An American Wardrobe Must-have

by Jenna Mamorsky

Jeans have remained an American "must have" since Levi Strauss co-patented the denim jean in 1873 with Jacob Davis. Then, jeans were created as a functional, durable work-pant which were reinforced with rivets or studs to insure longevity.

Today, designers like Ralph Lauren manufacture jeans as fashion statements, and when the jean explosion became so fashionably important Lauren found THE expert in denim duds - Sun Apparel of Texas, which was bought by Jones Apparel Group in 1998 - to manufacture jeans for Polo Jeans which he started in the Fall of 1996. Since 1996, Polo Jeans has been carving out jean fashion trends for consumers of all ages.

TEENSPEAK recently travelled to New York City to discover what steps this wardrobe staple goes through before it gets hung in our closets.

It is hard to be Polo Jeans and on top of the fashion curve with competitors like Calvin Klein, Tommy Hillfiger, Guess, DKNY and others. Brand identity, according to Polo Jeans Chief Executive Officer Mindy Grossman, is very important in the fashion industry, and for Polo Jeans, this identity has been cast: Integrity is achieved in classic, vintage and military styles which have been updated to adapt to our current lifestyle. All of the Polo Jeans designs reflect Ralph Lauren's fondness for vintage, and an overall respect for the historical reference which he often includes in his designs. "Polo Jeans will not change their philosophy, but we will evolve with the consumers' trends, lifestyles and what's happening in the world," Ms. Grossman told us.

Clothing design for Polo Jeans is done by a team that works closely with Ralph Lauren at the helm. Chris Leba, Vice President of Mens' Design gets excited when "his juices are flowing!" He animatedly exclaimed, "I love the way that looks fresh," as he showed TEENSPEAK's staff his inspiration boards for Spring, 2001. While we can't share the actual secrets of what's in store for next Spring, we can tell you that design teams have to plan a year ahead because there is a lot of work that goes into bringing a line of clothing to market. Besides, it always takes a good design team to get a little inspiration...maybe even from a hotel magazine...right? This may seem a little unusual, but Chris says that any source is a good resource to creating the latest trends. We were shown "pallet groups" for next year's collection, and each one had a different look, all inspired in different ways.