Rivet October 2019 by Sourcing Journal

RIVET 50 RIVETANDJEANS.COM

2020 VISION

G-STAR TURNS 30 NO. 8 / OCTOBER 2019

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TURNED UP From elevated basics to award-winning collections, discover how denim is renewed for S/S 2020. CHINA TARIFFS COULD SPELL DOUBLE TROUBLE FOR IMPORTERS Importers are grappling with increased Customs bonds. BLOCKCHAIN DECODED The ins and outs of Blockchain and what the technology could mean for the denim industry. TAKING STOCK Woodstock’s influence on denim remains strong. 2020 VISION Denim brands begin to look ahead at what’s next on their sustainability bucket list. PROGRESS MAKES PERFECT When it comes to sustainability, where does the denim industry stack up against other categories? CERTIFYING SUSTAINABILITY Second-party certifications are increasingly becoming part of the business of denim. KINDRED The new workwear aesthetic is au natural. RUNWAY TRENDS S/S 2020 Designer denim takes a sartorial turn. RIVET 50 Meet the 50 individuals driving creativity and innovation in the global denim industry. BELOW 14TH STREET The bygone era of ’90s supermodels and excess continue to inspire women’s denim. A STAR IS BORN G-Star Raw celebrates 30 years of denim firsts. DATABASE The latest shifts in U.S. denim imports and global cotton production.

PHOTO: RICARDO BEAS

From left: Helmut Lang top, BLDWN jeans, Vince boots; John Elliott top, Trave jeans, Dorateymur boots, Mounser earring, R.J. Graziano ring.

TENCELâ&#x201E;¢ is a trademark of Lenzing AG

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It could be argued that there are no original ideas in our blue world. That everything comes from something—be it a 5-pocket jean or the flood of tie-dye that swamped stores this year. But isn’t that part of denim’s charm? The jeans we wear today are the close, yet more sustainable cousins of the jeans imagined by Jacob Davis and Levi Strauss in 1873. That’s what contemporary brands investing in new technologies aim to achieve. With 2020 on the horizon, denim brands in “2020 Vision” (pg. 39) share the steps they’re taking to achieve new benchmarks for water conservation, reducing chemical use, and to become, overall, more environmentally-friendly companies. One of those innovative brands is G-Star Raw, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. While the Dutch brand is known for elevating raw denim as a fashion piece, in speaking with people in the supply chain about its legacy for “A Star Is Born” (pg. 93), it’s safe to suggest that one of G-Star’s biggest contributions is how it inspires other companies to think outside the box. The city that most of the Rivet team calls home inspired our fashion editorial “Below 14th Street,” (pg.82) an homage to the bygone era when supermodels and excess clashed with the coolness and grit of downtown New York. There’s no doubt the concept for the photo shoot was influenced by my own childhood spent fawning over the ’90s MTV show “House of Style.” The show, originally hosted by Cindy Crawford, was my weekly all-access pass to what I perceived, then, as the glamorous world of New York City fashion. Two decades later, while our photo shoot team ran from one Lower East Side location to another in an effort to recreate this era, I realize that fashion can be a lot of smoke and mirrors. But that aside, I am still enthralled by it and convinced that a lot of the individuals who made the 2019 Rivet 50 list (pg. 71) possess that same ride-or-die love for their work. And the best part? This year, the individuals who make up the Rivet 50 were nominated and voted for by their peers. More than 6,000 online votes determined who is influencing denim in 2019, and in the process, confirmed what many already knew: Denim is an industry where innovation meets tradition. The 2019 Rivet 50 list includes industry veterans who have spent their entire careers acquiring or designing denim. The list also includes a crop of fresh faces that started their denim journey just as sustainability came to the fore. Eagerly, they’ve made it their mission to advance better practices and they intend to carry that torch in the years to come. Congratulations to all!

Angela Velasquez Executive Editor, Rivet Tara Donaldson Editorial Director, Sourcing Journal Jessica Binns Managing Editor Arthur Friedman Senior Editor Vicki M. Young Executive Financial Reporter Liz Warren Staff Writer Christopher Hall Staff Writer C O N T RIB UTO R S

Jasmin Malik Chua, Hilary George-Parkin A RT DEPA RTME N T

Cass Spencer Creative Director Celena Tang Sr. Designer SO U RC IN G JO U RN A L A DV E RTI S I N G

Edward Hertzman Founder & President Caletha Crawford Publisher Eric Hertzman Senior Director of Sales & Marketing Lisa Johnston Strategic Content Manager Allix Cowan Client Services Coordinator Sarah Sloand Sales Assistant Joel Fertel Account Executive Randi Segal Senior Director, Institutional Sales & Marketing P RO D U CTI O N

Kevin Hurley Production Director John Cross Production Manager Therese Hurter PreMedia Specialist P REP RESS P ROD UC TI O N

Alex Sharfman Digital Imaging

FAIRCHILD PUBLISHING LLC IS A DIVISION OF PENSKE MEDIA CORPORATION

JAY PENSKE CHAIRMAN & CEO GEORGE GROBAR CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER GERRY BYRNE VICE CHAIRMAN SARLINA SEE CHIEF ACCOUNTING OFFICER CRAIG PERREAULT EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT TODD GREENE EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, BUSINESS AFFAIRS AND GENERAL COUNSEL TOM FINN SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, OPERATIONS NELSON ANDERSON VICE PRESIDENT, CREATIVE JONI ANTONACCI VICE PRESIDENT, PRODUCTION OPERATIONS YOUNG KO VICE PRESIDENT, FINANCE GABRIEL KOEN VICE PRESIDENT, TECHNOLOGY

Executive Editor, Rivet

JUDITH R. MARGOLIN VICE PRESIDENT, DEPUTY GENERAL COUNSEL LAUREN UTECHT VICE PRESIDENT, HR AND CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS

C OVER C REDI TS: BALM AI N DENIM AND T WEED JAC KET, STELLA MC CA RTN E Y PA N TS , RU SLAN BAGINSKIY HAT, C HANEL NEC KLAC ES, J ENN I FE R FI S H E R RI NGS, VERS AC E RING, ALEXIS BIT TAR RING, PHILIPP P L E I N B E LT.

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

CHRISTINA YEOH VICE PRESIDENT, TECHNICAL OPERATIONS EDDIE KO SENIOR DIRECTOR, ADVERTISING OPERATIONS ANNE DOYLE SENIOR DIRECTOR, HUMAN RESOURCES DEREK RAMSEY SENIOR PRODUCT MANAGER

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In denim, the subtlest swap of a detail can transform the expected into the unexpected. Case in point: the zip denim jacket. While Trucker jackets are a seasonless staple in most closets, swapping out buttons for a zipper serves up a sporty and easy-going look that feels fresh for Spring/Summer 2020. Gathered sleeves, epaulets and cinch buckles are just some of the ways brands like Current/ Elliott are elevating the garment. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Angela Velasquez

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UP P H OTOG R AP H Y: R I C A R D O BE AS

THE ZIP JACKET

TURNED UP

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THE PLEATED CROP The so-called “death of the skinny jean” is more of an awakening. Women’s denim brands are exploring new shapes and silhouettes, often combining eras and genres of fashion to create new staple pieces. Enter the cropped pleat, a wide leg jean with a gentle waist line. Nili Lotan adds a vintage touch to its ankle-length version with a belt and latch closure. —AV

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TURNED UP

l ____ G OL DSIGN SHIRT, RAL PH L AURE N J E ANS J E AN S

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THE DENIM SHIRT The denim shirt has its own identity for Spring/Summer 2020, sans western yokes, workwear pocketing or heavy heritage fabrics. Goldsign makes a case for “less is more” with its version, a snap denim shirt with a roomy fit, minimalistic hardware and elongated pockets. With nary a trend in sight, the denim shirt cleans-up well for the season. —AV

wo r d s _____ AN GEL A V EL A S QUEZ

For the inaugural Rivet Awards, the Rivet team shopped the floor at Project Las Vegas in August, to uncover the best in denim design, product development and sustainable innovation for Spring/Summer 2020. From premium denim stalwarts in expansion mode, to a newcomer that has retailers’ ever-changing needs in mind, Rivet chose to honor these six brands for bringing newness and creativity to the men’s denim market.

BEST COLLABORATION: RALEIGH DENIM X BLEU DE CHAUFFE Raleigh Denim’s collaboration with French label Bleu De Chauffe is a story about kindred spirits. Despite an ocean between them, both brands favor handcrafted, timeless designs over fashion trends. And both are manic about details—a shared trait that is evident in the duo’s first project together: a denim bag inspired by an old French mailbag. BEST MEN’S COLLECTION: LIVERPOOL LOS ANGELES Whereas other brands are chasing streetwear and vintage trends, or tweaking portions of their collection to appeal to demographics outside of their wheelhouse, Liverpool Los Angeles is one brand that appears to be confident in its own skin. In its third year, Liverpool has built an ageless following for its garment dyed

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jeans (color is driving sales), comfort stretch jeans with superior recovery and rigidlooking stretch denims. BEST NEW BRAND: DEVIL-DOG DUNGAREES General Sportwear-owned Devil-Dog Dungarees is covering all the bases. The heritage brand, which re-launched this summer, made its Project debut with an expanded collection and a new digital wholesale portal that caters to specialty retailers's specific needs. Targeting a demographic that spans 25- to 55-year-old men, the brand offers four fits—slim, slim straight, straight and athletic—in performance stretch fabrications that utilize Lycra DualFX and recycled polyester from Repreve. BEST SHOWPIECE: BONUM Known for upcycling vintage denim, Tokyo-based Bonum exemplifies the artistry and vision required to transform something old and unwanted into a one-of-a-kind garment that feels new and inventive. The perfect example of this was a vintage Wrangler western snap shirt, which served as a base for elements like panels of African indigo cloth and Japanese indigo fabrics, a deconstructed Lee back pocket and a nod to Americana via a classic red bandana on the front and back.

RIVET NO.8 /OCTOBER 2019

EDITOR’S CHOICE:

DL1961 Spring/Summer 2020 marks DL1961’s foray into men’s ready-towear with pieces that balance streetwear and tailoring. And the brand’s commitment to its men's wear business is evident in the collection chockfull of modern classics that puts fabrics first every step of the way. Highlights include twill and denim hybrid shirt jackets, chinos and sleek bomber jackets. PHOTO: INFORMA/MARKETS/ HAILLEY HOWARD PHOTOGRAPHY

The Rivet Awards recognized the best in men’s denim for Spring/Summer 2020.

BEST SUSTAINABLE COLLECTION: MAVI Premium denim brand Mavi is taking a major step toward sustainability with two ecofriendly concepts. For Spring/ Summer 2020, the brand introduced jeans made with organic cotton denim, and another made with postconsumer recycled denim. Both are vegan, swapping leather back patches in favor of those made with a paper-based material.

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EYE ON THE PRIZE

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NY DENIM The city that doesn’t 20 sleep is also a global denim destination. w o r d s _____ ANG E L A V EL A S QUEZ l_____N EW YOR K CITY 'S BOLD STR EET STYLE

From being the birthplace of The Ramones and their slim faded jeans, to serving as a playground for contemporary tastemakers like Rihanna and Lady Gaga, New York City is arguably the global litmus test for what’s cool and what’s not. So it should come as no surprise that denim, by nature, is a staple in the New Yorker’s wardrobe. Along with being home to iconic retailers like Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue and Kith, the metropolis also offers some of the most unique ways to shop for denim. From small boutiques just steps off SoHo’s storied cobbledstoned streets, to a mansion suited for a denim king, here’s a look at some of the best ways to mine for denim in New York City.

Levi’s Times Square 1535 BROADWAY

Don’t let the tourist trap of a locale deter you from stepping into Levi’s behemoth flagship. In fact, that’s part of the appeal of Levi’s largest store in the world. The three-story mecca is a onestop shop for all things Levi’s— from New York-themed gear and backpacks, to a selection of the Levi’s Authorized Vintage collection—all under the glow of Broadway’s lights.

Brooklyn Denim Co. 338 WYTHE AVE.

Brooklyn Denim Co. has evolved with its trendy

Ralph Lauren 867 MADISON AVE.

Shop like a proper blue blood at Ralph Lauren’s flagship housed in a 19th century mansion modeled after a French château. A beacon on the Upper East Side, the store is a luxurious stage for the designer’s all-American denim and sportswear collections.

Williamsburg neighborhood, but it’s the store staff’s passion and denim knowledge that keeps denim heads returning to this indigo hot spot. The store sells men’s and women’s jeans by brands like AG, Big John and Closed, alongside their own “Made in USA” house label.

Everlane 28 PRINCE ST.

Having a line of shoppers waiting outside your store is impressive for any retailer in this day and age—especially if you’re not Kith or Supreme. But transparent brand Everlane can definitely draw a crowd. The brand’s jeans, made by B Corp certified Saitex, are a hot-ticket item at the Nolita shop.

Naked & Famous 123 GRAND ST.

Indigo fanatics can geek out at the Naked & Famous flagship in SoHo, where the main counter is stained with natural indigo, and a 10-foot illuminated logo sits in the window. There, shoppers have access to the brand’s 100plus denim products, including offbeat items like Naked &

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Famous’ collaboration with Dragon Ball-Z and 23 oz. King of Slub jeans.

Blue in Green 8 GREENE ST.

Beyond the cozy entrance to Blue in Green’s SoHo boutique—complete with a barista and a wall of Japanese selvedge denim—lies a treasure trove of one-of-akind pieces by sustainable brands like Atelier & Repairs and modern interpretations of heritage fashion from Kapital. Meanwhile, a curated assortment of accessories finesse the looks of the local and international denim crowd this store attracts.

3x1 15 MERCER ST.

No New York City denim excursion is complete without a pilgrimage to 3x1’s atelier. With 800 different fabrics to choose from and an inhouse factory to observe, the concept store has ushered in a new level of customization and customer service for the jeanswear industry.

IMAGINED BY DESIGNERS, TESTED BY SCIENCE.

THE NEW M-POWER DENIM IS TOUCHED BY LIGHT. An extraordinary fabric that considers everything. Beginning with purely cellulose f ibers to withstand the heat of the laser beam, a dyeing process adjusted for the perfect pH, speed and concentration of clean f ibres to ensure dyes have richness. A sulfur f ree denim so it forms the perfect canvas for the LASERS to create crisp or vintage images. An exceptional process of creation.

www. ar t i st i cg arm e nt .co m/mp owe r

WHERE I SHOP

l ____ERIN BARA JA S

Kingpins director of communications Erin Barajas tours her favorite denim hideaways in Los Angeles. w ords _____ K ATE NISHIMURA photog raphy _____ MAX K NIGHT

SHOPPING WITH ERIN BARAJAS will make you fall in love with vintage denim. “Denim is one of those products that’s just meant to have more than one life,” Barajas said excitedly as she thumbed through a rack of vintage jeans. As the director of communications for Kingpins trade show, Barajas is immersed in the global denim industry. With her extensive knowledge of denim’s latest advancements, its MVPs and its origins, Barajas could characterize herself as a denim encyclopedia. She was initially drawn to denim for the most un-sexy of reasons. After writing for a manufacturing trade publication early in her career, Barajas became entranced by the industry’s supply chain, and especially the advancements in denim that take place at the mill level. “What I found was that so much inspiration, innovation and creativity takes place with the people who are developing new washes and new ways of making fabrics. They’re forming new blends and technology that affects the environment,” Barajas said. “A designer’s toolkit is essentially dictated by what the mills are doing.” Here, Barajas takes a tour of her favorite denim shops, all located in her native playground of East Los Angeles.

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Weepah Way 3303 DIVISION ST. LOS ANGELES, CA

of denim ranges from jeans to coveralls, jackets, and a few garments that defy classification. Barajas and Dorr fawned over an intricately embroidered smock that Dorr guessed was made in the 1920s. “Somebody hand-made this at home,” Barajas mused, declining to try on the garment—an obvious relic of a bygone era. Barajas loves the stories that denim can tell—and the more scars, the better. Working her way through Dorr’s wares, she pointed out rips and patches that others might view as blemishes, exclaiming frequently, “This is so good.”

Mothfood 745 N. AVENUE 50 LOS ANGELES, CA

From the street, the unbranded façade of the Mothfood showroom is unassuming. But upon taking that first step over the threshold, it’s like being thrust into a veritable museum of denim. The appointment-only showroom is the brainchild of denim aficionado Tommy Dorr, who sells and rents his collection to stylists, design teams and costume designers. Dorr’s sizable assortment l ____F OXH O LE LA

l ____M OTH FO O D

Weepah Way owner Constance Baker has a penchant for prizing quality over quantity, Barajas explained, pointing out the racks of delicate frocks and blouses that sit alongside the store’s star offering: vintage rigid denim. “I only buy vintage and secondhand,” said Barajas, noting that Weepah Way specializes in the high-rise Levi’s and Wranglers she wears almost daily. Indeed, Weepah Way is intimate— about the size of your luckiest friend’s walk-in closet. The edited selection of women’s tops, trousers, dresses and accessories could sway any shopper wary of the overwhelming effect of vintage shopping. “I used to walk my dog right by her store, and I always admired her window," Barajas said. "I finally walked in and thought ‘What is this? It’s just like my closet.”

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Foxhole LA 3318 SUNSET BLVD. LOS ANGELES, CA

Husband and wife team Fox and Jeff Garza opened their shop, Foxhole LA, shortly after they fell in love at a swap meet in 2011. Over the years, the two have amassed enough jeans, denim jackets, chambray shirts and other miscellaneous vintage to fill their denim den. “She’s just this very knowledgeable person in the industry,” Barajas said of Fox, who has been traveling the world as a denim designer and consultant for more than a decade. “Then I found out that she had this store that carries incredible vintage, and she also does tailoring.” Barajas said that Fox specializes in taking jeans—both old and new—and making them fit their wearer like a glove. “It’s the perfect place to come as a woman, wanting a pair of vintage jeans to fit you in a really flattering way.”

THOUGHTFULLY PRODUCED IN LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA AND AT SAITEX INTERNATIONAL.

EDWIN-USA.COM

SPECIAL REPORT

hile brands and retailers are scrambling to figure out how to cover the cost of new tariffs, mulling whether to raise prices or reduce staff when the former is undoubtedly met with resistance, many are overlooking another critical cost: increased customs bonds. Any importer bringing goods into the United States has to prove to U.S. Customs and Border Protection that it can cover the costs of duties, taxes and any other fees associated with an import shipment valued at above $2,500. The bulk of those bonds are continuous, or annual bonds, which must cover 10 percent of all duties paid to Customs for the year. The problem now is that with new punitive tariffs, the costs for those bonds are increasing—which also means companies’ borrowing ability will be decreasing. And in the face of a possible recession, the position could prove an unfavorable one to be in. If a company imports $50 million in first cost from China and pays $5 million in duties a year, it needs to secure a Customs bond valued at $500,000 to cover the 10 percent of those duty costs. With new 15 percent Tranche 4 tariffs in place, and a 5 percent increase

on already-in-place Tranche 1, 2 and 3 tariffs, which took effect on Oct. 15, raising those tariffs to 30 percent, companies will have to head back to the bank to increase their bond collateral in line with the tariff hikes. When faced with new 15 percent tariffs,

CHIN A TA R IF F S COUL D SPEL L DOUBL E T ROUBL E FOR IMPOR T ERS— HER E’S HOW

Importers are grappling with increased Customs bonds.

$1.3M

New Bond Amount

BREAKDOWN

Import Value Existing Duties (10%) Existing Bond Amount Additional Duties (15%) Additional Bond Amount New Bond Amount Existing

Additional

$50M $5M $500,000 +$12.5M +$750,000 $1.3M

w ords _____ TA R A D O N A LD S O N

the same company importing $50 million worth of goods from China would be looking at paying $12.5 million in duties (15 percent of $50 million is $7.5 million, plus the $5 million in duties it was already paying). That means the company would have to secure a new bond valued at $1.3 million (because customs bonds are rounded off to the next hundred thousand), up from the $500,000 bond it had before. “Customs is now making you get a new bond because the rolling average is increased,” explained Salvatore J. Stile II, president of Alba Wheels Up International Inc., a leading, and the largest, customs brokerage company. And that’s on top of whatever existing bond may have been in place. If a company’s duties on imports increase from $5 million a year to $12.5 million, it can’t simply get another $750,000 bond to cover the difference; a new $1.3 million bond is what Customs requires, according to Stile. “What happens then is a stacking issue,” Stile explained. Until the goods tied to the initial bond are liquidated—liquidation is the final phase of importing, which can take up to 314 days RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

as Customs assesses the correct amount of duty owed for goods brought in—those old bonds have to remain in place. That means a company in the aforementioned scenario could hold a bond worth $500,000 and $1.3 million at the same time, making a total of $1.8 million counted against its borrowing ability. “The old bond is technically cancelled, but your collateral remains in effect because, until those entries liquidate, the bond companies are still responsible for them.” For companies that were bringing in goods duty free—or even at a more manageable duty rate—from China before the tariffs, the change has been jarring. And Customs wants these bonds increased in as little as 30 days. “A lot of companies are facing a squeeze because they had to get additional borrowing from the bank,” Stile said, adding that if there’s a recession on our hands, companies may need more money to get out of an unforeseen bind, and banks may be less inclined to lend, or at the very least, stricter about how—and to whom— they’re doling out additional funds. Really, for retail, challenges are coming from all sides: tariffs are up, which could send prices up and consumer spending down, and a recession would only exacerbate the damage. “I’ve seen a lot of $100 million [importer] companies that are in a bind because they’re already taking a hit and they’re not getting an increase from the retailers and it’s another nail in the coffin,” Stile said. “They’re flipping out.” Where to go from here According to Stile, who also consults high-value hedge funds and private equity firms on market conditions, brands and retailers need to run reports of what they forecast their rolling average duty costs to be, and add a “little cushion” to that when securing new Customs bonds. “If you’re too conservative on the new bond amount that you think you’re going to need, you may have to start all over with the collateral,” he said. “If Customs sends a letter out saying you need a $1.1 million bond, get a $1.3 million bond…if Trump adds another 10 percent tariff and you’ve underestimated, you’re probably going to be stuck needing another increase. That’s why it’s very important to do planning for the things that may happen.”l

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BLOCKCHAIN: D E COD X D INSPECTION

Blockchain isn't the solution for everything but it could be the savior for fashion's convoluted supply chains.

A blockchain network archives the results of suppliers' inspections, certifications and other key documents.

w o rd s _____ JE SSIC A B I N N S

RAW MATERIALS In fashion, blockchain can trace and track products from the raw material level, using tokens (aka digital coins) to digitally represent physical shipments of cotton, for example.

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SPINNING Through blockchain, mills can verify what type of cotton and other raw materials they use in their fabrics, ensuring adulterated alternatives haven't been substituted.

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RETAIL People can purchase products on blockchain-based platforms like SHOP and MyVerte, which aim to restore consumers’ control over their personal data.

FACTORIES A Levi’s worker wellbeing social initiative now incorporates blockchain. As consumers demand to know whether brands operate ethically and sustainably, blockchain gives shoppers a peek behind the supply chain curtain.

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4 AT HOME

SHIPPING Systems like IBM and Maersk's blockchain-powered TradeLens network can modernize shipping's penand-paper traditions.

lockchain is either the panacea to the world’s problems or the most overblown and overhyped technology to grace the mainstream, depending on your source. But like most things, the truth lies somewhere in the middle. Put simply, blockchain is a digital string or chain of blocks, also called nodes, linked together and secured with cryptography in which every block contains a timestamp plus transaction data

and a cryptographic hash of the block before it. Cryptography refers to using a computer to encode and decode information. Blockchain represents a step forward in the way information is stored and exchanged globally and its decentralized nature is a driving force behind enterprise interest in the technology. It’s said to be trustless by nature, meaning two parties don’t have to trust each other to transact safely because blockchain’s secure smart contract offers all the trust they need. And that’s central to why blockchain is seen as a savior for supply chains, RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

Post-purchase, consumers can use blockchain technology to authenticate their goods or to learn more about the fair-trade factories that made their newly acquired items.

which by nature involve myriad parties, touchpoints and transactions that could benefit from a system that no one “owns” but is secure and accessible for each stakeholder. Blockchain offers a level of transparency that has been virtually absent from most businesses for decades. Because blockchain bubbled up into the public consciousness in tandem with the rise of Bitcoin digital currency, people often incorrectly use the two terms interchangeably, and the Oxford dictionary definition of blockchain actually calls it the system of record for bitcoin or other

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cryptocurrency (digital money) transactions. But as noted above, blockchain is simply the foundational technology that enables, for example, the secure exchange of bitcoins between buyer and seller, or other digital transactions. Beyond Bitcoin (and note that the capital “B” denotes the broader ecosystem while lowercase denotes the specific currency), you’ll often hear other terms loosely used as synonyms for blockchain. Distributed, or decentralized, database is the broadest umbrella term in the blockchain lexicon, encompassing blockchain as well as distributed ledger technology (DLT). And under the blockchain umbrella you’ll find permissioned, or private, blockchains, which are accessible only to those granted explicit access. If a Ford is a type of car, then a blockchain is merely a type of decentralized database. Blockchain networks are public and open to anyone with basic Internet access, a reason why the technology has been so useful for enabling Bitcoin and digital currencies—by definition global, cross-border affairs—to flourish. On the other hand, permissioned or private blockchains are invite-only systems available exclusively to stakeholders who’ve explicitly been granted access. Big Industry tends to favor these private blockchains depending on the use case; they aren’t going to want the whole world to know their competitive secrets and behind-the-scenes goings-on. Walmart, for instance, is working with Merck, KPMG and IBM—a major player in blockchain— on a pilot program that uses a private version of ethereum, a blockchain-based distributed computing platform mainly used for building decentralized applications (versus systems used primarily to exchange digital currencies) to verify and authenticate pharmaceutical drugs. Immutable is another term used in close association with blockchain and means the network is essentially tamper-proof. Because blockchains don’t live on any one centralized computer but across scores of computing devices, no one person can alter a blockchain record (or node or block) without changing every node that comes

after. Blockchain enables the use of smart contracts, or computer-led agreements between two parties, that are stored in the ledger in view of all users and thus cannot be changed (without a consensus of users). Many blockchain platforms offer tokens, or virtual currency, redeemable for some sort of good or service on that platform. A retailer on blockchain

"M A N Y B LOCKCH A IN PROJ EC T S A R E G A IN ING S T E A M AS PL AY ER S ACROS S T H E VA L UE CH A IN R E A L IZE T H E SIGN IF ICA N T PROGR ES S B LOCKCH A IN B R INGS...” —S tac e y S oohoo, re se arc h m anager for IDC

could offer tokens to customers accruing loyalty points, for example, and the customer could use those tokens to purchase on that platform.

Where blockchain is making waves Blockchain has made significant inroads into big industries, and food safety and banking could be among its biggest success stories to date. For starters, businesses continue to invest in blockchain even as pilots and other test projects have been slow to bear fruit by some accounts. A report published in early August by market intelligence firm International Data Corporation (IDC), shows 2019 blockchain spending skyrocketing 80 percent versus the prior year and expects global outlay to reach $2.7 billion, $1.1 billion of which stems from the U.S. By 2023, blockchain investments could expand at a combined annual RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

growth rate of 60.2 percent to a total of $15.9 billion in corporate and government spend, the data firm added. Stacey Soohoo, a research manager in customer insights and analysis for IDC, sees blockchain experiments gathering momentum. “Many organizations and enterprises have realized that blockchain solves many current and impending business problems,” Soohoo explained. “Many blockchain projects are gaining steam as players across the value chain realize the significant progress blockchain brings, launching muchneeded transformation within and across industries and use cases.” And James Wester, IDC research director of Worldwide Blockchain Strategies, points to a “tipping point” for blockchain adoption. Numerous industries have formed alliances tasked with investigating blockchain’s utility, security and practical applications, including the Blockchain in Transportation Alliance (which counts FedEx, UPS and Uber Freight among its members) and Marco Polo Network (a consortium of global banks and trade finance specialist TradeIX looking at distributed ledger technology’s capabilities in trade finance). Players in ocean shipping have been eager to tap into blockchain’s potential to modernize its paper-andpen traditions. The Global Shipping Business Network, which counts nine ocean carriers and terminal operators among its founding members, is overshadowed by the larger TradeLens. The 100-member group, spearheaded by shipping powerhouse Maersk and IBM, is tasked with sharing and accessing data “under a shipper determined digital permissioning model,” the organization’s website says. Walmart claimed a leadership stake in food safety when it announced plans in September of last year to nudge “suppliers of leafy greens” onto an inexpensive, easy-to-use food safety solution powered by blockchain based on IBM’s Food Trust platform. At the time, Walmart vice president of food safety Frank Yiannas, describing widespread approaches to ensuring the healthfulness and safety of food supplies as “outdated” for the modern era, said, “This is a smart, technology-enabled move that will greatly benefit

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our customer and transforms the food system, benefitting all stakeholders.” The retailer and IBM claimed the new blockchain-based system helped them trace in just 2.2 seconds a product from the store back to the farm where it was grown, compared to the seven days it would previously take when relying on paper records. “At the center of a blockchain network is the powerful potential for data transparency to create a level of shared trust,” said Bridget van Kralingen, the senior vice president of IBM global industries, platforms and blockchain. Food safety affects virtually anyone who eats, making the issue a natural high priority for a company with the size, scale, reach and resources of Walmart. And it could be an effective way to test blockchain’s utility and efficacy before deploying the technology in other facets of the business. Common sense dictates that blockchain’s decentralized nature inherently poses a threat to highly centralized banks, but in a distinct pivot from their hardline anti-blockchain stance from just a few years ago, financial institutions are dipping their toes into blockchain waters. Bank of America leads in the number of blockchain patents filed, Royal Bank of Canada has eight blockchain pilots under its belt, and PNC processes cross-border payments with the help of blockchain software from Ripple. Some finance players find there’s strength in numbers when exploring uses for blockchain. ING, France’s BNP Paribas and others banded together to form blockchain trade commodity network Komgo, while Citibank and Barclays worked together on birthing a blockchain app store. These are encouraging signs of the mainstream’s embrace of a technology still in many ways unproven at scale. “With enterprises moving past the proofof-concept phase, it’s not a matter of whether blockchain is here to stay but rather the scope of blockchain’s adoption,” IDC’s Soohoo noted. “Sharing data between institutions simplifying outdated process, and bringing transparency to business processes while also encouraging collaboration

and partnerships—these are the tangible benefits blockchain brings to the table.”

Cues for the denim industry So how should players across the denim industry be thinking about incorporating blockchain into their business and value chains? For one, as conscious consumers have come to expect a peek behind the curtain into the inner

"I T ’S NOT A M AT T ER OF W H E T H ER B LOCKCH A IN IS H ER E TO S TAY B U T R AT H ER T H E SCOPE OF B LOCKCH A IN ’S A DOP T ION.” —S tac e y S oohoo, re se arc h m anager for IDC

workings of their favorite brands, consider the utility of “transparency as a service.” Retraced, a startup out of Dusseldorf, Germany, launched in July with a blockchain-based platform enabling sustainable, ethical fashion brands to showcase their responsible sourcing, supply chains and production via “a powerful verification method [consumers] can trust,” said co-founder Lukas Pünder. A similar effort in Brazil uses smart clothing tags as a virtual portal into the factories producing garments for ethical brands. Alinha Instituto works with 27 vetted, compliant small-scale apparel manufacturers employing 127 workers, and acts as a sort of middleman connecting these ethical factories with socially conscious brands, which for a fee can subscribe to the blockchain-ready Alinha tags. Consumers who purchase tagged items type in the RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

garment’s tracking code to read about the clothing’s story on Alinha’s blockchain-secured website. And luxury powerhouse LVMH is developing a proprietary blockchain designed to give consumers a way to authenticate their purchases from the empire’s many houses, an effort perhaps to combat rampant, costly counterfeiting. Denim’s reliance on cotton sourced from across the globe makes it a good candidate for blockchain-enabled trust and transparency. But there’s an opportunity as well to follow the lead of Levi’s in leveraging blockchain to enhance worker well-being initiatives. In January the San Franciscobased denim leader said its employee well-being program, administered by a Harvard group, will incorporate blockchain technology to streamline much of the work involved with collecting and processing surveys probing workers’ physical, emotional and social wellness. Dr. Eileen McNeely, who founded and directs the SHINE program at Harvard that administers the surveys to workers, cites blockchain’s potential to “level the playing field” in a world where data collection tends to be fragmented, piecemeal and fraught with errors. Supply chain and social programs aren’t the only opportunities to take advantage of blockchain. The technology is seeking to usher in a new era in e-commerce, too. From SHOP to MyVerte, blockchain-based online shopping platforms have sprung up claiming to sidestep the traditional retail middleman and give consumers stronger control of their most valuable asset: personal data. MyVerte, operated by Project Verte, caters largely to direct-to-consumer brands that place a premium on their image and persona on top of the consumer experience. In its own words, Project Verte offers emerging brands a means to “remain in full control over how their brand identity, products and communications are presented to consumers,” in contrast to the typical “noise” of the marketplace experience. Blockchain promises great potential along with one important caveat: beware of signing up for any technology “in search of a solution,” as IDC’s Soohoo observed. Without a well considered use case in mind, blockchain pilots could end up as expensive exercises in futility.

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35 Half a century later, Woodstock’s influence on denim beats on. wor ds _____ H I L A R Y GE O RG E - PA R K I N

lot has changed in the 50 years since Woodstock—a fact made instantly clear by photos of the crowd without a raised iPhone in sight—but somehow, the jeans worn by free-spirited festivalgoers have never lost their appeal. More than 450,000 people descended on Bethel Woods, N.Y. that weekend in 1969, many of them clad in the clothing of the counterculture (namely: denim, and little else). They wore hip-huggers and bell bottoms, patches and pins, secondhand Levi's and homemade cutoff shorts. They flouted gender norms and embraced tight-fitting jeans. Their style was a rejection of the consumerism they saw flourishing around them, but, without meaning to, they started trends that have since generated countless dollars for the fashion industry. In 1969, denim was still skirting around the edges of the mainstream, said Emma McClendon, assistant curator at The Museum at FIT. “It's highly visible in popular culture, but it's not necessarily something that everybody is wearing,” she said. While commonplace on college campuses, rock concerts and the streets of Haight-Ashbury, it wasn't so ubiquitous that young people could walk into their local Sears or J.C. Penney for a pair of flared jeans. Instead, many turned to DIY: splitting their pants up the inseam and sewing in pieces of paisley or floral fabric to make them their own. “The cool thing about this style is that you can make it,” said Deirdre Clemente, a

PHOTO CREDITS: SHUTTERSTOCK

fashion historian at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. “You don't have to go to the department store and pick it up. You couldn't even get it there if you wanted to. You have to do it yourself.” This necessity dovetailed perfectly with the hippie ethos: not only could they achieve an individualized look by putting a patch on their jeans, they could also broadcast their rejection of the fashion system—an act of rebellion at a time when advances in manufacturing were making it easier and cheaper than ever to just buy something new. Until the 1960s, the idea of wearing clothes that looked intentionally worn-down or beat-up was largely unheard of. And to the hippies' parents, many of whom were raised during the Great Depression, the concept seemed especially scandalous. But in the years following the proliferation of plastics and the mid-’60s space-age fashions of Paco Rabanne and Pierre Cardin, the ramshackle look was a statement of defiance. Some Woodstock revelers took this literally, adorning their jeans with American flags and throwing on military jackets from army-navy surplus stores in protest of the Vietnam War. But even subtle touches, like crochet, patchwork and embroidery carried symbolic weight. “In an era of industrialization, craft is inherently political,” McClendon said. “It's clearly not machine-made. It's clearly not mass-produced. It's not shiny. It's not futuristic. It's none of those things. It's got the hand of the individual all over it. This is [the hippies'] way of harnessing aesthetics to send a very overt message that they are against the postwar capitalist consumer culture.”

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" T H E COOL T H ING A B OU T T H IS S T Y L E IS T H AT YOU CA N M A K E I T.” Lasting effects Rebel uniform Jeans may have been a badge of antiauthoritarianism, but at Woodstock, they were also a uniform. Wesley Pomeroy, the festival's head of security, initially recruited a few hundred off-duty cops to form the “Peace Service Corps,” taking pains to choose officers who wouldn't be phased by pot smoking and nudity. “As part of the screening process we showed them the uniforms they were going to wear, which was bell-bottom jeans and red T-shirts with 'Peace' on the front and the Woodstock emblem on the back,” said Pomeroy in “Woodstock: The Oral History.” “Showing them what they were going to wear—that in itself would be enough to screen people out.” Ultimately, police were banned from working the event due to veiled threats from an anarchist group, but the outfits endured. While not officially a dress code for Woodstock's performers, denim may as well have been for many of them, said Christine Rucci, president of denim consultancy Godmother NYC. There was Joe Cocker in striped bootcut jeans, Arlo Guthrie in folky workwear, and even ’50s greaser revival band Sha Na Na in black skinny jeans—“the precursor of punk,” Rucci said. Looking back on the lineup today, it's easy to trace the lineage of many of these ensembles to modern fashion. Arlo Guthrie, Rucci said, “looks exactly like a Double RL dude.” (Indeed, Ralph Lauren's premium western brand carries several chore jackets with similar silhouettes to the one the singer wore on stage.) The luxury denim label R13, meanwhile, owes a due to Cocker and many of the rock bands at Woodstock, whose influence could be felt in recent collections chock-full of psychedelic tie-dye pieces and ample fringe.

It was the audience's style, though, that the fashion industry tapped into in the immediate wake of the festival. Levi Strauss & Co. released its first pair of bell-bottoms on March 11, 1969, and in the ensuing years—when denim became not just a trend, but the trend—the company would continue to draw upon the aesthetics and spirit of hippie youth. In 1970, the brand used a flyover image of Woodstock festivalgoers in an ad. Three years later, it sponsored a denim art contest, the winners of which had their designs exhibited at the Museum of Art and Design in New York and published in the book, “American Denim: A New Folk Art.” Levi's was far from alone in finding inspiration and opportunity in the market: advertising historian Cynthia B. Meyers noted the rise in the late ’60s of the “countercultural advertising man” and the growing recognition of the importance of the youth dollar. “If the badges of citizenship in the Woodstock Nation could be gained merely by buying blue jeans and rock music albums,” she wrote, “then the commodification of the counterculture's material culture by marketers was inevitable.” In November 1970, the short-lived San Francisco fashion magazine, Rags, documented the mainstream adoption of the hippies' DIY denim

flourishes: “With a minimum of effort, you could have found jeans machine-embroidered, machine-appliquéd, artificially faded, bleached, and tie-dyed, farm-boy-patched, pre-cutoff, pretattered, pre-shrunk, and permanent-pressed.” (The editors likely wouldn't have been surprised that, 35 years later, the California denim brand True Religion was selling patchwork Woodstock jeans for $372.) The enduring allure of hippie fashion is perhaps nowhere more evident than “festival style”—the boho-lite attire of countless Coachella Instagram posts—though in its commercialization, it has strayed far away from its 1969 roots. For the Woodstock generation, Clemente said, “Part of them becoming this counterculture generation was wearing the clothes. They didn't say, ‘We have these new ideas of sexuality and new ideas of gender and new ideas of class,’ and now we're going to go get the clothes for it. The clothes were the culture.”

Reliving Woodstock For those who feel like the world could still use a little more peace, love and music, these brands are here to help with commemorative merch.—HGP

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Rock n' roll has long been an essential reference point for the SoCal jeansmaker, and this summer, it released a collection of vintage-style concert tees and a crewneck sweatshirt for both men and women.

Because bell-bottom jeans are best paired with band tees, Wrangler has teamed up with rock tee label Lyric Culture to bring fans the Peace Love & Rock ‘N’ Roll Collection, featuring lyrics and portraits of performers.

The Spanish retailer has launched a pair of exclusive T-shirts featuring the festival's iconic logo. It has also curated a Woodstock shop online, with hippie-inspired essentials, like flared denim jumpsuits, paisley dresses and mini skirts.

Tapping into the hippies' signature handmade look, the brand is carrying a selection of tees commemorating the festival, including an embroidered Banner Day tee with a VW van on the front and band names on the back.

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

PHOTO CREDITS: SHUTTERSTOCK

— Deirdre Clem ente, fa shion histor ian, Uni v ersi t y of Ne vad a

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SUSTAIN A BILIT Y

2020 Denim brands begin to look ahead at what’s next on their sustainability bucket list.

VISION

w or d s _____ JASMIN M A L I K C H UA

020 is shaping up to be a pivotal year, and not just because of the run-up to the U.S. presidential elections. As the new decade rolls out, so too will the first tranche of sustainability commitments by businesses seeking to burnish their reputations as responsible stewards of industry. For denim brands like G-Star Raw and Levi’s, 2020 also marks the culmination of Greenpeace’s years-long Detox My Fashion campaign, which challenged more than 80 apparel brands, retailers and suppliers—representing 15 percent of global fashion production—to eliminate hazardous chemicals such as per- and polyfluorinated chemicals from their supply chains. “2020 is a very important year for us,” a G-Star spokesperson told Rivet. The Detox commitment aside, the Dutch denim firm has also pledged to use only 100 percent sustainably sourced cotton, such as Better Cotton Initiative cotton, organic cotton and recycled cotton, by the end of next year. Of its non-cotton components, the company promises a target of 90 percent.

G-Star doesn’t have numbers for 2018 yet, but in 2017, the company says it employed 57.3 percent sustainable materials and 69.8 percent sustainable cotton. “We’re confident about our progress toward achieving our 2020 goals,” the spokesperson said. A watershed moment for G-Star came in 2018 when it launched what it billed as its most sustainable jeans ever. As part of the process, the brand developed the world’s first denim fabric to be certified Gold by the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute’s rigorous standards, which take into account factors like material health and reutilization, renewable energy, water stewardship and social fairness. Composed of 100 percent organic cotton, the jeans were dyed with 70 percent fewer chemicals, used no salts and are 98 percent recyclable at the end of their life. Greater traceability is also in the cards for G-Star, which publicly disclosed its manufacturers in 2014. Today, each garment on its website is accompanied by a “Where is It Made?” button that discloses not just its country of origin but also the name and address of the originating factory, any

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

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"Eve ntu a l l y, it’s ou r a mbition to s ha re ou r i mp a ct a n d p rovide full tra cea b i l ity for a l l of our products. ” — G -S tar spoke sperson

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special programs or certifications that distinguish the facility and the number and gender breakdown of its workers. “Eventually, it’s our ambition to share our impact and provide full traceability for all of our products,” the spokesperson said. Levi’s, another Greenpeace Detox member, says it met its first 2020 goal—a 25 percent reduction of emissions in owned-and-operated facilities—in 2017, three years ahead of schedule. So, it set “far more ambitious and far-reaching” climate goals for 2025, said Michael Kobori, Levi’s vice president of sustainability. By 2025, the brand aims to slash its carbon emissions by 90 percent and use 100 percent renewable energy in all owned-and-operated facilities. It also vows to reduce carbon emissions across its global supply chain by 40 percent, which is proving both a challenge and opportunity because it requires directing so many moving parts. “That’s forced us to get creative and look for partners who can help us make the necessary

changes,” Kobori said, singling out Levi’s partnership with the International Finance Corporation-led Partnership for Cleaner Textiles (PaCT) as an example. A pilot program based on the PaCT methodology, for instance, led to a greenhouse-gas reduction of nearly 20 percent for participating suppliers and a collective savings of more than $1 million. “We therefore recently announced that we’re expanding this program to our 42 top suppliers and mills, because it works, because it’s necessary, and because it’s good business,” he added. Another 2020 goal Levi’s already hit involves worker well-being, specifically guidance and support on financial literacy and empowerment, individual and family health and equality. “Our goal had been to reach 200,000 workers in our supply chain through these programs by 2020, but we reached the goal earlier this summer, when we topped 200,000 workers across 17 countries and 105 factories,” Kobori said. Today, more than 65 percent of Levi’s products are made in factories that have implemented those programs, and that number will increase to 80 percent by 2020. Levi’s is also working on its goal to make 80 percent of Levi’s products using its Water<Less technology, which helps shrink water use in the finishing process by up to 96 percent. Thanks to the opensource methodology, the brand has saved 3 billion liters of the wet stuff to date. “We had reached 67 percent by the end of 2018,” Kobori said.

Chemistry creators For Wrangler, setting “globally relevant goals” reflecting its most material issues—cotton, water, energy and chemistry—was crucial, according to Roian Atwood, the director of sustainability. “We are proud that the goals are ambitious and impactful, in that our work toward them will actually have a positive impact on our industry and the world,” he said. By 2020, Wrangler plans to use 100 percent “preferred chemistry” throughout its supply chain

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

and conserve 5.5 billion liters of water. Five years after that, it wants to source only sustainable cotton and power all owned-and-operated facilities with 100 percent renewable energy. But owning its own manufacturing—a rarity in the business—affords it with “opportunities and sometimes concerns” that other denim brands may not have to deal with, according to Atwood. “Powering all of our owned-and-operated buildings with renewable energy, for example, expands beyond just our offices and stores,” Atwood said. “We have to think about how to implement at our manufacturing facilities and distribution centers as well.” Still, Wrangler is “well on [its] way” to achieving its chemistry and water goals, he said, adding, “I expect we’ll be making an announcement on at least one of our 2020 goals this year.” It’s making progress on the renewable energy front at a decent clip, too, though it’s not about to rest on its laurels. “As those goals sunset, we’ll be announcing new goals that will push our teams and supply chain partners even further toward sustainability and responsibility,” Atwood said.

Collection agency 2020 might also be a banner year for Sweden’s Nudie Jeans, whose vision is to become the world’s most sustainable denim company. “We want to be able to sleep well at night,” said Kevin Gelsi, Nudie’s sustainability coordinator. Many of its goals are enshrined as part of the Global Fashion Agenda’s 2020 Circular Fashion Commitment, which counts 90 brands and retailers, collectively representing 12.5 percent of the global fashion market, among its signatories. By 2020, Nudie Jeans says it will increase the number of own-brand jeans it takes back by 20 percent and the number of own-brand secondhand jeans it sells by 30 percent globally. That same year, at least one style in its collection will comprise post-consumer

SUSTAIN A BILIT Y

recycled Nudie Jeans from its garment-collection scheme. All targets are at their midway point and just require one final sprint, Gelsi noted. “These goals are set with the base year 2017 and we see no issues reaching them,” said sustainability manager Eliina Brinkberg. “We have even raised the numbers for the targets of collected and sold secondhand during 2018 when we realized that the first targets were set too low.” Nudie Jeans started early with its sustainability commitments. In 2012, the company announced it was using only 100 percent organic cotton in all its denim. And it continues to aim high. By 2025, the company wants to be carbon neutral along its entire supply chain, from raw materials to finished product. “We have just started this work and therefore have not yet been able to set absolute targets or Science Based Targets for decreasing our emissions,” Brinkberg said. “This is something we hope to be able to do at the end of next year.” To that end, Nudie Jeans has joined the nascent Swedish Textile Initiative for Climate Action. “We are hoping that our tight supply chain and engaged and modern suppliers will give us an easier road toward reaching the goals,” she added. “And we hope to set the goals with a reasonable but still quite short timeline.”

BILLION LITERS OF WATER Gap Inc. plans to conserve by 2020

l_____WR A N GLER

Scaling sustainability As a company with many auxiliary branches— Gap, Banana Republic, Athleta and Old Navy among them—Gap Inc.’s roadmap is more fragmented, meaning that while the parent company has goals that trickle down to all brands, the brands themselves may harbor targets that are exclusive to them. Case in point? Gap Inc. pledged to source 100 percent of its cotton, across the enterprise, from more sustainable sources by 2025. The Gap brand moved the goal posts, however, up to 2021. For Banana Republic, the cutoff is 2023 and for Old

" W E A R E P ROU D T H AT T H E GOA L S A R E A M B I T IOUS A N D IM PAC T F U L ..." — Roian At w ood, senior director of glob al sustain able busine s s, Kontoor Brand s RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

Navy, it’s 2022. As a whole, Gap Inc. is roughly 40 percent of the way there, estimates Melissa Fifield, the company’s senior director of sustainable innovation. One of its universal goals is also one of its most ambitious ones: conserving a total of 10 billion liters of water by the end of 2020. To date, Gap Inc. has saved 5.7 billion liters, so “we are absolutely on track,” Fifield said. “And that covers everything from fabric creation to garment finishing.” Denim, she added, is important to all its brands. “We set goals related to our products in key areas where we know that we have the most opportunity to drive change,” Fifield said. “And so how that shows up for denim in particular is really focused on water and cotton.” Energy-wise, Gap Inc. gave one of its 2020 goals—reducing Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse-gas emissions for owned-and-operated facilities by 50 percent—a shot in the arm in August when it signed a 90-megawatt virtual power purchase agreement for a wind project with Enel Green Power North America. One of the largest offsite renewable energy contracts by an apparel retailer, the partnership will generate enough wind energy to power the equivalent of more than 1,500 Gap Inc. retail stores, the company noted in a statement. By 2030, Gap Inc. says it will reach 100 percent renewable energy across all owned-and-operated facilities globally. “We want to have as limited of an impact on the environment as possible,” Fifield said.

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PROGRESS MAKES PERFECT In a race to preserve and replenish natural resources, where does the denim sector stack up against other pockets of the fashion industry? w or d s _____ JASMI N MA L I K C H UA

t’s hard to tell when denim decided it wanted to be a sustainable product. Perhaps it was in 2010, when reports of a “silicosis epidemic” that cost the lives of sandblasting workers hit the mainstream press. Or maybe it was after Greenpeace investigators described blackened rivers in China, India and Mexico marbled with fetid plumes of cadmium, mercury, lead and other cancer-causing substances. Certainly, revelations of the garment’s thirstiness didn’t help. Levi Strauss & Co. admitted in 2011 that a single pair of cotton-heavy jeans sops up 919 gallons of water, or enough to fill 15 spa-sized bath tubs, throughout its lifetime—hardly ideal on a warming planet increasingly beset by drought. “There’s so much water used in denim,” said Rachel K. Lincoln, director of sustainability at Prana, a California-based lifestyle brand. “It’s not just that it gets dyed multiple times but there’s so much finishing to get the look that we want of our denim. And [whenever] you do something to a product, you have to wash it afterwards.”

Faced with bad PR, the industry, for the most part, rallied. Brands began experimenting with more planet-friendly fibers, like organic cotton, post-consumer recycled cotton, Tencel and hemp. Instead of harsh chemicals or stones and sand, manufacturers started using laser technology, ozone and enzyme washes to weather and finish denim. Mills restricted substances and delved into water recycling, wind and solar power and effluent treatment. “Denim has always been one of the lead dogs in being an offender, but it’s also one that has gone out of its way to capitalize on creating solutions,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry advisor at the NPD Group, a New York-based market research company. “Obviously not everybody follows the program, but denim, in many cases, has become one of the cleaner products because of so much of the effort.” Easing its endeavors is the way the denim supply chain is structured. The denim community is tighter than most, according to Simone Seisl, a fiber expert at Textile Exchange, a sustainability nonprofit, because jean creation is a “complex, intensive collective effort” that relies on a vast, choreographed network of interdependencies. “The fabric composition, dyeing and finishing processes all have to work together to achieve the desired look,” Seisl said.

Though the process of making a pair of jeans can be complicated, the universal nature of the “recipe” makes it easy to replicate any innovations. “Everyone creating denim products is using the same kind of production processes, which means it’s easier to drive collaborative approaches,” said Jade Wilting, partnership and community manager of Circle Economy’s textile program in Amsterdam. There’s a reason why the same names keep popping up: Arvind, Candiani, Cone, Isko, Orta Anadolu, Saitex, Tejidos Royo. “Because you’re fishing from the same pond of a handful of really big denim mills, you’re able to create the kind of economies of scale to make change happen,” she added. But the archetypal nature of the workwear staple, policed with almost cult-like devotion by so-called “denim heads,” has its downsides, too. While activewear and footwear can tinker with materials made from seaweed, yeast-derived spider silk or discarded coffee grounds, denim must stay within the bounds of its standard framework— which is to say “primarily cotton, indigo dyed, five pockets and a bunch of rivets”—or risk reprobation from purists. “The moment you start innovating on the material level, people are like, well, is it really denim? Is it really a pair of jeans?” Wilting noted. The fact that even the most sustainable cotton “can only take you so far” is also a sticking point. “It’s still a crop relying on arable land, it’s still competing with food crops, it still needs a lot of water, a lot of resources, a lot of time to grow,” she said.

" W H AT W E ’ R E HOP ING IS T H AT OUR OP EN-SOURCE GUIDE W IL L B E USED BY OT H ER B R A N DS TO P RODUCE SIM IL A R DEN IM P RODUC T S IN T H E F U T U R E.” —Jef f re y Hog ue, c hief sustainabili t y of f ic er for C&A

SUSTAIN A BILIT Y

Sharing economy

That’s not to say denim must be forever frozen like a fly in amber. In July, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Make Fashion Circular program launched the Jeans Redesign, an initiative backed back the likes of C&A, Gap, H&M, Lee and Tommy Hilfiger to adapt the iconic clothing item to the circular economy, where resources are recovered for reuse. Make Fashion Circular honed in on denim for several reasons, the most obvious of which is that everyone owns at least one pair of jeans. Biggest of all, it wouldn’t have to start on square one. “It’s one of the product categories where we have seen some efforts already happening on the sustainability side with water and dye use, which means we can build upon these existing efforts,” said Laura Balmond, a project manager at the nonprofit. Denim isn’t necessarily easier or more difficult to green than other forms of ready-to-wear, but improvements within its ecosystem may be easier to scale. “The idea behind the Jeans Redesign is that once you can start to see some progress, it can quite quickly be adopted by other brands,” Balmond said. The camaraderie may be part of it, but if there’s one thing denim insiders are good at, it’s sharing best practices. Levi’s Water<Less program, which promises to shrink water consumption in the manufacturing process by as much as 96 percent in certain products, is completely open-source, as are C&A and G-Star Raw’s methodologies for their versions of the “world’s most sustainable jean,” both of which meet Cradle to Cradle’s Gold-level standards for material health and utilization, water stewardship, clean energy and social fairness. Jeffrey Hogue, chief sustainability officer at C&A, doesn’t worry about the competition; in fact, he welcomes it. “What we’re hoping is that our open-source guide will be used by other brands to produce simi-

lar denim products in the future,” he said. In a way, denim’s relationship with sustainability is already baked in. Unless they opt for trends that are literally hanging on by a few threads, customers buy jeans with the double-barreled expectation of timelessness and longevity. Because of their workwear roots, jeans are constructed for durability, making them ideal for the resale, rental and repair markets. Indeed, these tenets of circularity have been present in denim “for years” and are only just now

l____EVERLANE

It’s for this reason that denim may be behind, at least from a developmental perspective, than something like outerwear, which is built from mostly synthetic materials and has “a lot of opportunity there in terms of fabric,” according to Kimberley Smith, general manager of apparel at Everlane, a San Francisco brand that followed its “clean denim” collection with Renew, a line of puffer jackets and parkas derived from recycled plastic bottles last fall.

percolating to the rest of the apparel industry, said Kathleen Talbot, vice president of operations and sustainability at Los Angeles’ Reformation. Jeans consignment has been around as long as there have been jeans to consign, and Mud Jeans’ denim-rental service and Nudie Jeans’ repair shops have long been held up as exemplars of planet-positive business models that also boost the bottom line. “The denim industry’s sustainability efforts are really acting as a change agent for transforming the whole industry,” she added.

Water warriors Still, it’s with water efficiency that denim has really made its mark. Mary Ankeny, vice president of product development and implementation operations at Cotton Incorporated, recalled being wowed at a walkthrough of the 2019 ITMA textile trade show in Barcelona, where companies hawked all manner of “spray, atomization, foam and nano bub-

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

75% LESS WATER

Chitosan, a natural-polymer dye fixative, derived from shrimp shells, can use up to 75 percent less water and 65 percent fewer chemicals than conventional methods.

ble” technologies designed to minimize the amount of water necessary to carry dye stuff not only to denim, but other forms of apparel, too. We might soon see the same of denim-born innovations like lasers, which can etch effects without bleaching agents, or chitosan, a natural-polymer dye fixative, derived from shrimp shells, that can use up to 75 percent less water and 65 percent fewer chemicals than conventional methods. All of this “started in the denim industry and is moving out,” Ankeny said. But the trajectory, she noted, isn’t a surprising one. “After people cut their teeth on denim, they might try to implement these technologies for other processes,” she explained. “Or other sectors might take a beat from what they see from denim and utilize those technologies on their own garments, whether it’s sportswear, children’s wear or what have you.” On the whole, however, each sector appears to be working on a different part of the sustainability puzzle, said Make Fashion Circular's Balmond, who refers to the Jean Redesign project as a “starting point.” The outdoor category has directed its attention to weeding out perfluorochemicals from water-repellent materials, for example. Baby clothes, fueled by anxious new parents, have brought natural and organic fibers to the fore. Footwear is trying to figure out how to recycle components not designed for easy disassembly. No matter where they end up, all these individual pieces, with their own unique challenges, are equally important. “Ultimately these efforts will add up to pushing the whole industry forward,” Balmond said.

SUSTAIN A BILIT Y

CERTIF YING SUSTAINABILIT Y w or d s _____ C HRISTO P H ER H A L L

ustainability has a place in every business. But, with greenwashing and half-measures a concern, certifications that verify ethical practices and sustainable manufacturing have become a common solution for companies to identify the suppliers, factories and brands that treat the environment and people with care. However, the current sustainability certification community is a dizzying array of organizations, some working independently and others as a part of a collective, and choosing which path is right for a respective brand is an important part of any journey toward sustainability. Here, Rivet breaks down major sustainable certifications in the apparel industry and the fees and requirements necessary to achieve them.

49 Fair Trade Certified WHAT: Led by Fair Trade USA, the Fair Trade Certi-

fied process indicates a business that is committed to giving back to the farmers, lands and resources that make their organizations possible. WHY: A relationship with Fair Trade is designed to reward a business for the good decisions it has made over time regarding sustainability and ethical treatment of workers. Fair Trade provides farmers and workers in its supply chain with a Fair Trade “premium” that can be applied as a monetary bonus or toward improved work environments. WHO: Fair Trade has provided $610 million to farmers and workers in 45 countries since 1998. Denim brands like J.Crew, Madewell and Patagonia are Fair Trade Certified. COST: Fees to be certified Fair Trade are dependent on product, position in the supply chain and the percentage of goods that will be certified. Broken down, this cost includes farmer payments, auditing fees via FLOCERT—the organization's auditing branch—and licensing fees for the Fair Trade label, which is placed directly on applicable Fairtrade products with the objective of both encouraging consumers to purchase more sustainable goods and representing a strong connection between farmer and brand. Reps for the organization told Rivet the average annual cost to be certified is between 283 euros ($314.07) and 2,800 euros ($3,107.43). This cost is dependent on the scale of an organization, with small traders and farmers occupying the low end of the spectrum, leaving large brands and corporations to pay the lion’s share of certification fees. To maintain the Fair Trade mark on a brand’s products, on the other hand, can cost anywhere between $800 a year or up to 1 percent of the sales of all certified products—although actual fees are always dependent on how much a given supply

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

l_____S O O RT Y

Verifying sustainability through second-party certifications is increasingly becoming part of the business of denim.

chain relies on non-Fairtrade-approved materials.

Oeko-Tex Standard 100 WHAT: Oeko-Tex offers one of the most well-

known certifications in the industry through its Oeko-Tex Standard 100 benchmark. Audited by a number of independent Oeko-Tex institutes from around the world, Standard 100 governs the usage of harmful substances and practices in textile and leather manufacturing, and is notable for banning genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) in its approved products. HOW: In order to qualify for certification, Oeko-Tex tests textiles for close to 100 separate pa-

SUSTAIN A BILIT Y

Cradle to Cradle

Bluesign WHAT: Bluesign takes a holistic approach to audit-

ing and attempts to track a textile’s path from factory to finished product in order to make improvements to a supply chain. WHY: Bluesign’s Input Stream Management prevents harmful chemicals from entering a supply chain at any stage, ensuring sustainable production without the use of forbidden chemical formulations. Bluesign covers more than 20,000 of these formulations and categorizes them as such: safe to use, special handling required or forbidden. This process, Bluesign says, can increase a company’s sustainability performance, its ability to minimize risk and its trust-level with consumers. WHO: Today, Bluesign boasts nearly 600 industry partners, including Eileen Fisher and Saitex. COST: The organization maintains that since its certification is part of a larger service package, known as the Bluesign system, that it is “not possible to state costs for certification” as the certifi-

l_____S A IT EX

nies are required to pass an online assessment test provided by B Lab, a non-profit associated with the organization that operates offices in 64 countries around the world. Prospective B Corp organizations can then use B Corps’ legal requirement tool to assess how stakeholder consideration can be incorporated into its in-house governance. An 80-point bar is used to decide compliance and must be completed again once every three years to be reviewed by B Lab. WHO: The certification process has been completed by more than 50,000 business, including denim players like like Mud Jeans and Saitex. COST: Fees can start as low as $500 and increase depending on a given company’s volume.

rameters, taking into account things like how close it will be to the wearer’s skin, and ultimate end-use. The certification is valid for 12 months after initial auditing, and companies are required to undergo regular audits in a three-year cycle. WHO: Oeko-Tex doesn’t certify specific brands or manufacturers. Instead, the organization focuses on certifying specific products. COST: An Oeko-Tex Standard 100 business can expect to pay for a license fee, audit fee and testing costs that depend on the scale of the pre-certified materials. However, Oeko-Tex offers organizations the chance to waive those fees if their supply chains only deal in previously-tested materials, though products with no pre-approved materials can cost more than $6,000 to test. In either case, a “modular” certification system ensures testing and auditing costs are distributed throughout the chain.

cates received by approved organizations come at no cost. It is, conversely, the actual consultancy services offered by Bluesign that make up the bulk of the costs to an organization—varying widely based on the specific services selected

Certified B Corporation WHAT: The Certified B Corporation designation, or B Corp, is less of a certification and more of a title that signifies a company is dedicated to improving its entire social and environmental performance by incorporating societal stakeholders into its business model instead of solely chasing profit. Achieving the designation means a company has examined everything from its supply chain and materials, to its charitable support and employee benefits and determined that its practices work for the benefit of the world at-large. WHY: B Corp companies incorporate a legal framework into their businesses that require them to make decisions and measure impacts on new stakeholders, ensuring sustainability and ethical responsibility in every area of a business. For example, a B Corp might source materials in a more expensive region than its peers to avoid human rights abuses or environmental destruction. In order to achieve B Corp status, compa-

WHAT: Cradle to Cradle (C2C) bases its standard on the circular design principles espoused by authors and activists, William McDonough and Dr. Michael Braungart, laid out in detail in their 2002 book, Cradle to Cradle. Their philosophy essentially eliminates the concept of waste and replaces it with a commitment to reusing and recycling. WHY: Organizations that wish to be certified by C2C will be judged in five areas: material health, material reutilization, renewable energy and carbon management, social fairness and water stewardship. Likewise, a product that seeks C2C certification must be free of banned chemicals, pass an inspection performed by an accredited body and be completely transparent at the supply chain level. Products are assigned an achievement level (Basic, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum) for each category. WHO: In 2017, G-Star teamed with Artistic Milliners and Dystar to create the first C2C certified Gold level denim fabric. Soorty also launched a line of C2C certified Gold denim fabrics. COST: Companies pay close to $3,600 for a product’s certification and another $2,000 every two years when renewal is necessary. However, Cradle to Cradle representatives said, as organizations must work with independent assessors to complete certification, individual fees may vary.

CLOSING OUT 2019 LIKE

KINGPINS AMSTERDAM October 23/24

KINGPINS NEW YORK November 19/20

www.kinginsshow.com #kingpinsshow

Clean lines and natural colorways harmonize, giving utility fashion a fresh look.

K I N

From left: SLVRLAKE denim jacket, Bleecker & Prince earring; PH5 ribbed polo; Rag & Bone jacket; AMO tank, Pamela Love earring.

D R E D photog raphy _____ R I CA R D O B E A S styling _____ E M I LY M E RCE R + LU I S CA M PU ZA N O

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

THIS PAGE: Bode embroidered quilt jacket, B Sides deadstock cotton jacket and jeans, Mounser earring. OPPOSITE: From left: Frame jacket, Helmut Lang jeans, Lady Grey ring, Alexis Bittar rings; Sandro sweater, Jacquemus skirt, Dorateymur boots, Agmes earrings; Bode cotton and linen shirt, Goldsign jeans, Alexis Bittar ring, Lhite ring. (Jewelry worn throughout.)

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

THIS PAGE: From top: Helmut Lang shirt, BLDWN jeans, Agmes earrings, Pamela Love ring, Bleecker & Prince ring; John Elliott turtleneck top, Trave jeans, Mounser earring, Pamela Love earring. OPPOSITE: From left: Outland Denim jacket and skirt, Lady Grey ring; Outland Denim jacket and jeans, A.P.C. ring; Helmut Lang denim jacket and jeans; SLVRLAKE denim jacket, CIE Denim jeans, Pamela Love earrings, Still House Jewelry ring; Edwin denim jacket and jeans.

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

THIS PAGE: On him: Dickies shirt and pants, A.P.C. necklace, Gucci rings. On her: AMO jumpsuit. OPPOSITE: R13 shirt, Brock Collection jeans, Dorateymur boots, Alexis Bittar earrings.

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

THIS PAGE: Todd Snyder coat and shirt. OPPOSITE: From left: Nanushka bodysuit and jeans; Amiri shearling jacket, Frame jeans; Alexanderwang jean jacket, BLDWN jeans; Billy canvas coat and pants, A.P.C. necklace, Gucci rings. Models: Beauty @ Red NYC, Lizzy Yusuf @ Red NYC, Michelle Enoch @ Red NYC, Cesar Acosta @ Red NYC, Anna Hagood @ Supreme Management Hair: Koji Ichikawa Makeup: Akiko Owada Editor: Angela Velasquez Accessories Market Editor: Thomas Waller Fashion Assistant: Victor Vaughns Jr.

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

N O D N O L

When just one shade of blue wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t cut it, designers opt for a sweep of the

LIAM HODGES

REJINA PYO l_____

l_____

MARC JACOBS l_____

color wheel in this elevated take on patchwork denim.

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

wo rd s _____ ANGE L A VE L ASQUE Z

Throwing Shade

RUNWAY TRENDS S/S 2020

TRENDING

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

HOUSE OF HOLLAND

l_____

PREVIOUS PAGE: LIAM HODGES: WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK; MARC JACOBS: PIXELFORMULA/SIPA/SHUTTERSTOCK; REJINA PYO: WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK. THIS PAGE: HOUSE OF HOLLAND: JAMES VEYSEY/SHUTTERSTOCK; DAVID KOMA: PIXELFORMULA/SIPA/SHUTTERSTOCK; MARQUES'ALMEIDS: WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK; MOLLY GODDARD: WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK.

M O L LY GO D DA R D

DAV ID KOM A

l_____

M A R Q U E S 'A L M E I D A

l_____

TRENDING

Frock & Roll From puffed-sleeve frocks and shapeless silhouettes, to ’90s-era bodycon dresses, denim adds an instant edginess to dresses—no matter the hem length.

supima.com/made #madewithsupima

W OR LD'S FINE S T COTTONS

G R O W N i n AME R ICA | MADE b y AE THE R

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

FASHION E AST

l_____

FASHION EAST: PIXELFORMULA/SIPA/SHUTTERSTOCK; KITH: WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK; RAG & BONE: MATT BARON/SHUTTERSTOCK. R13: OVIDIU HRUBARU/WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK

KITH

R13

l_____

RAG & BONE

l_____

TRENDING

Hey, Shorty Jean shorts—both short and long—make a rare appearance on the

runway in bold ways that don’t try to hide their sub culture heritage.

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

ASHISH

l_____

ANISH: WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK; ANISH: FACUNDO ARRIZABALAGA/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK; GYPSY SPORT: MASATO ONODA/WWD/SHUTTERSTOCK; JEREMY SCOTT: SHUTTERSTOCK

GYPSY SPORT

ASHISH

l_____

JEREMY SCOTT

l_____

TRENDING

Decorative Arts Designers always look for new ideas to embellish denim, this time

allowing color and handicrafts to guide the way.

RIVET’S TOP 50 MOVERS AND SHAKERS IN THE DENIM INDUSTRY IN 2019 RIVET 50 SERVES AS AN INDEX of the most creative and forward-thinking leaders driving change in the global denim marketplace. And this year, those individuals were nominated and chosen by the denim industry. More than 6,000 online votes determined who made the list. From mill to runway, here’s a look at who is influencing denim in 2019.

Executive

Designer

Retailer

Influencer

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

Supply Chain

VIRGIL ABLOH l Artistic director of men's

wear for Louis Vuitton, creative director of Off-White

While the debate beats on about whether Virgil Abloh’s referential designs make him a designer, per se, there’s no question that the Louis Vuitton artistic director of men's wear and OffWhite creative director is a die-hard collaborator and creative—and with the fan base to back up the hype. In 2019, along with new collaborations with Nike, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and furniture company Vitra, Abloh staged sold-out exhibitions based on Louis Vuitton’s F/W ’19 collection in Chicago and New York City. And he kept denim on the runway with deconstructed streetwear for Off-White, and his elevated take on utility for Louis Vuitton. Abloh’s point of view appears to be resonating with fashion consumers. Without directly naming Abloh, LVMH said in April that Louis Vuitton saw “remarkable growth across all of its businesses” and that the brand’s creativity was “ever more striking and innovative.” —Angela Velasquez

adopting inclusive sizing, but Warp + Weft built its foundation on it. Founder and CEO Sarah Ahmed launched the brand to “create jeans for everybody and every body”—and consumers are taking note. In 2018, the designer was recognized in Forbes’ 30 Under 30, which noted that, less than one year post-launch, the brand generated more than $2.5 million in revenue. While Warp + Weft’s initial focus was jeans, the company is branching out. In July, Ahmed announced the brand’s inclusive intimates line, which she promises will “serve our customers in the same way our jeans do.” The line features garments that coincide with its sustainability and inclusivity standards. —Liz Warren

Sarah Ahmed

Roian Atwood

SARAH AHMED l Founder and CEO of

Warp + Weft

Other brands may be

Ian Berry

ROIAN ATWOOD l Senior director of global

sustainable business for Wrangler and Lee at Kontoor Brands

Roian Atwood is a perfectionist, which might seem difficult in the fickle world of fashion. “It comes from a deep critical nature—I am often not satisfied with mediocracy or the status quo,” said Atwood, who leads sustainability strategy, and engages suppliers globally to drive greater social and environmental performance for Wrangler and Lee at Kontoor Brands. “I’m always looking for better.” He’s also somewhat of a wonk for denim sustainability. While waxing on soil management and sustainable cotton practices, he said Wrangler’s history of starting on the farm and the ranch, led the company to focus on the concept of land stewardship and the idea of soil conservation and protecting the environment “as a universal truth.” “When I think of the Wrangler brand and what it embodies—its history, its heritage, the connectivity it has in our society—I love the Wrangler brand,” he said. “It started with the rancher and that ruggedness, and today we’re taking those learnings and applying it to a go-forward strategy. It’s not about managing cattle on a ranch anymore, it’s about solving some big global challenges.” —Arthur Friedman

l_____JA MES BA RTLE

SANJEEV BAHL

JAMES BARTLE l Founder and CEO of Outland Denim

l Founder of Saitex

As the founder of the only Certified B Corp large-scale denim manufacturer, Sanjeev Bahl has cemented Saitex as a sustainability bar-raiser in the industry. For Bahl, however, the achievement—10 years in the making—marked just one more investment within the company’s deep commitment to the environment. Ranging from small (but impactful) moves, like decreasing energy consumption by relying on natural light, to frying such bigger fish, like water recycling, the Vietnam-based apparel manufacturer is taking a long view on green ROI. “As soon as we started

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

At a young age, James Bartle was taught to always help others when he had the opportunity. As an adult, he made that lesson the foundation of his company Outland Denim. Founded in 2011 as a way to protect vulnerable people from exploitation, the denim brand provides its staff with wage and personal development initiatives within its Cambodian production facilities. Those credentials, as well as a dedication to sustainable best practices, led Bartle’s company to become Australia’s first Certified B Corp denim brand. This year, Outland Denim announced a partnership with the Global Fashion Agenda to further its dedication to social sustainability. Bartle wants each fashion brand to join him in “taking responsibility for its use of human and natural resources throughout the supply chain.” —LW engaging in this dialogue [about sustainability], what erupted was a brand-new methodology to do business,” Bahl said at Sourcing Journal’s

Sourcing Summit New York 2018. “It’s a journey. It leads to continuous improvement, which needs continuous investments.” —Lisa Johnston

—IAN BERRY, ARTIST

IAN BERRY l Artist

l CEO and president of Levi

Strauss & Co.

When Levi Strauss & Co. CEO and president Chip Bergh filled the post in 2011, he inherited a storied brand whose bright light had dimmed. Having spent 28 years in brand management at Procter & Gamble, Bergh was eager for a challenge. By tapping into the wants of millennial and Gen Z consumers, Bergh has been widely credited with spearheading the company’s return to glory and restoring Levi’s inimitable cool factor. His renewed focus on women's wear, as well as diversifying Levi’s business models, has resuscitated the brand’s once flagging sales. And in March, he carried Levi’s into a new chapter when the brand began trading once again on the New York Stock Exchange starting at $22.22 a share—a move that will deliver more funds to fuel future investments. —Kate Nishimura

Before London-based artist Ian Berry was a viral sensation, he was a creative of sorts, starting at an advertising agency and then turning to fine art full-time. Inspired by what others might con-

HAILEY BIEBER l Brand ambassador for Levi’s

501

It took Levi’s 146 years to name the first-ever face of its signature 501 jean—an

honor that was bestowed on denim tastemaker Hailey Bieber in April. The ‘It’ girl, model, social media influencer, Baldwin-offspring and newlywed was the muse for Levi’s spring festival season, offering styling advice and DIY tips. This year, Bieber also starred in the campaign for Levi’s collaboration with designer Heron Preston and hosted festivities for Levi’s 501 Day. And with 21 million followers on Instagram, Bieber’s fans took note. A single image of Bieber in ripped 501 jeans captured more than 1 million likes. “Hailey embodies that authentic and optimistic self-expression we felt represented the broad appeal of the 501 jean,” said Jennifer Sey, Levi's chief marketing officer for global l_____H A ILEY BIEBER brands. —AV

KENNETH BENNETZEN l Product manager of ONLY

For Kenneth Bennetzen, product manager at Bestseller’s ONLY brand, sustainability means simplicity. The denim supply chain is a complex one, and technology has a tendency to complicate messaging. An overall green commitment is important and necessary, but, above and beyond, it’s the product that matters, and it’s the product that will pave a sustainable future forward. By forging such partnerships with Lenzing and Soorty for the Black Forever concept— which used fewer resources and chemicals than traditional denim dyeing—Bennetzen and Denmark-based Bestseller are bringing trendy (and affordable) eco-consciousness to more consumers. —LJ

l_____K E NN E T H B E NNE T Z E N

CHIP BERGH

sider a mess—a heap of jeans—he experimented with using the fabric as his paint, cutting up old jeans and layering the scraps to make his art. The technique was a success that led him to earn a spot in the 2013 “30 Top Artists Under 30 in the World” by Art Business News. Today, he’s known for his melancholic depictions of city life, a play on the role of denim in urban culture. In June, he bowed Hotel California at London’s Catto Gallery, a collection of work inspired by pool scenes from the denim-loving state. —LW

l_____RU DY B U DHDEO

" YOU N E E D N O T B E A N E X P ER T T O E NJOY A N D F EEL CO M F OR TA B L E W I T H D EN I M. I ’ M R E A L LY I N T ER E S T E D I N H OW T H E ‘ N O R M A L’ P E R S O N S E E S I T.”

RUDY BUDHDEO l Owner of Son of a Stag

For Rudy Budhdeo, owner of the London boutique, Son of a Stag, his retail mission is to put product—not price—first and foremost in the minds of consumers. And it’s a philosophy that Budhdeo, himself, embodies. As a brand consultant and global management expert with 30 years of industry experience, Budhdeo specializes in growing business bottom lines while developing products that can set them apart. For Son of a Stag, that means hard-to-find brands, exclusive products and services, like denim alterations, repair and chain-stitching. In 2019, Budhdeo introduced a new chapter to his retail story with Solider Blue London, a new shop dedicated to giving old denim a new lease on life. —Christopher Hall

Visit our website for extended profiles: sourcingjournal.com/denim/Rivet-50

ton, Atelier & Repairs, Denham, Dondup and an upcycled collaboration with Blue of a Kind. There, shoppers get a taste of premium Italian denim and an interactive view of how their jeans came to be. —LW Alberto Candiani

TRICIA CAREY

l Director of business develop-

ment, denim for Lenzing

Tricia Carey

Jason Denham

ALBERTO CANDIANI l Owner of Candiani Denim

Known for taking risks and making investments in new sustainable technology, Candiani Denim has set the bar for sustainable fabrics. And along the way, the heritage denim mill has stepped out from behind the scenes to become an ingredient brand that consumers associate with quality. In April, owner Alberto Candiani opened the first Candiani Denim store in Milan, where consumers can shop jean styles by some of the mill’s top brand partners, including Ace Riving-

Tricia Carey was talking about sustainability in the textile supply chain before most people ever acknowledged the term. And when Lenzing started touting its closed-loop manufacturing process and forestry management, she took the role of sharing its importance for both the environment and the denim industry’s image. “When I started with Tencel and Courtaulds 21 years ago, we didn’t talk about sustainability or the trees,” said Carey, the company’s director of business development for denim. “Now, we’re all reaching a point where we realize the impact on the environment and I’m happy that I played a part in bringing that message to the industry and, ultimately, to consumers. It is a revolution.” Along with championing B2C events like Denim Days and creating the Carved in Blue blog as an industry platform, Carey was also a crusader in breaking the industry’s old insular habits. “In the past, we would just consider another fiber company as a com-

"S T Y L E IS A PERSONAL T H I N G . DO N ’ T F O L L OW O T H E R S. F O R M U L AT E YO U R OW N IDEA, AND OV E R T I M E IT WILL BE S T RO N G E R .”

office. Each store is an homage to the denim lifestyle, outfitted with denim artwork, perfectly broken-in leather chairs and his signature motif— the scissor—identifiable throughout. The stores are not only a place to shop the latest premium collection, but they also serve as a stage for Denham to show respect for the traditions of the industry and the attention to detail it demands. —CH

MAURIZIO DONADI l Co-founder, CEO and

creative director of Atelier & Repairs

—MAURIZIO DONADI, CO-FOUNDER, CREATIVE DIRECTOR AND CEO OF ATELIER & REPAIRS l_____PAU L DILLIN GER

petitor, and now we look at collaboration as a way to bring things to market in a more robust way,” she said. —AF

JASON DENHAM l Founder and chief

creative officer of Denham the Jeanmaker

Denim has always been the focus for Jason Denham, founder and chief creative officer of Denham the Jeanmaker— and it’s evident in his brand’s retail stores. Take, for instance, the cluster of men’s and women’s shops located in Amsterdam’s Nine Streets, where Denham also keeps his

PAUL DILLINGER l Vice president of global product innovation at Levi Strauss & Co.

Working for the largest jeans company in the world, Paul Dillinger, vice president of global product innovation at Levi Strauss & Co., understands the mounting pressure for the denim sector to become more sustainable. In his role at Levi’s, he has the unique opportunity to help drive this change through a combination of science and design, having worked on several groundbreaking product and design initiatives. Dillinger led the team that developed the company’s Wellthread Collection in 2015, which focuses on implementing new supply chain processes that use less water, empower workers and promote circularity in product design. And in 2019, he was instrumental in Levi’s adoption of cottonized hemp—a breakthrough that serves as a sustainable alternative to cotton. —KN

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

Fashion isn’t what drives Maurizio Donadi—at least in the case of Atelier & Repairs. Instead, the former executive for Diesel, Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren, and Levi Strauss & Co. considers what he does at Atelier & Repairs a “hobby,” one that allows him to recondition things that already exist. “I was sick and tired of making companies produce more,” said Donadi, the co-founder, creative director and CEO of the company. And in the process, his so-called hobby is elevating the status of upcycled garments, particularly through collaborations with legacy companies like Dockers and Candiani. “My focus right now is combining responsibility with creativity,” Donadi said. “The two together can be a powerful tool in order to make a better impact in our society and on our planet.” —AV

CARRIE & MATT EDDMENSON l Co-founders of

Imogene + Willie

nity. The events, with their one-of-a-kind aesthetic, have helped make the retailer much more than a store. —LW

MARIA ERIXON l Founder and creative director

Led by husband and wife duo Carrie and Matt Eddmenson, Nashville-based Imogene + Willie helped turn the city into a denim destination with a store that provides customers an authentic Nashville experience, taking them beyond shopping. Walking into the Imogene + Willie store is like strolling through a vintage flea market inside of an old gas station—because that’s exactly what it was. In 2009, after three years of marriage, the couple opened the shop in a 1950s service station, renovating it enough to be modern but maintaining the rugged authenticity of the structure. Stocked with the brand’s full collection and decorated with antique rugs and treasures on the inside, the store’s backyard has become the setting for the popular “supper + song” series. During the warmer months, the Eddmensons open the yard and invite bands to perform for the commu-

Maria Erixon

of Nudie Jeans

Founder and creative director of Nudie Jeans, Maria Erixon partnered with CEO Palle Stenberg in 2001 to launch a denim brand built on sustainability—but not the high-tech kind that parts of the industry are adopting. Erixon’s vision of sustainability begins with high quality, ethically sourced fabric and designs that fit well. Her theory—and a successful theory when

you consider the scope of the brand—is to build a pair of jeans so perfectly crafted that consumers don’t wash or get rid of them until they literally break. And when they do, the brand offers free repairs and the chance to upcycle them in exchange for a 20 percent discount on a future pair. It’s a strategy that has helped spawn Nudie’s resale business, the Re-use collection, which offers worn jeans that are washed, repaired and resold. —LW

FOX & JEFF GARZA l Owners of Foxhole LA

Foxhole LA, the Los Angeles-based vintage denim, repair and customization

like upcycled denim motorcycle blankets, purses and pillows. The Garzas also provide savvy denim-lovers with custom-fitted pieces and restore aged denim items to their former glory. “She’s taught me a lot and we’re always learning new stuff together,” Jeff said of his wife. “I am proud of what our combined powers have created.” —KN

Fox and Jeff Garza

shop, is made from a marriage of interests. Owned by husband and wife team, Fox and Jeff Garza, the store combines Fox’s love for denim—the process, the fabric, its history—with the retail know-how of Jeff, who owned his own skate shop. At Foxhole, shoppers can mine through racks for blue gold, or pick up unconventional denim items,

PAOLO GNUTTI l Founder and CEO of PG

Denim

A lifetime in R&D may leave the creative well dry for some, but not for Paolo Gnutti. After serving more than 30 years as the R&D head for the

now defunct ITV Denim, Gnutti formed PG Denim in 2018, a new “Made in Italy” enterprise focused on garments for mid- to high-end productions. PG Denim conceptualizes the fabrics, which are then developed by fellow Italian mills, Berto and Eurotessile. Gnutti’s creative concepts are varied, spanning laminated effects and flocked fabrics, to indigo and black denim fabric with wefts made of real silver thread. And they are responsible, with PG Denim making considerable investments to reduce water, chemicals, energy and greenhouse gas emissions. “I believe that the supply chain can support brands with production and technical innovations,” Gnutti said. —AV

ADRIANA GALIJASEVIC l Denim and sustainability expert at G-Star RAW

As G-Star RAW’s denim and sustainability expert, Adriana Galijasevic has become the consummate team player. Her role is interdepartmental of nature, working with the design, research and development team and other departments to implement sustainable material targets and circular economy innovations within G-Star’s collections. “To accomplish this, I focus on driving sustainable research and leading circular product innovation as well as stimulating internal and external education,” she explained. The launch of the brand’s “Most Sustainable Jeans Ever” last year, along with helping create the world’s first Cradle to Cradle Certified Gold denim fabric was not only a breakthrough for the industry, but also a highlight of Galijasevic’s G-Star career. “The experience has been incredible, in terms of remarkable teamwork both internally and externally, establishing unparalleled levels of transparency along the supply chain and sharing of our knowledge with the industry,” she said. —AV

l_____A DR IA N A GA LIJA SEV IC

Visit our website for extended profiles: sourcingjournal.com/denim/Rivet-50

—EMMA GREDE, CO-FOUNDER & CEO, GOOD AMERICAN

EMMA GREDE l Co-founder and CEO of

Good American

As the CEO and co-founder of Good American (alongside reality star and cultural powerhouse Khloe Kardashian), Emma Grede has set out to “celebrate all dimensions of female power” through the brand’s collection of denim. Available in an extended size range, the line endeavors to empower women to “celebrate their bodies with confidence.” Prior to the Good American launch in 2016, Grede, a British National, began her career spearheading designer collaborations at London’s Inca Productions. She then went on to found ITB Worldwide, a talent and influencer agency, representing brands in the world of entertainment. Today, Grede lives in Los Angeles and serves on the board of Women for Women International, an organization that provides networking opportuni-

ties and mentorship for disenfranchised women in underserved countries. —KN

DANIEL GRIEDER l CEO of Tommy Hilfiger

Global and PVH Europe

With a consumer-centric mindset and laser-sharp focus on speed and innovation, Daniel Grieder, CEO of Tommy Hilfiger Global and PVH Europe, has been instrumental in reaffirming Tommy Hilfiger’s place as a premium lifestyle brand for a digital age. Under his direction, Tommy Hilfiger has become a linchpin in the ’90s denim revival trend, serving nostalgic looks with a contemporary twist made possible by the R&D team at the PVH Denim Center in Amsterdam. In 2019, Tommy Hilfiger introduced 100 percent recycled cotton repurposed denim styles—a move that reinforced its commitment with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation to build toward a circular economy. —CH

ARUN GUPTA l Founder of Grailed

Before resale was the burgeoning retail channel it is today, Grailed, the online marketplace for men’s luxury fashion and streetwear, was just filling a need. Founded by Arun Gupta in 2013, the resale site was born out of Gupta’s own passion for high-end fashion, albeit on a college student budget. Six years on, Grailed is growing in industry clout and is well on its way to becoming a premier source for hard-to-find streetwear—including rare pieces from celebrities’ wardrobes. This year, Grailed cleaned out Future's closet with proceeds going to the rapper’s FreeWishes Foundation. The retailer also hosted a pop-up shop in Los Angeles stocking rare garments by Rick Owens and Raf Simons. —CH

BELLA & GIGI HADID l Models

Models and globetrotters Bella and Gigi Hadid frequently wear denim on the runway, but it’s the Californian sisters’ off-duty denim styles that shine across platforms like Instagram, where they have a combined total of 75.3 million followers and counting. From Gigi rocking wide-leg jeans by Off-White, to Bella

l_____MA RI E T T E HO I T I NK

" F RO M DAY O N E , W E ’ V E B A K E D S I Z E I N CL U S I V I T Y I N T O OU R B U S I N E S S M O D EL , A N D W E ’ V E P R OV E N T H AT B R A N D S CA N B E FA S H IO N - F O R WA R D 76 A N D F U L LY I N C L U S I V E .”

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A career conduit for Amsterdam’s elite designers, creative directors, product development leaders and more, Mariette Hoitink has been a near-lifelong fixture of the country’s fashion scene. Since founding her own fashion and recruitment consultancy, HTNK, in 1997, Hoitink has helped connect the world’s leading brands, fashion houses, retailers, wholesale organizations and suppliers with talent. Despite her wide-ranging fashion influence, denim has always held a place of prominence with Hoitink. She co-founded the House of Denim Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to advancing craftsmanship, innovation and sustainability through efforts like the Jean School, which educates the next generation of denim developers. She also co-founded the Amsterdam Denim Days Festival, “a place for fashion-forward fanatics of denim.” —KN mixing workwear denim with denim corsetry, the Hadids have become the unofficial ambassadors for the crop of new fits bringing excitement to the women’s denim category. For the sisters, denim offers the opportunity to play with proportions, dabble with streetwear and test typical model stereotypes by stylishly wearing oversized, genderless jeans. And their love for denim was made even more evident at Gigi’s denim-themed birthday bash in April. —AV

DANNY HODGSON l

Owner of Rivet and Hide

Rivet and Hide owner Danny Hodgson worked at British Airways for 25 years before he left to launch an idea of his own:

a premium denim store that offers by-appointment workshops to connect men with the world’s best selvedge denim brands. The London retailer launched in 2012 and has since become a haven for denim heads seeking hard-tofind brands like The Flat Head from Japan, Dawson Denim from the U.K and Steel Feather from Norway. What was once a makeshift shop operating out of a West London apartment has become a denim destination with several exclusive lines and, beginning this year, a second location in Manchester. —LW

LARA KNIGHT Vice president of women's design for American

Eagle

JONNY JOHANSSON l Co-founder and creative

director of Acne Studios

Former rocker Jonny Johansson is the impossibly cool co-founder and creative director of Acne Studios, a Stockholm-based fashion house. For over 20 years, Johansson has brought a Scandinavian aesthetic to fashion and denim with approachable designs that are at once nostalgic and ultra-modern. And in the process, sometimes instigating a global phenomenon like millennial pink—the signature color of Acne’s shopping bags before it was dubbed

“millennial” pink. In 2019, timely, strategic moves, like unisex designs and collaborations with brands like Starter Black Label and the NBA, have enhanced the brand’s It-factor among streetwear fans. Meanwhile, Blå Konst, Acne’s denim line, continues to blossom into a denim head favorite for its minimalistic, rigid constructions. —KN

BEAU LAWRENCE l Founder of Ace Rivington

Ace Rivington founder Beau Lawrence’s imagination runs deeper than denim. With more than 18 years of men’s jeanswear experience, the former director of product development for Guess launched Ace Rivington on Kickstarter in 2013 with the goal of taking consumers on an adventure. His first design of choice, a Homespun French Terry sweatshirt, of which he sold 600 and raised $60,000 in just 34 days, was only the starting point of the journey. Today, his Santa Barbara, Calif.-based Ace Rivington store is stocked with much more than that, and essentially serves as the brand’s showroom. Designed with Havana-inspired elements, the store provides customers with an unmatched experience—and has even been the setting of a marriage proposal. It also features an on-site denim tailoring workshop, where Lawrence can be found putting his jeanswear experience to use tailoring and repairing jeans. —LW

STELLA MCCARTNEY l Fashion designer

Stella McCartney’s S/S ’19 tie-dye denim boiler suit may go down as the boiler suit that spawned thousands more. In 2019, the 100-percent cotton denim, zip-front one-piece was a go-to showpiece for street style stars and helped usher in a utilitarian workwear trend that’s holding strong in the women’s denim category. And McCartney’s influence didn’t end with fashion. In 2019, the ethical designer spoke out against unnecessary home laundering, debuted the first fully recyclable hoodie and confirmed that sustainable fashion has a place in

Stella McCartney

Emma Grede

Beau Lawrence

l_____S/ S ' 1 9 S T E L LA MCCA RTN EY

MARIETTE HOITINK l Founder of HTNK

With the mom jeans buzz hitting hard this year, Lara Knight has shown her knack for tapping into the right trends at the right time. More than just stoking FOMO, though, the American Eagle vice president of women’s design is using her talents to cultivate inclusivity and bring good-fitting jeans to more people than ever— while still embracing denim’s roots and championing authenticity. Along with offering extended sizing in stores, American Eagle and Knight are addressing common fit woes with styles like a new Curvy fit designed to eliminate waistband gapping. Looking forward, Knight is heading into 2020 with an eye on new technology, an ear toward the sustainability conversation, and a nod to denim’s history. —LJ

luxury when she inked a deal with LVMH to further develop the Stella McCartney House. The partnership was described as “the beginning of a beautiful story together” by Bernard Arnault, LVMH chairman and CEO. “A decisive factor was that she was the first to put sustainability and ethical issues on the front stage, very early on, and built her House around these issues,” he said. —AV

Visit our website for extended profiles: sourcingjournal.com/denim/Rivet-50

CRISTIAN MURIANNI

fashion industry can learn from it.” —AF

EBRU OZAYDIN

l Owner of Denim

Institute Milano

l Senior vice president of sales

GUGLIELMO OLEARO l International exhibitions

director at Première Vision

He’s new to the denim game, but Guglielmo Olearo, international exhibitions director at Première Vision, said he’s learned to love the denim industry. The affair began three years ago when his responsibilities were expanded to include overseeing Denim Première Vision.

and marketing for Artistic Milliners

l_____JOR DA N N ODA R SE

While innovations in speed, sustainability and fabrics are necessary to secure the denim industry’s future, jeans remain a product that calls for craftsmanship and tradition. Both were common themes in Cristian Murianni’s previous projects, including the trade show, Denim Boulevard, and magazine, The Overall. Nowadays, as owner of Denim Institute Milano, Murianni aims to bridge denim’s roots and its future through courses dedicated to workwear, laundry, denim fashion and more. Through the institute, the traditions of the denim industry are passed down to a new generation of designers and artists, preserving the expertise and knowledge of the denim experts that preceded them. —CH

JORDAN NODARSE l Founder and designer for Boyish

Los Angeles’ chief tree hugger, Jordan Nodarse, also happens to be the founder of Boyish Jeans, a favorite of the denim elite. Having found his footing as a designer at Reformation, Nodarse became equally enraptured by denim and dismayed by its negative effects on the environment. With every passing revelation about the wastefulness of supply chain processes, he became more determined to revolutionize ingrained methodologies and ultimately, take on the industry. “I can be the early adopter and steer the ship,” Nodarse said of his efforts to push the denim sector toward sustainability. Nodarse has immersed himself in the creation of manifold material innovations, the development of a circular lifecycle for denim products, and the elimination of fabric waste through re-spinning scraps into usable yarns. “We can be the guinea pigs,” he said of the Boyish brand and its role in the future of denim. —KN

Olearo quickly brought the show on the road, holding editions in London and Milan. He also added programming for sustainability and innovation to the event, both areas he considers vital to the denim industry. “When I took over Denim Première Vision, I was instrumental in expanding it because it was necessary—it was the right time,” he said. And the sector’s sense of community and collaboration has further deepened his ties with denim. “It’s friendly, it’s relaxed. People might be competitors, but they always greet each other and shake hands and talk about what they’re doing,” he said. “The rest of the

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

Ebru Ozaydin, senior vice president of sales and marketing of Artistic Milliners, speaks a global language in denim. Based in New York City, where she helped establish the company’s new showroom-meets-creative space in 2019, the Turkey-native is responsible for developing strategic denim fabric and garment sales in the U.S. and Canada for the Pakistan company, as well as implementing worldwide integrated marketing strategies. Unofficially, Ozaydin brings a sense of community and collaboration to the denim supply chain through her participation in projects like the development of the world’s first Gold Certified C2C denim fabric, and by sharing Artistic Milliners’ message of female empowerment. “It is so valuable for me to spread the word in our industry; sharing the projects dedicated to improving women’s lives through education and training, and advancement opportunities,” she said. —AV

MARY PIERSON l Senior vice president of

design for Madewell

As the senior vice president of denim design at J.Crew and Madewell, Mary Pierson has had a hand in growing one of the industry’s biggest success stories. Pierson has worked for high-profile fashion brands, including Tommy Hilfiger and Gap along with the supply chain players, like Cone Mills and Li & Fung. For most of the last decade, Pierson has been instrumental in the production and design of denim products for J.Crew and, over the last two years, Madewell. Under her tutelage, Madewell has become a crown jewel in denim

" W H AT ’S FA N TA S T IC I N D EN I M IS THE SPIRIT OF CO M M U N I T Y. I T ’S L I K E A LARGE FA M I LY A N D THE REST OF T H E FA S H IO N WO R L D CA N TA K E S O M E I N S P I R AT IO N F R O M I T.” —GUGLIELMO OLEARO, INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS DIRECTOR AT PREMIÈRE VISION

MARTINE ROSE l Designer of Martine Rose

With streetwear and luxury intersecting, British men's wear designer Martine Rose has emerged as one of the true originals of the category for her collections that often meld suburban “Chav” style with references from her own coming of age story in London during the 1990s. Recently, Rose has taken a more political slant in her designs as the U.K. wades through Brexit drama with sarcastic shirts with ‘Promising Britain” slogans. And in the process, she has captured the media’s attention, including The New York Times, which chronicled the 48 hours leading up to her S/S '20 fashion show. The irony with all the new mainstream buzz is that the eponymous label has built up a cult following for the last 12 years through unconventional denim fits and quirky details designed for outsiders. “I have always been attracted to outsiders. That has always been something that’s interested me in all elements of culture, music, fashion,” Rose said. “Even personally, it’s always the people in the periphery that I’m drawn to the most. And I think that comes through in my designs, and that resonates with that person.” —AV

MOHSIN SAJID

In 2019, Sajid embarked on a partnership with Kingpins to create the Denim History educational platform, including hosting Kingpin’s first educational event for fashion students in the U.K. with more than 30 colleges in attendance. —KN

l Founder of Denim History

Throughout his 17-year career in denim, Mohsin Sajid has become a true denim guru. The master pattern-cutter and ergonomic tailor has had a hand in the success of the world’s leading international denim brands and mills, and now lends his expertise to educating a younger generation of designers. Sajid’s time at the Cone Denim College in Greensboro, N.C., and subsequent denim pilgrimage to Kojima in Okayama, Japan informed his passion for helping build local industry

Mohsin Sajid

Ebru Ozaydin

JAY SCHOTTENSTEIN l CEO of American Eagle

Guglielmo Olearo

Bart Sights

through education. His keen interest in shepherding the industry’s hopefuls brought him to lecture at The Royal College of Art, Westmin-

ster, Ravensbourne Universities, London College of Fashion, and at Acof Moda Fashion School’s newly created Denim School of Milan.

Marking his second year on the Rivet 50, American Eagle CEO Jay Schottenstein has guided and maintained the company’s leadership in the teen denim business; American Eagle

reported in June its 17th consecutive quarter of comp-sales growth. Not only has the company been testing the waters of subscription services with its Style Drop member-split wardrobe, and tapping into cool-kid teen trends like CBD, it went hard into this year’s back-to-school season, kicking things off with the likes of Lil Wayne for an exclusive collection. As the company grows its offerings of Curvy jeans and extended sizes, Schottenstein is leading the charge to make denim more accessible to all body types. —LJ

BART SIGHTS l Vice president of technical

innovation at Levi Strauss & Co.

LUCIA ROSIN l Owner of Meidea

With 30 years of experience in the fashion and textile world, Lucia Rosin has seen her share of denim trends. However, the former design lead for Benetton Group has been passionate about sustainability since the beginning of her career in the late ’80s, pursuing an ecological approach with every project. It’s a message that she continues to share in speaking engagements at events like Denim Première Vision and through her Italian denim consultancy studio, Meidea. Founded in 2004, Meidea is a collective of like-minded denim wonks who bring environmentally-conscious solutions to the industry. Rosin describes herself as a collector, and her 4,000-piece trove of vintage wares proves the characterization an understatement. The Meidea archive, as the collection came to be called, has become a source of inspiration and learning for the firm’s innovations. Nowadays, out of a restored factory building in Castelfranco Veneto, Italy, Rosin and her team host art installations, conferences and workshops, merging those sources of inspiration with the company’s consulting studio. —KN

l_____L U CI A RO SI N

retail and is on its way to securing its own IPO. —CH

As vice president of technical innovation at Levi Strauss & Co., Bart Sights leads the historical brand’s Eureka Innovation Lab, overseeing the formulation of inventive new fibers, fabrics, fits and finishes. A die-hard denim head, the Kentucky-native is inspired by Levi’s 166year legacy and lasting cultural impact. Sights challenges himself to reinterpret the brand’s historical successes for a modern era, keeping Levi’s denim as relevant and indispensable to consumers today as it has been for decades. In 2019, he achieved this by playing a vital role in the launch of Future Finish, Levi’s new customization offering using laser technology. —KN

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ALICE TONELLO l Marketing and

R&D manager of Tonello

Panos Sofianos

Adam Taubenfligel

PANOS SOFIANOS

ADAM TAUBENFLIGEL

l Denim and innovation cura-

tor for Bluezone and Keyhouse by Munich Fabric Start

For many, trade shows are a product of the old league—a dog and pony show that has just one objective: sales. However, during his three years as the denim and innovation curator for Bluezone and Keyhouse for Munich Fabric Start, Panos Sofianos has created an industry event that honors denim’s heritage, while embracing its future. And in doing so, he’s helping break down the barrier between tradition and technology. His curation fosters collaborations, allowing legacy denim mills to mingle with fashion tech-startups, and for attendees to be schooled on the hot topics of tomorrow. “Our dedication to serve innovation and sustainability clusters gives our show a new identity,” he said. Moreover, Sofianos is a believer. “I am totally obsessed by working on sustainable projects and consulting mills to choose the right path to responsible production.” —AV

l Founder and

creative director of Triarchy

Through the use of sustainable fibers like Tencel and his creative experimentation with upcycled vintage denim, Adam Taubenfligel, founder and creative director of the men's and women’s denim brand Triarchy, is among the roster of emerging premium brands with a pulse on sustainability. And as a brand from Los Angeles— where a drought can halt business—Taubenfligel became even more aware of denim’s water usage crisis. Describing denim as the “worst offender” when it comes to water waste, Taubenfligel has been persistent in his push to bring, not just sustainability, but a mindfulness of overall environmental impact to the denim industry. And his influence goes beyond denim—Taubenfligel regularly speaks to a wide variety of groups regarding the dangers of water waste and fast fashion. —CH

Summers spent treating and scratching jeans at her family’s factory paid off for Alice Tonello, head of marketing and R&D for Tonello, the Italian garment finishing technologies company. It was during these early days when she cultivated the creative and innovative knowledge that’s required to power the firm’s industry-changing sustainable machines. This year at ITMA, she displayed the firm’s prowess in both areas. Tonello’s All-in-OneSystem—a combination of the company’s proprietary sustainable technologies EcoFree 2, NoStone, Core and Up—was recognized as a finalist for the ITMA Sustainable Innovation Awards. And the firm tapped into the emotional side of denim through “Denim High Emotions,” a collaboration with artists Ian Berry and Juan Manual Gomez. Together, they created an immersive multi-sensory experience to showcase creativity in denim. —AV

PIERO TURK l Denim consultant

Heritage workwear is what drew Piero Turk to denim, but it was the 1980s boom in fashion denim where the Italian

l_____BERT VA N SON

designer cut his teeth working alongside other industry figureheads, like Adriano Goldschmied. Having also worked with major players in the denim sector, like Replay, Edwin, Guess and Pepe Jeans, among others, Turk has gleaned a lifelong education in denim-making—knowledge he now passes on as a freelance designer and consultant. He’s also the industry’s unofficial archivist, documenting sources of inspiration and vintage denim in his books “Details: A Life With Denim” and “A Life With Denim, Vol. 2.” —CH

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BERT VAN SON l Founder and CEO of Mud Jeans

After founding Mud Jeans in 2012, Bert van Son made history when he bowed the first denim rental business model long before resale became a fashion buzzword. An avid sailor and nature lover, he committed himself to finding ways to enjoy all of the world’s offerings without harming it. That’s what led him to build a denim brand for people who “love jeans as much as [they love] this planet,” by focusing on a circular economy. Initially, consumers were split between the those who purchase new jeans and those who rent, but in recent years the number has skewed in favor of renting. Most recently, van Son said the company’s aim is for 2020 to be the year the brand introduces 100 percent post-consumer recycled jeans. —LW

LIBBY WADLE l CEO of Madewell

ANDREA VENIER l Managing director of

Officina+39

Coming from a long line of textile professionals, Officina+39 managing director Andrea Venier grew up in Biella, one of Italy’s most famous fashion hubs. He studied chemical textiles before joining the family business and ultimately starting his own company, Officina+39, in 2007. The chemical company is the product of

an entirely new focus: technology. Through Officina+39, Venier and his team have worked to develop new processes to dye denim and other fabrics in a way that’s less taxing on the environment. One of its biggest breakthroughs so far, Recyrom, arrived in 2016. The patented technology uses 100 percent recycled materials to create long-lasting colors with an on-trend washed-out look. —LW

With Libby Wadle at the helm, Madewell has become the jewel of the J.Crew Group. A longtime J.Crew exec and part of the original Madewell team, Wadle was named president of the brand two years ago, taking its CEO reins this past April. Madewell has grown steadily under her leadership, opening new stores even when its parent company was closing its own. As J.Crew readies an IPO for the millennial-loved brand, Madewell is championing both sustainability and new partnerships. It’s committed to a long-term relationship with Fair Trade USA; has teamed with Isko and Candiani Denim through its Responsible Sourcing program; and collaborated with eco-star Christy Dawn for a new collection made entirely out of deadstock. During WWD Retail 2030 earlier this year, Wadle described these alliances as an important part of the brand’s DNA. “We think our Madewell customer expects a sense of discovery when she comes to us,” she said. “Our foundation is jeans but she really does expect that element of surprise.” —LJ

sions—graphic design and denim—when he penned “Denim Branded: Jeanswear’s Evolving Design Details.” The concept for the book was born of Williams’ own experience as a graphic designer for denim brands like Levi’s. During his 20 years working in the denim industry, he had always hoped to find a book dedicated to graphics and branding for apparel. The book, a 272-page visual deep dive into the history of denim branding, is not

Alice Tonello

Tilmann Wröbel

Henry Wong

only a source of creative inspiration, but an archive of the designs, brands and influential moments that have brought the industry to where it stands today. —CH

HENRY WONG l Director of product devel-

opment & marketing, North America for Artistic Fabric & Garment Industries

When it comes to denim, Henry Wong’s level of product knowledge is spellbinding. As Artistic Fabric & Garment Industries director, product development and marketing for North America, Wong oversees the ins and outs of the Pakistan-based company’s U.S. denim business. But it’s his enthusiasm for denim’s heritage, coupled with his very matter-offact attitude toward its future—particularly when it comes down to sustainability—that makes him a major asset to the whole trade show floor. What he’s most proud of? “Changing the perception of Pakistan from within the denim industry and playing a part in converting denim programs to be made in a better way with less impact to the environment,” Wong said. —AV

NICK WILLIAMS

TILMANN WRÖBEL

l Author

l Founder and creative director

of Monsieur-T.

Self-proclaimed “denim geek,” Nick Williams combined two of his pas-

Libby Wadle

From building out the expansive trend area

" W H EN A N I N D IGO P R O D U C T IS M A D E B E AU T I F U L LY, T H ER E IS A R E S P O N S I B I LITY FOR THE OW N ER T O U S E I T B E AU T I F U L LY.” —HENRY WONG, DIRECTOR OF PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT & MARKETING, NORTH AMERICA FOR ARTISTIC FABRIC & GARMENT INDUSTRIES for the Bluezone trade show each season, to co-developing collections with mills and ingredient brands, the influence of Monsieur-T., the international studio for denim and bottoms founded by Tilmann Wröbel, permeates across the denim industry. Born in Dusseldorf, Germany, Wröbel claims both German and French heritage—a quality that comes out in his enduring, yet elegant designs. And having worked with haute couture brands like Christian Dior and sportswear brands like Etnies, Wröbel personifies the luxury-meets-street trend consuming fashion in 2019. —CH

Visit our website for extended profiles: sourcingjournal.com/denim/Rivet-50

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Acne Studios jean jacket, Jordache T-shirt, Cotton Citizen denim skirt, Chanel necklace, R.J. Graziano necklace, Kenneth Jay Lane cuff, Annie Costello Brown chain belt, Alberta Ferretti belt. (Belts worn throughout.)

BELOW 14TH STREET The grit and glam of New York City in the early ’90s continues to inspire women’s denim. photography _____ K ATE O W EN styling _____ W W D S TA FF

SOURCING

THIS PAGE: GCDS jacket, Guess denim bra top, Mother jeans, Balmain hat, Casadei shoes. OPPOSITE: By Marta Goldschmied jacket, Avedon x Versace T-shirt, Jeremy Scott skirt.

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SOURCING

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Moschino jean jacket and skirt, Laruicci earrings and cuff, Kenneth Jay Lane cuffs, Jennifer Fisher rings, Alexis Bittar ring.

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Area bodysuit, BLDWN jeans, Laruicci earring, Kenneth Jay Lane necklace and cuffs, Chanel cuff, Jennifer Fisher rings, Versace ring, Alexis Bittar ring, Sergio Rossi boots.

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SOURCING

THIS PAGE: Edwin denim jacket and jeans, Laruicci earrings, Chanel necklace, Alexis Bittar ring, Kenneth Jay Lane cuffs. OPPOSITE: Triarchy jean jacket, Jordache jeans, Roberto Cavalli sunglasses, Jennifer Fisher earrings, Kenneth Jay Lane cuffs, Sergio Rossi boots.

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SOURCING

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THIS PAGE: Dion Lee top, Jordache jeans, Laruicci earrings, Chanel necklace, Kenneth Jay Lane cuffs. OPPOSITE: Danielle Guizio top, Mother skirt, Laruicci earrings, Chanel necklace, Kenneth Jay Lane necklace, Versace shoes. Model: Isabell Andreeva @ Supreme Management Hair: Kelsey Morgan @ Art Dept Makeup: Christyna Kay @ Art Dept Editor: Angela Velasquez Market Editors: Andrew Shang, Emily Mercer and Thomas Waller Casting: Luis Campuzano Photo Assistant: Isaac Schell Digi Tech: Jonathan Pivovar

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30 G-STA R T UR NS 30

A STAR IS BORN G-Star Raw celebrates 30 years of denim design and innovation. w ords _____ A N G E LA V E LA S Q U E Z

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G-STA R T UR NS 30

l_____ MO S T S U STA IN A BLE JEA N S EV ER COLLECTION

ounded by Jos van Tilburg in Amsterdam in 1989, G-Star Raw’s philosophy has always been based on innovative concepts that fueled many firsts in the denim industry. Today, G-Star’s three core values—real, honest and authentic—not only capture the company’s philosophy, but also signal the direction the denim industry is working toward through transparent and sustainable initiatives, which G-Star is often the first to try. From developing jeans made with the first Cradle to Cradle certified Gold denim, to launching Raw for the Oceans—a game-changing collection and campaign that helped shine a spotlight on the ocean plastic crisis—the brand isn't afraid of stepping out as a pioneer. “Thirty years is a long time in fashion. The key to remaining relevant isn’t only about the product itself,” said Melissa Moylan, Fashion Snoops vice president of women’s wear. “G-Star has taken on a broader responsibility by making sustainability one of its main design pillars. From using sustainable materials to supply chain optimization, they're making a positive impact that resonates with denim customers and the environment.” And part of G-Star’s confidence to experiment comes from its long-established partnerships with suppliers like Cone, which was the exclusive supplier of denim fabric for the brand’s first two seasons. Since then, Cone has worked with G-Star on the development of selvedge denims made using recycled content. G-Star was also an early adopter of Cone’s natural indigo fabrics. “It’s always exciting to work with like-minded partners,” said Kevin Reardon, Cone’s vice president of sales. “G-Star lives their passion for innovation and sustainability in everything they do. They collaborate with open minds and a challenge to do things differently, more responsibly and focused on making us all better in the future.” The fact that G-Star was one of the first brands to make a commitment to sustainable solutions hasn’t gone unnoticed either, said Amy Wang, Advance Denim general manager. The mill began working with G-Star in 2010 when the company started shifting its production to China. “They proved and continue to prove that sustainability is not just responsible but it is good business.” For many, G-Star is an ideal partner. Artistic Milliners, a Pakistan-based vertical denim manufacturer, learned this during the development of G-Star’s “Most Sustainable Jeans Ever” collection in 2018, which incorporated the first Cradle to Cradle certified Gold denim fabric. The collection

is made with 100 percent organic cotton and dyed with Artistic Milliner’s Crystal Clear indigo dyeing process, which uses 70 percent fewer chemicals than conventional dyeing techniques. The garments feature buttons without toxic chemicals and are also 98 percent recyclable. G-Star’s clear vision for sustainability sets the path for others to follow. “Innovation has always remained a core focus for G-Star, especially with its unique design, but their capability of marrying design with advanced technology and sustainability has been a huge inspiration to many denim brands in the industry,” said Omer Ahmed, Artistic Milliners owner and managing director. “The brand has always been brave, open, transparent and humble to share RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

G-STA R’S SU STAINABILITY MILESTO NES BY THE Y EAR

1989 Jos van Tilburg debuts G-Star Raw in Amsterdam

2006 Creates its first Supplier Code of Conduct with social and environmental standards for factory partners

2007 Releases first Restricted Substance List to monitor the use of chemicals in garments Launches GSRD Foundation to support communities in countries where G-Star products are made

2008 Debuts organic cotton jeans

2009 Joins Textile Exchange to help minimize the harmful impacts of the global textile industry

2010 Bans and stops selling sandblasted products Unveils RAW Sustainability program that promotes the use of sustainable materials

2012 Joins the Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) program Introduces sustainable materials for its bestselling garments like the Elwood jean

Passion for Denim, Passion for Life is our sustainability purpose to make a positive impact for a better life. This passion gets stronger with our stakeholders who aim to deliver change in the industry with us. We are honoured to share this sustainability journey with G-Star that innovates for the future since 1989.

2013 Concludes a Detox Solution Commitment with Greenpeace Introduces denim dyeing and finishing processes that reduce water consumption up to 95 percent

l_____EARTH COLORS

2014

96 their outstanding sustainability journey with the industry and the end consumer.” The industry took note when G-Star introduced EarthColors in 2017, a collection of denim dyed with Archroma’s dyeing technology derived from plant-based waste, said Dion Cragg, Archroma brand solutions for Europe. “The interest from brands in their EarthColors collections has created an enormous renewed interest in this award-winning technology,” he said. “And from this perspective, they have definitely influenced other brands, not just denim ones.” Working with G-Star has lasting positive effects on mills, too. Calik Denim, which has worked with G-Star since 2007, continues to be inspired by the brand’s enthusiasm for newness. “G-Star is a brand that is open to all innovations and ideas; we can brainstorm with the team and develop products together and they always push us to be more sustainable and innovative,” said Mehmet Serdar Özcan, Calik Denim’s European sales director. This type of entrepreneurial spirit is invaluable to the industry. “It contributes to our overall improvement, and the development of an innovative mindset,” Özcan added. While Saitex is now renowned for its sustainable processes, the Vietnam-based garment manufacturer learned a lot in its early days from working with G-Star, one of its first clients. And it still uses many processes that were a fundamental part of that initial experience with them. “G-Star had the patience and willingness to make mistakes in the research process in order to innovate,” said Jerome Lallouette, Saitex chief operating officer. Going forward, all eyes are on G-Star to see what the brand can achieve next. “Denim is an extremely competitive business, but I believe the brands that know how to offer innovation, cutting-edge style and quality will be the winners,” Wang said. “G-Star is a perfect example of a brand

focused on all three elements for success.” Though inspired by denim's heritage and workwear, Reardon says it isn’t in G-Star’s DNA to take a step back. “G-Star is a forward thinker,” he said. “As an industry leader, they are redefining social responsibility and leading a new thought evolution within the apparel industry.”

"G-S TA R IS A F ORWA R D T H IN K ER .” — Ke v in Re ardon, v ic e pre sident of s ale s for C one The brand is also making sustainability relevant through partnerships with celebrities like Jaden Smith and Pharrell Williams, who became co-owner and head of imagination for the company in 2016. “They have pushed the boundaries in terms of making sustainable ideas or concepts fashionable...,” Cragg said. “They are keeping the younger generation interested in denim as a must-have fashion item.” And that’s exactly what the denim industry needs. “For 30 years, G-Star has pushed the limits of denim design, changing an industry obsessed with the past by manifesting its own vision of the future,” Özcan said. “With this vision, they create the classics of tomorrow inspired by the power of sustainability and innovation.” RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

Publishes a manufacturing map linked to its online store so consumers can discover the origin of each product Debuts RAW for the Oceans collection made with plastic waste reclaimed from the ocean

2015 Joins Canopy to help protect ancient and endangered forests Publishes environmental guidelines for suppliers

2016 Doubles use of sustainable materials in its collection to 30 percent.

2017 Joins Sustainable Apparel Coalition Launches EarthColors, a line of denim dyed with recycled plant waste Creates the first Cradle to Cradle certified Gold denim fabric

2018 Launches the “Most Sustainable Jeans Ever” collection

2019 Celebrates 30 years of innovative denim design

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100

R AW TALENT How boundless creativity and experimentation led G-Star to establish its signature looks.

lot more than just clothing. “There is a democracy and utilitarianism to their styling,” he said. “You have a mix of vintage, military and contemporary items in every style and they are quick to make iconic denim. One only needs to look at the 3D design of their Elwood jean.” Designed by G-Star’s original head designer, Pierre Morisset, who pioneered the 3D design to create the ergonomic style, the Elwood has become a foundational piece in the brand’s archive since launching in 1996. As the story goes, the jean was inspired by the way a passing motorcyclist’s jeans contoured to his body. “G-Star has always been known as a leader in denim,” added Amy Wang, Advance Denim general manager. “And certainly the revolutionary Elwood was a benchmark.” Today, the jean is recognized by five key elements: reinforced knee patches, shaping knee darts, an internal saddle patch, heel guards and slanted thigh seams. The Elwood has since gone on to become a staple in the brand’s collection and a popular canvas for collaborations and capsules, including the brand’s Three Decades of Raw collection released in September. Inspired by the G-Star archive, the 30th anniversary collection includes reissued staples with modernized details, like leather reinforced patches on the Rackham anorak and triple-needle workwear stitching on the 5620 Elwood jeans. The collection also features sartorial pieces, like the New York Raw dress, a 1950s-inspired fit and flare dress that debuted at New York Fashion Week in 2010. “Thanks to their innovative approach, G-Star has proved that a denim brand could be stylish and elegant at the same time, leaving this as an inspiration to present and future brands,” said Mehmet Serdar Özcan, European sales director for Calik. l_____FA L L '19

ew denim brands are true originals when it comes to design, but G-Star can count itself among the elite, thanks in part to its laser sharp focus on “denim firsts.” The brand is widely credited with elevating raw denim into show pieces that balance denim’s heritage with fashion and streetwear. By carving out its own niche, Kingpins founder Andrew Olah said the company never seems to be chasing fashion. “They do not follow obvious trends so they really don’t compete with anyone but themselves,” he said. Originality is in its DNA. “G-Star has a strong brand identity in the industry, which offers a denim lifestyle that fuses high level craftsmanship and sophisticated product for the urban denim community,” said Omer Ahmed, owner and managing director of Artistic Milliners. “The exceptional creativity and the product-focused mindset keep the brand ahead of the game, specifically for offering sustainable denim solutions to the consumer.” While the brand has become a destination for innovation, Melissa Moylan, Fashion Snoops vice president of women’s wear, says the brand continuously upholds its raw denim roots. “I remember G-Star was the brand to shop for raw denim in the 2000s,” she said. “They’ve grown so much from that and have become a purveyor of sustainability in the fashion industry, while being on-trend in terms of fits and finishes. They've maintained street cred amongst the major denim players and they have a cult following.” While most denim brands are doing 5-pocket jeans, Saitex chief operating officer Jerome Lallouette said G-Star consistently shows that denim’s function can be used for a

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DUTCH F MASTER 102

G-Star Raw shines a spotlight on Amsterdam’s denim talent.

ashion may not be first to mind when people think of Amsterdam, but the global denim industry knows better. With pioneering denim companies, like PVH Europe, Scotch & Soda, Denham the Jeanmaker and Kings of Indigo headquartered in the Dam, which is also home to the world’s first denim-focused education offering, the Jean School, the city has become a breeding ground for denim talent during the last decade. The arrival of Kingpins Amsterdam in 2013 welcomed the denim supply chain, followed by a crop of denim mill showrooms and the launch of the now global festival, Amsterdam Denim Days, solidifying denim as part of Amsterdam’s economy and lifestyle. “We like to call Amsterdam the birthplace of

l_____FA L L ' 1 9

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denim innovators,” said Charlene Verweij, press officer for Amsterdam & Partners, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the city’s businesses. “We are truly a denim capital.” And G-Star is one of the city’s homegrown brands that is globally recognized for upholding contemporary Dutch design’s penchant for form and function. “G-Star is a great ambassador all over the world for our denim and fashion industry,” Verweij said. “The brand showcases Dutch creativity and innovation, while at the same time keeping the edginess that Amsterdam is known for.” G-Star’s presence in Amsterdam helped Mariette Hoitink establish her fashion recruitment and consultancy business, HTNK. The brand set a new standard, she said, by always asking for the best talent and finding experienced people to join its team “not based on their CV, but on unique talent and skills.” “I had the honor to work on the key positions [and] literally saw G-Star grow from a local to global brand,” she said. While G-Star didn’t invent raw denim, Verweij says its philosophy of focusing on “just the product” has inspired other denim brands to hone their craft in a responsible way. Amsterdam’s Nine Streets in the Central Canal District alone reveals itself to be a shrine to raw denim from brands and retailers like Denham, Nudie Jeans and Tenue de Nîmes. Along with raw denim, these purveyors have sustainability top of mind—a focus that G-Star helped spread across the denim industry through its efforts to reduce plastics in the ocean, conserve water and create a circular economy. And in some ways, G-Star’s mission and Amsterdam’s culture are a perfect match. This eco-responsible mindset is echoed across the city through various efforts to increase reneawable energy, ramp up recycling and, of course, encouraging bicycling. “Amsterdam has the mix of old world with bikes, brownstones and canals, with new world electric cars, high speed ferries and digital startups,” said Tricia Carey, director of global business development for denim at Lenzing. “It is the perfect environment for G-Star’s mission of innovation and sustainability.” While the fashion industry is a polluting one, G-Star represents how one company can create a new course of action. “I would say that the true power of G-Star is that the brand works both on making sustainability an integral part of their business as well as making consumers aware of pollution, while at the same time offering them options to be part of the solution,” Verweij said. “I think in doing this, G-Star has been an example, not just for fashion companies, but for businesses in general.”

DATABASE: COTTON CONSUMPTION

COTTONâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S PATH FROM FARM TO FACTORY 104

As the major ingredient in denim, cotton is grown, shipped and manufactured in fabric and apparel around the world.

Market Share 2019 - 20 (million bales) 29 27.8

wor ds _____ A RT H UR F R I EDM A N 22

Cotton is probably the most recognized fiber in the denim market, and whether in its pure form or blended with other fibers, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s still largely the key ingredient in jeans. Traded as a commodity, cotton is also subject to the whims and machinations of global economic conditions, geopolitics and international commerce. These factors have caused some recent swings in which countries are its largest importers and exporters, which are its biggest growers and which have the most mills consuming the natural fiber. The current U.S.-China trade war has also put cotton at the center of a battle over tariffs, which has caused changes in the global flow of cotton from farm to factory.

Production and mill-use Representing an estimated 50 percent share of the global fiber market, cotton is grown

9.3 M IL 7.8 MI L

PA K ISTA N

on six continents. A recent U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report forecast world production in the current 2019-20 crop year to reach 125.8 million bales, compared to 119.3 million

BRA Z IL

bales for the 2018-19 season. The outlook for mill use is for 124.3 million bales this season, an increase of 0.25 percent from 2018-19. With cotton production higher and consumption lower,

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CHINA

INDIA

the figure for world ending stocks in 2018-19 increased 1.7 million bales to 79.3 million, according to the USDA. That carried through to 201920, as an increase in beginning stocks contributed to a 3.2

million bale upward revision to the forecast for 2019-20 ending stocks, which are now expected to reach 80.4 million bales of cotton. India’s market share has grown in recent years, surpassing the U.S. and China as the world’s top cotton cultivator. The USDA forecast for the 2019-20 crop season has India remaining on top and increasing its production to 29 million bales, in line with increased mill use. China’s production is projected to stay flat at 27.8 million bales, while the U.S. will increase its output to 22 million bales. Brazil’s production is seen falling to 12 million bales and Pakistan’s output is forecast to grow to 8 million bales.

China Projected Mill-Use 2018

2019

- 500,000

- 500,500

(million bales)

World trade Global cotton imports are now forecast to reach 44.1 million bales in the 2019-20 season, compared to 41.4 million bales in 2018-19. China, the largest importer of cotton in the world, is expected to take 10.5 million bales into the country, compared to 9.3 million bales last season, when it drew down its reserves. Vietnam—the second

44.1M The amount of bales global cotton imports are forecast to reach in the 2019-20 season largest importer of cotton in the world in 2018-19, with 7 million bales brought in to support its textile and apparel manufacturing sector—is forecast to import 7.8 million bales in 2019-20. Bangladesh imported 6.9 million bales in 2018-19 and is expected to boost that to 7.3 million bales this year.

The U.S. is by far the world’s largest exporter of cotton. In 2018-19, the country exported 14.5 million bales, representing more than 35 percent of global exports. The forecast for 2019-20 is for the U.S. to ship 17 million bales of cotton. Brazil, which exported 6.2 million bales in 2018-19, is expected to see its exports increase to 8 million bales in 2019-20. India is also forecast to see its shipments rise to 4.4 million bales from 3.8 million bales in 2018-19. In combination, the smaller decrease in 2019-20 production relative to mill-use, and the increase in 2019-20 beginning stocks, pushed the forecast for 2019-20 ending stocks to a 3.2 million-bale upward revision to 80.4 million bales. According to Cotton Incorporated, 2019-20 is expected to be fifth consecutive crop year that Chinese stocks decrease and the fourth consecutive crop year that stocks outside China will increase. This is evidence of China’s ongoing decline in market position in the sector.

40. 5

USDA projects China’s 2018-19 mill-use to finish down 500,000 bales to 40 million bales. Notable revisions to 2019-20 forecasts for consumption include a 500,500bale reduction for China to 40.5 million bales, as well as 30,000-bale decreases for Bangladesh to 7.4 million bales and a 500,000-bale gain for Vietnam to 7.6 million bales. The overall forecast for mill-use also includes India’s output growing to 25.5 million bales. Pakistan’s will inch up to 10.7 million bales.

Global Cotton Exports 2019 - 20 (million bales)

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The Different Types of Cotton For the average consumer or designer, knowing what variety of cotton is going into their garments, isn’t all that common. But there are subtle differences in the fibers that go into making the cotton fabric or yarn that serves as the foundation of their clothing. There are three groups of commercial cotton in the U.S.: American Upland cotton, American Pima or Extra Long Staple (ELS) cotton, and shorter length cottons. Upland cotton is native to Mexico and Central America and has been developed for extensive use in the U.S. This group is known in the U.S. as “American Upland” cotton and has fibers that range in length from roughly 7/8 to 15/16 inches. Fiber length affects yarn strength, evenness and the efficiency of the spinning process. American Upland cotton accounts for more than 95 percent of U.S. production, according to Cotton Incorporated. American Pima cotton, or ELS cotton, accounts for the balance of cotton used in the U.S. American Pima cotton is marketed as Supima in the U.S., and produced primarily in California and the Southwest. The longer fiber is said to resist pulling, breaking and tearing, resulting in fashion and home goods that are resilient and keep their form for longer-lasting product. A sub group of Long Staple, not commonly used, is about 1 ¼ inch long. A third group consists of cotton with shorter fiber lengths, ½ to 1 inch, which are native to India and Eastern Asia. No cotton from this group is grown in the U.S. While many premium brands tout the use of organic cotton, Textile Exchange’s 2018 Organic Cotton report showed global organic cotton production grew 10 percent over the prior year, with the largest volumes coming from India, China, Turkey and Kyrgyzstan, though it still made up less than 1 percent of global cotton production.

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DATABASE: U.S. DENIM IMPORTS

DENIM’S SOURCING PLAYBOOK GETS REWRITTEN 106

As denim companies diversify their sourcing outside of China, many favor safety nets over low cost. wor ds _____ A RT H UR F R I EDM A N

Jeans sourcing has seen a shakeup in the last year as companies look for riskaverse production paths, and those shifts will continue to contribute to a more diversified landscape. With the U.S.-China tariff-fueled trade war serving as a catalyst—not to mention other geopolitical factors— denim brands and retailers are

rewriting their manufacturing playbooks. “The uncertainty is taking its toll and everybody is being cautious,” said Julia K. Hughes, president of the United States Fashion Industry Association (USFIA). Denim, according to Hughes, is a textbook example of what has occurred in apparel sourcing overall. Declining

Market Share YTD June 2019 I NDI A 1 .1 4 %

GUATE MALA 0 .8 7 %

OTHE R 1 1 .8 3 %

JORDAN 1 .7 %

C H IN A 22.82%

INDO NESI A 2. 14% C AM BO DI A 2. 77%

imports to the U.S. from China, have helped fuel increases from a range of “countries that are perceived as the safe havens,” from Vietnam and India to the Western Hemisphere. Essentially, according to Olah Inc. managing director Robert Antoshak, nonChina countries are holding increasingly greater appeal. “Growth is coming from places that are not China,” said Antoshak, who supervises Olah’s global cotton marketing and consulting programs. “It’s coming from Mexico, it’s also coming from Central America, Nicaragua in particular. Even countries like Egypt are up.”

Asia

NIC ARAG UA 3. 16% EG YPT 3. 98% PAKI STAN 6 .6 9 % M EXIC O 22.16 VI E TNA M 8 .3 8 % BA NGL A D ESH 1 4 .5 %

In the first half of 2019, denim apparel imports from China dropped 10.44 percent to a value of $369.97 million, according to the Commerce Department’s Office of Textiles & Apparel (OTEXA). This brought China’s market share of the category down to 22.82 percent, a 5.11 percent decline

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for the year ended June 30, 2019, OTEXA data shows. Among the major Asian suppliers, Pakistan and Vietnam were the big winners in the first half. Pakistan, which also benefits from being a major supplier of denim fabric, saw its first-half imports to the U.S. rise 15.49 percent to $119.72 million. But it was Vietnam that really saw things take off. Jeans imports from the country jumped 29.36 percent to a value of $142.36 million in the period, and its market share rose 36.39 percent to 8.38 percent for the 12 months ended in June. “Vietnam is soaring right now in women’s,” Antoshak said. “It has the potential to overtake China this year in women’s…Vietnam and Pakistan are clearly taking China’s market share.” For India, its share of the denim market has doubled. Jeans imports from India rose 54.5 percent in the first half to reach $20.43 million.

10.44% How much China's denim apparel imports decreased in the first half of 2019

+54. 5%

Denim Apparel Imports by Country YTD JUNE 2019

+29 .3 6 %

ASIA

+ 1 5 .4 9 %

+23.66%

+14.44% +12.06%

AFRICA

WESTERN HEMISPHERE

+28.02%

+2.66% + 1 .1 3 % - 1 0. 44%

According to Hughes, “It hasn’t been seen traditionally as a big denim supplier, but a lot of companies are moving to India. There are already some strong denim manufacturers there, which is why I think the men’s denim could jump pretty quickly because that’s less fashion and less blending than the women’s denim.” Cambodia fared less well in the period, with imports falling 8.47 percent to a value of $45.89 million. Indonesia’s shipments were down 2.54 percent to $35.57 million, and though Bangladesh saw a slight uptick in

JO RDA N

EGY P T

GUAT EM A L A

N IC A RAGUA

M EXIC O

C A M B O D IA

IN D O N ESIA

BA N GL A DESH

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V IET N A M

CH I N A

IN D IA

-8 .4 7 % -2 .5 4 %

its shipments to the U.S., it was a nominal 1.13 percent in the period to $247.5 million. “Bangladesh and Cambodia have significant labor issues,” Antoshak said, which means “there’s a high-risk element” to sourcing there. “People in these risky times are turning to safety, which could explain why places like Mexico may be seen as [safer] than others.”

Western Hemisphere The No. 2 supplier overall, Mexico inched up on China to hold a 22.16 percent market share.

Jeans imports from Mexico rose 14.44 percent to $410.07 million in the first half, leading to a Western Hemisphere increase of 12.03 percent to $509.74 million, which also included a 28.02 percent gain by Nicaragua to $55.19 million, and 12.06 percent growth in Guatemala to $16.22 million. Men’s and boys’ jeans imports from Mexico rose 16.08 percent in the first half to a value of $364.15 million. Shipments of the same category from Nicaragua jumped 49.08 percent to $49.38 million.

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Africa Africa has also emerged as an alternative to China for denim sourcing. As Hughes noted, most of the countries from the continent are eligible for duty-free or preferential trade treatment, which makes them attractive and also holds down costs. In the first half, jeans imports from Egypt were up 2.66 percent to $75.21 million, while shipments from Jordan increased 23.66 percent to $32.25 million. Madagascar, Kenya and Mauritius also posted gains. The overall shift in jeans production “reflects the division in souring,” Hughes said. “Not everyone is going to the same place,” she said. “I think we’re going to see that trend continue. The problem is that China is not going to go to zero–it’s kind of impossible to find enough production around the world to replace China. There are pockets of growth, but not enough to replace China.” The uncertainty, Hughes said, has caused a lot of suffering for the sector, and that’s what’s driving the sourcing shifts. “The duty-free options are really getting attention, whether it’s Nicaragua or Egypt,” she added. Under the premise that everything has ramifications, Hughes said the countries seeing increased sourcing are raising prices to meet demand. That’s because when sourcing patterns are disrupted, the cost of doing business increases. If companies switch production to places like Vietnam or Bangladesh, for example, they would likely have to then import fabric, since the operations aren’t as vertical as in China. Logistics costs could also increase in line with the uncertaintyfueled production shifts. Even if labor costs are lower in a particular country, these added expenses could bring the costs of goods up anywhere from 5 percent to more than 10 percent.

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DENIM UNDERGOES A STRETCH AND RECOVERY TO AUTHENTICITY More U.S. consumers are reaching for denim, and the comfort stretch provides is a major bonus—as long as it doesn't go overboard.

ENIM, BY DEFINITION, IS COTTON.

But a check of garment labels might show some other fibers in the mix; specifically, synthetics included for stretch. But how much is too much? Consumer preferences and product wearability figure into the equation, as do growing concerns about synthetic microfiber pollution in the world’s waterways. The good news is that consumers are rediscovering their love for denim. According to the Cotton Incorporated Lifestyle Monitor™ survey, over the past year, the number of consumers who say they love or enjoy wearing denim is on the rise across almost all demographics, most significantly among Gen Z consumers (+6 percentage points) and boomers (+4 percentage points); with a modest increase among Gen X (+1 percentage point); and millennials holding steady at 47 percent making the claim. These consumers are fully in favor of stretch in their denim. And brands are responding. The Cotton Incorporated Retail Monitor™ study reveals that 79 percent of denim offerings at U.S. retail contain elastane or spandex for stretch; up 7 percentage points since 2017. This is welcome news to denim-wearing consumers. Responses to the Lifestyle Monitor™ survey reveal that 63 percent of U.S. consumers say they would pay more for denim made primarily from cotton, but with some stretch. To clarify what ‘some’ means to consumers, survey respondents were asked to rate percentage ranges

for stretch in denim. Fifty-seven percent responded that 6 percent to 10 percent stretch was too much; 14 percent stated that 4 percent or less was too little; and 29 percent felt that 5 percent was just right. The respondents advocating for 5 percent synthetic stretch or less may have based their opinion on personal preferences for fit and feel; or upon their personal experience with the sometimeslimited wear life of mixed-fiber denim. Denim is a sturdy construction; and whether the wearer wants a worn-in or pristine look, the presence of ‘fuzz balls’ on the surface is for many, a bitter pill. The addition of synthetic fibers to cotton denim for stretch can be a good thing. It can enhance fit and allow for a more fluid range of motion. Typically, elastane or spandex is added in single-digit percentages for stretch. Polyester is often included to assist with stretch recovery; usually in the 10 to 13 percent range. These fiber blend ratios require a delicate balance; enough stretch-and-recovery to provide function without sacrificing wear life. The connection between fiber blends and wearlife has to do with the mechanics of movement. Motion creates friction where fibers intersect. When a fiber of one tensile strength rubs against a fiber of another tensile strength, it can result in undesirable pilling that adversely affects the wearlife of the garment. Studies, such as Study of Pilling in Polyester/Cotton Blended Fabrics, concludes that increasing the ratio of polyester in cotton/poly blends increases the likelihood of pilling. The Retail Monitor™ reveals that 46 percent of

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

current denim retail offerings in the U.S. contain polyester; an increase of 5 percentage points over two years. This may be less well-received by consumers because of the increased awareness of synthetic microfiber pollution in the world’s oceans, rivers, and wastewater treatment facilities. There are frequent media reports citing the prevalence and persistence of synthetic microfibers in the world’s waterways. And consumers are aware. The number of U.S. consumers claiming they are aware of microfiber pollution increased 59 percent from 2017 to 2019. Of the 27 percent citing awareness, 60 percent claimed that concerns over microplastic pollution would influence their future purchasing decisions. Visibility of the microfiber issue may also be influencing an uptick in the number of consumers checking fiber content labels. Lifestyle Monitor™ data reveals that from 2013 to 2019, the number of Gen X consumers claiming that they always or usually check fiber content labels before purchasing apparel jumped 7 percentage points; and the number of Gen Y respondents making the same claim increased by 13 percentage points. More modest increases were seen in the Gen Z demographic (up 2 percentage points). Cotton’s Lifestyle Monitor™ has been keeping a finger on the pulse of consumer preferences and habits for over 25 years. While it cannot speak to what motivates the responses, there is a clear indication that consumer interest in denim is on the rise, and that authentic cotton denim may soon have a resurgence.

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Sixty-three percent of U.S. consumers say they would pay more for denim made primarily from cotton, but with some stretch.

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RANCH DRESSING

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Denim finds its groove in the Yeehaw Agenda. “COWBOY HAT FROM GUCCI, Wrangler on my booty,” may go down as the single lyric that defined fashion in 2019. The line, from Lil Nas X’s hit “Old Town Road,” was just one signifier that the Yeehaw Agenda—a movement coined by pop culture archivist Bri Malandro to describe the black cowboy culture and aesthetic—is taking music and fashion by the reins. Organizations like the Compton Cowboys in California and the New York Federation of Black Cowboys have helped raise awareness of black cowboy history—an era that has inspired the work of tastemakers like designers Pyer Moss and Telfar Clemens, and songstress Solange. Along the way, they’ve influenced red carpet and mainstream fashion. Achieving the look of the Yeehaw Agenda is simple: 10-gallon hats, double denim and western boots provide a template for cowboy and cowgirl regalia, like fringe, embroidery, rhinestones and customized belt buckles. And the movement doesn’t show any signs of slowing as fashion week goers braved the summer dressed in suede fringe chaps. —Angela Velasquez

l_____DIP LO BUC K LES UP IN DOU BL E DEN IM.

Suede chaps for the urban cowboy.

Patrick Schwarzenegger brings a taste of Texas to the Met Gala in Ralph Lauren. Ray Lil Nas X and Billy . Cyrus go toe to toe

RIVET NO.8 / OCTOBER 2019

cotton does blazing innovation. When it comes to innovation, cotton is lighting a fire in the denim category. Cutting-edge technologies such as lasers make denim finishing more sustainable by reducing the need for water, energy and harmful chemicals. Cotton denim is more than a fashion classic – it’s fashion’s future.

discover what cotton can do.