archroma, Garmon, Lenzing and Royo presented a project to produce denim garments based on the most efficient possible use of resources. Archoma quoted a study that declared that 1.8 trillion liters of water are consumed monthly in the production of jeans. In order to try and save the most water and energy and reduce waste, Archroma used its Advanced Denim technology.

The process requires only one impregnation of the yarn in the dyebath, using only a small volume of coloring liquor. The process also fixes 100 percent of the applied dye on the fiber, eliminating the need to consume more water washing off the unfixed dye.

Advanced Denim allows water saving of approximately 90 percent compared to standard indigo dyeing applications.

Miguel Sanchez, Archroma head global business development, segment denim and casualwear, explained that the issue with the consumption of water is not only the waste, but also the pollution from the effluents that may contain different chemical species that might even be hazardous and require special water treatments.

YKK set out to remind attendees that they are a source for more than “just zippers” with a new line of rivets customized with eco finishing. The line is the perfect punctuation to collections focused on sustainability. The chemical-free trims are made with standard materials, but their appearance is altered by applying different levels of water, heat and salt to the finishing process. Others are baked for a longer period of time for a darker appearance.

“Even the smallest part of a jean can be eco-friendly,” pointed out Simone Herbig, YKK account manager. “We’re a big manufacturer, so we should pay attention to the environment.”

Diamond patterns, neppy effects, glitter, paint splatter, rip and repair and traditional tie-dye are among the themes for A/W 17-18.

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Trash TalkingIf there is any doubt that the waste produced by the global fashion industry is having a real effect on the ecosystem, Terry Townsend, a consultant on cotton-related commodity issues, had this fun fact to share at Kingpins Transformers: Polyester has existed for just 60 years, but scientists have discovered bacteria that eats it. “Nature has evolved to digest something that didn’t exist that long ago. If it eats polyester, what else does it eat? Life-forms have evolved to feed on this food source.”

Garbage was the hot—and gross, steaming, stinking—topic of conversation at Kingpins Transformers in Amsterdam, the conference series devised by Kingpins Show Founder Andrew Olah to draw attention and bring solutions to the environmental and social challenges the denim industry encounters. The conference’s theme, “Garbage: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” examined ways the industry can reduce waste and confirmed what many influential people in the industry have been alluding to in recent seasons: the need for an industry-wide association that acts as a political unit to tackle sustainable issues.

At the seminar, Olah broke it down in a very cut-and-dry manner, asking attendees, do you use paper towels or the electric hand dryer? “If we don’t know how to dry our hands, how are we going to solve problems in the denim industry?” he asked.

“Sustainability is contra to fashion’s agenda,” said Haysun Hahn, New York City-based trend forecaster and the keynote speaker at the event.

In her presentation, Hahn said it is a natural tendency for humans to want new and innovative things—that’s evolution—and up until now it’s been up to the fashion

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industry to help fuel that addiction. However, Hahn says designers are losing their grip on reality by pandering to celebrities and producing $3,000 sweatshirts. “We don’t care what designers are doing because it doesn’t apply to us,” Hahn explained.

As fashion designers lost their influence over consumers, fast fashion swooped in. Hahn reported that from 1999 to 2009, the volume of textile trash rose by 40 percent, partly due to the rise of inexpensive fashion.

Now, fashion is moving toward vintage, upcycling, and classic styles—a sign of a weak fashion cycle, possibly—but it is also an opportunity to reconsider the true meaning of garbage. “I believe in garbage because it will be the thing that helps us produce more wisely,” Hahn said. “People want more. They want and need more stuff. We have to be there to help circulate that stuff.”

Bossa General Manager Sedef Uncu Aki agreed, saying, “Don’t think of waste as an unwanted burden, look at it as a resource.” As the population grows and the middle class expands, Uncu Aki reported that the world will encounter even greater waste generation. “Steps need

to be taken to make our linear economy, that takes, makes and disposes, into one that is more circular,” she said.

“Reuse always needs to come before recycling,” said Paul Dietzsch Doertenbach, head of marketing and sales for I:Collect, a retail take-back system for unwanted clothing and footwear. The company is pushing for closed loop recycling, like the procedure it has in place with H&M. The retailer incentivizes consumers to bring unwanted denim products to their stores, I:Collect sorts items manually based on over 300 points of criteria and then sells remnants back to spinners for H&M.

Doertenbach reported that just 15 percent of unwanted textiles in the U.S. are collected. In comparison, 75 percent of unwanted textiles are collected in Germany. Part of the struggle, he says, is logistic costs. “When we started in 2010,

Orange peel, vintage washes, stripes, batik, contrast stitching and opulent patchwork adds visual interest.

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"If we don’t change the way we dye denim, my grandchildren will be wearing something else."

our services were available to all stores, small or large, but logistic prices are volatile and go up and down. When we had contracts with small stores, we had to increase logistic costs and pay more, and it broke down our whole business model,” Doertenbach explained.

Today, I:Collect works with small-scale stores on a country-by-country basis. Germany is possible, but France is still too expensive. “That’s just one of the challenges we need to get our heads around. We’re always talking to UPS and DHL to get them to share our mindset,” he continued.

Cost is the crick in most sustainable efforts. Brent Crossland, Bayer CropScience head of fiber development for cotton and seeds, considers sustainability to be a byproduct of the extreme pressures cotton farmers are under to stay in business—not a priority.

“For me, it’s more about survival than sustainability… Cotton farmers can’t control their price, but they can control their input costs, and they are adopting new technologies to create a whole lot out of a little. Our farmers don’t recreationally spray with pesticides, they manage their input costs to the penny, so by definition

they are becoming more sustainable, and those who are not are going out of business,” Crossland explained.

Discussions about reducing garbage naturally led to talk about transparency and the discrepancies between what one mill to the next considers to be sustainable practices.

Alberto De Conti, Garmon chief marketing officer, summed it up best when he said that when it comes to sustainability in the denim industry, the sector doesn’t have a dominate point of view. He quipped, “We just have a lot of points of view.”

Last year Garmon placed a major emphasis on the launch of new responsible chemicals created for the denim market. One year in, De Conti says sales are not even in the double-digits compared to the rest of its chemicals. “As a chemical company, we can’t follow every brand’s sustainable approach. Everyone has their own approach that they promote and believe to be the best,” he explained.

Miguel Sanchez, Archroma’s global head of business for denim and casualwear, said the use of non-hazardous chemicals and the adaptation of better application

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For example, Townsend quoted a figure from a 2015 CSR Asia article that read, “65 million tons of cotton fiber fills landfills per year.” Townsend said, “That’s impossible, we don’t create that much cotton to begin with.”

On the flip side, Antoshak said the cotton industry needs to be more focused and aggressive with its message to consumers, and it hasn’t in the last 20 to 25 years. “This generation doesn’t have a nasty perspective like we do on synthetics, and that is all the more reason for cotton to remind them of its history and how sustainable it can be, especially for small brands to distinguish themselves in a crowded market,” he explained.

Olah said very few companies in the denim industry are interested in being transparent. However, Artistic Milliners Director of Sales and R&D Omer Ahmed said Millennial consumers are asking for more information. He expects brands will be forced to pull back the curtain. “In the next 10 to 15 years I feel that all brands will be required to show their carbon footprint on their websites. Eventually you will have a carbon score for every garment that’s made,” he said.

The industry can’t move forward without investment. Olah pointed out there are two groups of people, “Those who adopt a technology that they like and tie their wagon onto it, and companies that truly transform the way things are done.” He said it’s that second group of companies that are crucial and are the ones the industry cannot live without.

Lenzing has tried to use byproducts in a positive way, despite the initial costs to set up such programs. For example, the beech tree wood that Lenzing uses in its production process contains a natural product called xylose which it sells to Danisco, a food ingredients division of DuPont. The product is converted into xylitol, a sugar alcohol used as a sweetener for chewing gum and toothpaste.

“These are nice little profits for the company, but it takes a lot of investment. In the ’80s and ’90s, there were question marks about whether they should invest,” said Michael Kininmonth, Lenzing project manager.

For the future, Kininmonth says Lenzing has a broader vision for how it might reuse waste. “We currently use cellulose from trees but in theory we can use any cellulose material. There’s a huge amount of cellulose product available,” he said.

One idea is to spin fibers from waste cotton. Kininmonth continued, “Ideally, this is a business model for when the brand/retailer is the supplier, and we convert their waste into new fiber and then it cycles back into their supply chain. That’s the vision, it is just stepping stones, but we’re starting.” •

processes like lasers are solutions the industry collectively needs to agree upon. “If we don’t change the way we dye denim, my grandchildren will be wearing something else,” he warned. “And I want them to be wearing denim.”

Some might consider Greenpeace’s Detox campaign to be the dominant voice, but Sanchez pointed out that too many brands don’t have total control of what they are manufacturing. “They don’t know what their suppliers are doing. First you should have to prove that you can trace back. You can only sign something like this once you have true transparency,” he said.

Prym General Director Marco Corti said the trims company was approached by an Italian company that was in talks with Greenpeace, “So we went through the list of chemical restrictions, and we realized the ‘roadmap to zero’ approach extended to all materials… Its completely illogical.”

He continued, “Dominate in this case means pressure because Greenpeace can raise funds based on the amount of media attention they receive, but it isn’t consistent in [developing] an ethical and sustainable business approach.”

“I think there’s a gap between what brands are doing and what end consumers know. No one on the brand side has been telling them what it takes to produce garments—brands want a clean face. They have their documents and papers, but for whatever reason they don’t want to pass that information along to their consumers,” Sanchez added.

Robert Antoshak, Olah Inc. managing director and supervisor of the company’s global cotton and marketing program, says the lack of education of consumers has worked to the advantage of some retailers, and others have promoted synthetics at the expense of cotton for economic reasons.

What They WoreThe best in blue was on parade during the third edition of Amsterdam Denim Days, April 11-17. From drawings and patchwork to

vintage gems and handcrafted garments, denimheads stamped their jeanswear with personality and pride.

Photography by Marcia Sondeijker

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I t's a question people have been asking since the rise of the skinny jean in the mid-2000s: Is the skinny jean dead? And if it isn't yet, then when

exactly is it going away? This might be a reasonable question about a silhouette that has dominated the last decade in denim—and perhaps even the last decade in fashion. It’s been coming from consumers who once loved the style but are now tired of it, and from others who found the style uncomfortable or unflattering to begin with. It’s also been coming from brands that are keen to introduce new silhouettes, but haven’t yet seen them catch on outside of a small segment of fashion-forward consumers.

So where exactly does the skinny jean stand in Spring 2016?

Globally, the style has indeed been losing market share. Katie Smith, senior fashion and retail market analyst at trend forecasting firm Edited, said, “According to our data, in the last three months, skinny jeans have lost market share to other styles. Looking at new arrivals in womenswear globally, 32.6 percent were skinny jeans. The same period one year ago, 57.1 percent were skinny.”

Dhruva Tripathi of U.K.’s F-Trend agreed, saying, “In the U.K., [we’ve seen] about a 12 to 18 percent drop in sales of skinny jeans.”

U.S. sources also report a dip in sales, although the decrease seems to be plateauing. Sidney Morgan-Petro of WGSN said, “While we do see a slight decline in sales as other styles gain market share, the skinny remains a very commercially viable, successful style at retail. Sales have been steady for the past few seasons, although the percentage of skinny styles stocked has decreased.”

However, this worldwide decrease doesn’t mean we should be writing the skinny jean’s obituary quite yet. As Morgan-Petro explained, “The skinny is no longer the fashion story; it has become the core basic denim option.”

Essentially, the skinny has become a wardrobe staple that every woman has in her closet. Like the T-shirt or the sneaker, it’s a timeless, essential piece that is not due to disappear anytime soon. There will always be a market for it, even if that market is not quite as rabid as it used to be. “The skinny silhouette will remain a beloved staple by many,” said Rebecca Brown, denim editor at New York

City-based Fashion Snoops, “[but] you can only have so many skinny jeans in your wardrobe.”

So now that the skinny has been demoted to everyday basic, what is the next new thing in denim?

Athleisure-Inspired JeansAs it becomes socially acceptable for women to wear athletic clothes outside of the gym, denim brands are adjusting to appeal to a customer who has grown accustomed to more comfort. “Athleisure has redefined what it means to combine style with comfort,” said Brown. “Joggers remain popular, as do overalls and jumpsuits with a baggier fit.”

Brown also pointed out that skinny jeans do have a place within this trend, if they are designed with comfort stretch.

However, Smith said it’s time for denim retailers to shift away from stretch skinnies to differentiate their offerings from athleisure. “Brands are making efforts to increase the comfort, stretch and shaping in denim, aligning them more closely with yoga pants. But it might be more advisable [for them] to latch onto the trend for wider leg shapes, defining denim’s difference and moving the consumer away from the skinny leg altogether,” she explained.

Looser SilhouettesRunways and fashion blogs have lately been dominated by flares, culottes, wide-leg jeans and looser, ’90s-inspired denim, but these potentially more challenging styles haven’t yet trickled down to the mass-market consumer.

“It will take a while for the average consumer’s eye to adjust to different silhouettes,” said Morgan-Petro, “but we do feel that it is a change that is soon to come. It may take a few more seasons, though, to really take hold on a commercial level.”

Denim ClothingIn coming seasons, this might be a particularly bright spot for denim brands, which are starting to move beyond the traditional 5-pocket jean to create denim dresses, skirts, shirts and jackets. According to Smith, “There was a 40 percent increase in the number of non-jean denim arrivals online in the last three months compared to a year ago.” Good news for denim-loving consumers: after the long reign of the skinny, the range of denim offered is now wider than ever. •

Is the Skinny Jean Really Dead? TREND FORECASTERS WEIGH IN

BY TONYA SCHWOCHERT

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Is the Skinny Jean Really Dead?

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