Know your factories. Know your costs. Always ask why.

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Know your factories. Know your costs. Always ask why."

Eustacia Johnson
5 years ago
Views:

1 EVERLANE

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Know Your Factories 6 Know your factories. Know your costs. Always ask why. Know Your Costs 24 Design Philosophy 32 Lookbook 38 Always Ask Why 52 Press 72

3 INTRODUCTION We started Everlane three years ago with a simple statement: Your designer clothes sell for 8 times what they cost to make. Not at Everlane. Those words struck a chord. We set out to design beautiful basics, and offer them online only without any of the traditional markups. That means a luxury tee that costs $8 to make is sold to you for $15 instead of $50. We soon realized not only did people not know the crazy markups they pay they didn t know where their clothes were being made, or under what conditions. We believe customers have the right to know where their products come from and what they cost to make. The idea of Radical Transparency quickly became a core tenet of Everlane, informing decisions at every level of our business. We now reveal all of our costs and document every factory we work with. Meet a new kind of retail.

4 KNOW YOUR FACTORIES

5 Know Your Factories THE SEARCH Before we begin designing a new product, we spend months seeking out the best factory to bring it to life. What matters most is finding the right people for the job and the factories we partner with employ highly skilled workers who have truly mastered a category. The best T-shirt production is in LA; the most beautiful silk shirts are made in China; and Italy is undeniably the best resource for leather bags and shoes. So that s where we go. Transparency means knowing the story behind every factory. OUR FACTORY PARTNERS Our factory partners work with 14 factories in five countries. We look for factories that work with premium brands we respect, and more importantly, we look for partners and owners that really respect the people they employ. We visit these factories often and have developed strong, personal relationships with the management. FACTORY SITE Next we photograph and document all the factories we work with and share their stories on our site. We believe this hands-on approach with strong communication is the best way to ensure the integrity of our manufacturing partners, and it keeps us accountable, too. We invite you to explore our factories at everlane.com/factories 9

6 1 - SAN FRANCISCO, CA The Belt factory 5 - HAWICK, SCOTLAND The Scarf factory 9 - BRESCIA, ITALY The Shoe factory 3 - DONGGUAN, CHINA The Weekender and Backpack factory 2 - LOS ANGELES, CA The Ryan factory 6 - UBRIQUE, SPAIN The Wallet factory 10 - HANGZHOU, CHINA The Silk factory 14 - DONGGUAN, CHINA The Small Leather Goods factory 3 - LOS ANGELES, CA The T-shirt factory 7 - COSSATO, ITALY The Infinity Scarf factory 11 - DONGGUAN, CHINA The Wool and Cashmere factory 4 - LOS ANGELES, CA The French Terry factory 8 - VICENZA, ITALY The Leather Bag factory 12 - DONGGUAN, CHINA The Knit Sweater factory To learn more about our factories visit: everlane.com/factories

7 LOS ANGELES, USA The Tee and Sweatshirt Factory This factory is located just a few miles from downtown Los Angeles. It s not unusual to see our production team on-site checking in on the quality of our product before it s shipped to our warehouse. HOW WE FOUND IT In our initial phases of production, we worked with six different vendors to produce a single T-shirt. The process was painful and we had an inventory loss at every step. Those were early days. In an attempt to move to a full-package vendor, we met with every major factory in Los Angeles. We were impressed by the workmanship here and the environment created for the factory workers. We visit this facility a few times a year to check up on production and quality control pieces. THE MATERIALS Our company would not exist today without the support of our jersey cotton supplier. We met them in the early stages of founding the company and have stuck with them since. They re one of the few mills in Los Angeles that also handles finishing of fabric. Our women s T-shirt fabric is a 40-single yarn a term to denote the weight of the fabric made of 100% Supima cotton. All of the cotton is grown directly in the United States and shipped to the mill. Our men s T-shirts use a heavier 30-single cotton. The fibers are imported from India and then handled in our Los Angeles mill. ABOUT THE OWNER When you look for the owner of our tee factory Mr. Kim, you won t find him hidden away in an air-conditioned office. His work space is right on the factory floor in the middle of all the action. Kim s openness translates into everything he does, from overseeing production to buying us lunch whenever we stop by and it s one of the main reasons we have such a strong relationship with the factory.

DONGGUAN, CHINA The Cashmere Factory Established in 2000, this factory employs 800 people in the city of Dongguan. The grounds of the factory are simple, yet elegant.

9 DONGGUAN, CHINA The Cashmere Factory Established in 2000, this factory employs 800 people in the city of Dongguan. The grounds of the factory are simple, yet elegant. On our last visit we toured the local cafeteria and discussed what many workers do for fun. On the weekends, they often run into town for movies or play Mahjong in the courtyard. HOW WE FOUND IT When we decided to produce cashmere, we knew we had to work with the same factories used by top brands. Luckily, we had a friend in the industry willing to make an introduction. He called Mr. Chu, and introduced Everlane as a small brand that might have small units today, but will grow tremendously over the coming years. This factory took a chance on us for our first production run. THE MATERIALS Developing cashmere yarn is as much an art as it is a science. It starts with finding the best fibers 15 microns wide and 30 millimeters in length and then spinning them into fine yarn. We went on a global search and sourced samples from 10 different suppliers. We ultimately settled on a supplier of Grade-A cashmere, who sourced directly from Mongolia and spun the yarn on Italian machines in Ningbo. ABOUT THE OWNER Mr. Chu is both an owner and a partner of many factories. This factory is a joint venture with his longtime friend Mr. Lee. We first met Mr. Lee on our last trip to China, we spent two days accompanied by members of his team touring a variety of spinning, dyeing, and knitting facilities in the region.

VICENZA, ITALY The Leather Bag Factory As we looked for a factory to produce our Petra collection, we knew we didn t just want the best we wanted to find someone who believed in the product we were

11 VICENZA, ITALY The Leather Bag Factory As we looked for a factory to produce our Petra collection, we knew we didn t just want the best we wanted to find someone who believed in the product we were making and, maybe more importantly, the mission behind it. HOW WE FOUND IT The most guarded factories in the world are the ones producing leather handbags. It was only when our head of product struck up a friendship with a consultant to several luxury brands that we gained access. He was inspired by our story, and introduced us to the owner of this factory. THE MATERIALS In this case, the process for sourcing materials was easy. The factory works with the absolute best suppliers of leather. We wanted to find leather that was incredibly soft, yet wore well with time. Once we found the feel, we tested three different thicknesses to find the perfect weight one that allowed the bag to hold its structure. ABOUT THE OWNER The owner of this factory was a skilled technician of leather for years before deciding to start his own business. Today he is a rare example of an artist-turned-head of company. But don t call him a businessman. He still works with the leather himself, making an effort to speak with the creative team of each company he works with to create beautiful designs.

13 KNOW YOUR COSTS

14 Know Your Costs KNOW YOUR COSTS In the future, we think customers will care about the provenance of their clothing in the same way that they want to know where their food comes from. But that s not the only reason we reveal our costs. We reveal the costs and markups for every product we make that s what we mean by Radical Transparency. TRUST THROUGH EDUCATION As an online-only brand it was important for us to educate customers around our quality. Revealing our costs and explaining traditional markup structures helps people understand that we are offering a high-end product made at the same factories as other luxury brands for a truly disruptive price. BETTER BUYING HABITS It s our hope and it s been our personal experience that the more people understand about how their products are made and priced, the more thoughtful they will be about what they buy. 27

15 Transparency started with the T-shirt. It s a fact: Your $120 designer shirt sells for 10 times what it cost to make. Not at Everlane. We launched with a tee, a tweet, and an infographic (pictured opposite). That infographic would go on to get over 19,000 notes on Tumblr. We haven t looked back since.

16 OUR COSTS ON EVERY PRODUCT People thought we were crazy when we put our costs on every product page of our site. For everything we make, we break down all the costs from materials to shipping to duties. Then we show our estimate for what it would cost in a traditional brick-and-mortar store for comparison.

17 OUR DESIGN

18 Our Design BUILDING A FOUNDATION When we design, we start with the most beautiful fabrics and only create products that we know will be lasting in both quality and style. We approach all of our designs with the same minimalist spirit and the ambition to createthe ultimate closet of beautiful, edited basics. OUR WOMAN We aim to create timeless basics for our female customer that compliment her lifestyle, not redefine it. We like that our woman can pair her Everlane as easily with luxury items as with laid-back vintage pieces. And one design at a time, we will create a full closet of essentials for her to enjoy. OUR MAN We find that most men have a uniform. A favorite sweater, a staple pair of jeans, that perfect T-shirt. And when they find these key pieces, they tend to stick with them. For our men s line, we ve focused on quality and details, not on breadth. By perfecting on essential at a time, we are building the ultimate wardrobe for the minimalist man. 35

19 We design timeless basics to compliment our customer s lifestyle, not define it. PETRA AURELIA Head of Design

20 W HER ESSENTIALS

colors, $325 (Traditional Retail: $1100) THE SLOUCHY

21 THE LUXE SWEATER SHORT SLEEVE avilable in 2 colors, $62 (Traditional Retail: $155) THE PETRA MAGAZINE avilable in 6 colors, $325 (Traditional Retail: $1100) THE SLOUCHY CASHMERE TUNIC available in 3 colors, $155 (Traditional Retail: $295)

colors, $65 (Traditional Retail: $145) THE LUXE SWEATER SHORT SLEEVE avilable in 2 colors,

22 THE SILK POCKET avilable in 4 colors, $85 (Traditional Retail: $215) THE PETRA CROSSBODY avilable in 3 colors, $365 (Traditional Retail: $1300) THE SILK SHORT SLEEVE avilable in 5 colors, $65 (Traditional Retail: $145) THE LUXE SWEATER SHORT SLEEVE avilable in 2 colors, $62 (Traditional Retail: $155) THE MODERN LOAFER available in 3 colors, $165 (Traditional Retail: $425)

$165 (Traditional Retail: $425) T H E S I L K P O C K E T available in 4 colors, $155 (Traditional

23 THE SHORT SLEEVE SWEATSHIRT avilable in 4 colors, $30 (Traditional Retail: $65) THE PETRA MARKET avilable in 7 colors, $365 (Traditional Retail: $1,300) THE MODERN LOAFER avilable in 3 colors, $165 (Traditional Retail: $425) T H E S I L K P O C K E T available in 4 colors, $155 (Traditional Retail: $295) / T H E L I G H T W E I G H T S C A R F available in 5 colors, $68 (Traditional Retail: $135)

24 M HIS ESSENTIALS

25 THE SLIM FIT OXFORD available in 10 colors, $55 (Traditional Retail: $95) T H E W O R K S H I R T available in 2 colors, $58 (Traditional Retail: $145) / THE SLIM FIT POPLIN available in 9 colors, $55 (Traditional Retail: $95)

$350) THE SLIM FIT OXFORD available in 10 colors, $55 (Traditional

26 THE SLIM SWEATER BLAZER avilable in 3 colors, $98 (Traditional Retail: $325) THE CASHMERE HOODIE avilable in 5 colors, $140 (Traditional Retail: $350) THE SLIM FIT OXFORD available in 10 colors, $55 (Traditional Retail: $95) THE SLIM FIT DENIM available in 3 colors, $55 (Traditional Retail: $95)

27 ALWAYS ASK WHY

28 Always Ask Why Always ask why started as something we said around the office. Now it s intrinsic to our brand. MICHAEL PREYSMAN CEO and Founder ALWAYS ASK WHY We founded Everlane with a mission to disrupt an age-old fashion industry and push the envelope of online retail. We soon realized that innovating customers experience online wasn t enough: We had to evolve and re-imagine their experience offline, too. OUR EVENTS The customer-brand relationship goes beyond social media engagement. That s why we prioritize memorable events. At our New York and San Francisco offices, we throw regular functions to foster community. These range from Thursday happy hours to large-scale pop-ups. DESIGN RESEARCH Last year we launched Everlane Labs, a design-research department devoted to learning everything they can about our customers. They visit customers closets, send out surveys, and throw fit parties. We use the feedback they collect to better plan our products. This research can inform any aspect of production: from before we even design a garment to after you ve worn it. 55

29 Everlane CEO and Founder Michael Preysman speaking at the Harvard x Design conference.

30 OUR TEAM They say you should start a business you wish already existed, so we quit our day jobs. While the team skews young, our employees have cut their teeth at places like Google, Yelp, Gilt Groupe, American Apparel, Marc Jacobs, J.Crew, Goldman Sachs, Pentagram, and The Gap. We re a close-knit team held together by a shared passion for pushing boundaries and challenging conventions. Or as we like to see ourselves: a family of rule breakers, questioners, and straight-a students who skipped class. When they onboard, we tell people we have four important company values: to be transparent, dialectical, entrepreneurial, and community-minded. In other words, we re honest above all else; we ask questions until we reach the root of a problem; with our resources we are creative and ambitious; and lastly we are all deeply invested in teamwork. The current employee headcount is 45.

31 Our design office and showroom in Soho.

OPEN HOUSE An Exercise in Radical Transparency In June 2014, we wanted to take our Radical Transparency ethos offline and into the place where we live most intimately with out possessions: the home.

32 OPEN HOUSE An Exercise in Radical Transparency In June 2014, we wanted to take our Radical Transparency ethos offline and into the place where we live most intimately with out possessions: the home. What resulted was our biggest event to date, a two-week pop-up in New York City s Soho neighborhood called Open House. The conceit was to recreate a model home and reveal the true stories behind the objects inside. To create the Open House experience, we partnered with Taavo Somer s agency Friends & Family, and a number of likeminded brands, including Kaufmann- Mercantile, Simple Human, and ABC Carpet & Home. Programming partners include Edible Schoolyard NYC, Bon Appétit, Good Eggs, Baz Bagels, Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea, and Gather Journal.

34 BLACK FRIDAY In the past, we ve shut down our site on Black Friday in an effort to reduce the noise in a holiday of retail excess. This year, we wanted to do something different: On November 28, we took all profits made on Black Friday and invested them back into our factories. This year, on November 28, marked the beginning of a new Black Friday tradition at Everlane. Every year, we plan to underwrite a new improvement project for one of their factories hoping to redefine a holiday about consumerism and making it instead about closing the loop between the brand, the customers, and the factories. All day on Friday, 35% of sales our normal profit margin went towards improving the outdoor recreational area at our silk factory in Hangzhou, China. The workers there live onsite for most of the year our goal was to make their lives more enjoyable outside of work. When asked, the factory requested the donation go toward greening its recreation area and installing a basketball court. We met our $30,000 donation goal by midnight.

35 THE BLACK FRIDAY FUND PROJECT The future site of our first Black Friday Fund project at our silk factory in Hangzhou, China.

36 1-HOUR DELIVERY With Everlane Now, our goal was to bring today s economy of convenience to online clothes shopping. After a two-month trial in San Francisco, we recently expanded our 1-hour delivery service to New York City, which is home to our biggest customer base. To create the fastest and most efficient service possible. We partnered with the on-demand delivery service, Postmates, to hand-deliver Everlane products straight to customers doorsteps for the same cost as standard shipping. Available styles include our signature T-shirts and travel bags, as well as styles from the newest collections.

37 Press LOS ANGELES TIMES When it comes to fashion today it s easy to be overwhelmed by choice and confused about what things really cost. Enter the Web-only Everlane, founded on aless-is-more philosophy. If you are buying such basics as T-shirts, belts or tote bags at traditional retailers, you re probably paying too much. NEW YORK TIMES GQ The company designs and produces all of its own goods so you, thecustomer, get to save a good chunk of dough on buying some cool stuff. GLAMOUR New online shopping site Everlane.com is serving up a selection of cute and classic wardrobe staples for less. NY MAG Instead, Everlane typically doubles the price it costs to produce each minimal-leaning basic and sells the garments directly, ripping aside the veil on every expense along the way. As a brand, it s predicated on transparency. NEW YORK TIMES In the clothing industry, everybody wears it every day, but we have no idea where it comes from, said Michael Preysman, Everlane s chief executive and founder. People are starting to slowly clue in to this notion of where products are made. STYLE.COM We just never understood why the most beautiful and simple products needed to cost so much. We ve just cut out the middlemen so we can take smaller margins withoutsacrificing on quality at all. 72

38 LUCKY MAGAZINE It might seem unlikely that such inexpensive products could be of high quality, but the company has a unique business model on its side: by choosing to sell solely online, it has managed to cut costs to a bare minimum. STYLE.COM Through Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter, et al., Preysman and his team pushed their messages of non-elitist fashion for the people and transparency about the production and pricing. Both themes hit the nail on the head, tapping into two major consumer trends. Press Inquiries INC. Beyond peddling the latest in affordable fashion, however, Everlane practices radical transparency, which means that in addition to price and thread count, Everlane shoppers will see the care instructions, the height of the model pictured, and the product s origins. Julie Wiencek Derris & Company 48 W. 25th St., 6th Floor New York, NY juliew@derris.com LOS ANGELES TIMES Everlane taps into the conscious consumerism zeitgeist by not only serving up the locations and descriptions of its supplying factories which span the globe from eastern China to Northern California but also by attempting to forge a deeper, more emotional connection by including details such as real-time weather conditions and the local time of each locale. REFINERY 29 The brand s streamlined aesthetic, retail transparency, and striking pieces are turning heads in both the tech and fashion space.

39 YEAR STARTED 2011 FACTORIES 14 EMPLOYEES 45 OUR FIRST PRODUCT The Tee OFFICES San Francisco New York WOMEN S PRODUCTS 82 UNIQUE SITE VISITS 7.8 Million MEN S PRODUCTS 49 ORDERS 225,585 WOMEN S BESTSELLERS Tees, Silks, Canvas Bags, and Petras 3 LARGEST MARKETS New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles MEN S BESTSELLERS Slim Shirt, Canvas Bags and Tees INSTAGRAM FOLLOWERS 109,000 EMPLOYEE FAVORITE The Modern Loafer

joy In This Edition FOR PREMIUM FASHION PAGE PAGE PAGE 4 & 5

joy In This Edition FOR PREMIUM FASHION PAGE PAGE PAGE 4 & 5 THE LUXURY COTTON FOR PREMIUM FASHION APPAREL AND HOME AMERICAN GROWN SUPERIOR RARE AUTHENTIC DECEMBER 2017 In This Edition I joy PAGE 1 & 2 Supima s Incredible Year in Review ---------------------------PAGE