NEW YORK — Scott Morrison walked through his Gansevoort Street storefront — where workmen were still maneuvering unfinished floorboards into place, the walls were nothing but exposed brick and the sole light was provided by a halogen rig the crew had set up — and spoke assuredly of opening for business in a little more than two weeks.
Given the unfinished state of the space and the thick haze of sawdust in the air, it could be construed that Morrison’s schedule was a bit overoptimistic. But the raw look of the space was not that far from the ideal that Morrison wants for Earnest Sewn’s first retail location.
Morrison started Earnest Sewn last year, after parting ways with former employer Paper, Denim & Cloth, and serves as its president. He’s built the brand into a $20 million business by embracing an imperfect aesthetic.
The jeans, which wholesale from $74 to $98 and command retail prices in excess of $200, are made using single-needle sewing machines, evoking the rougher feel of jeans from the late 19th century. For instance, the twin seams running down the inside leg of the jeans tend not to be parallel in this sewing method.
The 2,600-square-foot store, located on the ground floor of the same building in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District that houses the company’s showroom, is on target to open April 15, Morrison said. It will be a wide-open space, with exposed brick walls, rough-wood flooring and decorations including a 500-pound bale of cotton, sewing machines and other implements of jeans manufacturing.
“It certainly has a museum-type quality, where you can really see how the jeans are made,” Morrison said Tuesday. “We’ll have a lot of stuff that you can’t do in a regular retail store. We’ll be able to sew full garments down there. You can go in there and basically hand-pick any roll of denim you want. Pick your back pockets, pick your rivets, your hardware, pick out your fit…and you can have them sew up your jeans.”
Morrison said he expects it to take about 60 to 75 minutes for the jeans to be finished, which he acknowledged means custom customers will “probably want to go have lunch” while they wait. The service is likely to appeal only to fans of dark, rigid denim, since the store will not be equipped with an industrial washer.
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In addition to the full jeans line, the store will stock the An Earnest Cut and Sew sportswear line that the company plans to unveil in June, and accessories from other vendors, including Carpe Diem shoes and Holland & Holland bags. A 400-square-foot room in the back of the store will serve as a seasonal boutique, where brands and retailers from overseas will be invited to set up a temporary in-store shop.
Given its location in a downtown neighborhood that’s fairly empty during the day, Morrison said the store won’t be a high-volume location.
“If we sell 50 pairs of jeans a month, we’ll be totally fine,” he said. “Hopefully, people are going to come in and take away a sense of what we’re really all about.”
If the store meets his expectations, Earnest Sewn may open additional locations in London and Japan, he noted.
In its first year in business, the company’s sales have broken down about evenly between women’s and men’s products, but Morrison, 32, said he believes the brand’s women’s business could be stronger.
“Our women’s business has struggled a little bit to find its way,” he said. “Men’s is a little easier to get correct….Women’s is just a little bit tougher because it’s so much more fit-oriented.”
He said the brand’s early women’s styles had featured a sharp drop from a higher rise in the back to a low-rise in the front. While that contoured style of waistband has proven popular in general, Morrison said the high-end customer Earnest Sewn targets wanted a lower rise all around the waist.
Morrison said he hopes the store will help to build awareness of his brand.
“We’re not going to make any money here,” he said. “It’s about really creating a really beautiful marketing piece for the brand.”