LONDON — Re/Done is adding menswear to its repertoire.
The cool Los Angeles-based label known for giving vintage Levi’s denim a new life has two big singular visions for 2023: to launch men’s successfully and maintain a steady pace of business in the current climate crisis, said Jamie Mazur on Zoom, cofounder of Re/Done with Sean Barron.
The idea to venture into the men’s market had started pre-COVID-19, but the operation was paused to focus on the rest of the business as the world went into lockdown.
“We’ve done so many different projects within Re/Done, so this is the first time I’ve actually felt like I actually get to really focus on it,” said Mazur, whose men’s collection launches Tuesday.
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The brand’s ethos of upcycled, recycled and deadstock fabrics will continue into the men’s category that includes knitwear using upcycled Hanes T-shirts and double V sweatshirts; shirting made from vintage Japanese textiles; and straight, slim and loose denim styles inspired by the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘90s.
The concept of Re/Done is all about reconstructing old Levi’s into new styles, which is what inspired Mazur to start the brand. Re/Done has upcycled nearly 200,000 pairs of Levi’s.
“When we first started Re/Done, I would buy vintage Levi’s and tailor them myself and then I noticed girls were doing it and girlfriends of mine that were stylists were doing it too,” said Mazur, explaining that the reason he started the label was to make what he was doing for himself “available to men and women.”
When Mazur began Re/Done with Barron, the women’s category came first for the sake of the business. Mazur believed, “if you’re going to make money in fashion you’re going to make women’s clothes. Now it’s a different beast because men’s fashion is just as important,” he said.
Working with Levi’s and Hanes T-shirts has always felt quite “masculine” to Mazur, which is why he’s never felt out of place when creating clothes for Re/Done.
“We have had a lot of skinny men buying women’s jeans over the years,” said Mazur. He’s often met with questions from customers whose boyfriends have asked when Re/Done will launch menswear.
Mazur is candid about not overachieving in 2023 because of the cost-of-living crisis happening right now — he’s happy being fixed on Re/Done’s current success and homing in on the men’s launch.
“We’re pausing doing anything anywhere just to maintain [what] we have and if things change in the next year we’re going to get back on opening stores,” said Mazur, whose ambitions are still in high spirits about opening a store in London after the warm welcome they encountered in their Chiltern Street pop-up store.
In July 2022, Re/Done opened a retail store in the 7th Arrondissement of Paris, in the heart of Saint-Germain as part of its expansion. International markets account for 40 percent of the brand’s site traffic, wholesale represents 55 percent of the business, while direct-to-consumer on e-commerce and brick-and-mortar is 45 percent of the business.
The label will be celebrating its 10th anniversary next year — over the years, Mazur’s biggest challenge has been launching ready-to-wear because “it’s really hard to take something and make something new out of it that you actually want to wear or resonate with people. Our goal was always to just continue to upcycle and be sustainable.”