Meet AG Jeans, your new favourite denim…

 

The man behind the AG Jeans: Adriano Goldschmied, The Godfather of Denim.

 

Whoa. The Godfather of Denim? Quite the title. The man who ushered in the concept of the Euro-flashy designer jeans in Italy circa 1970, is also the man behind the premium denim wave rising out of California since the turn of the last century.

Goldschmied’s resumé is effectively a history of modern denim, as well as a lesson in converting manufacturing industries, first in Italy and then in Los Angeles.

He originally intended to be a competitive skier, and that is how he wound up in Cortina d’Ampezzo in 1970. Observing how velvet ropes and exclusivity manufactured desire, he opened a store outside the local disco. Starting out by selling wares from Carnaby Street that he drove in himself from London, he struck on the idea of making his own jeans.

In 1978, he launched the Diesel brand with Renzo Rosso, and the era of denim as a lifestyle brand was born. Goldschmied went on to Rivet and Replay and Goldie. He is celebrated in denim circles for his design of the Gap 1969 jean. But it was his first attempt at selling under his own name, A Gold E, in 1993 out of Los Angeles, when he realized there was a much bigger market waiting to be transformed.

Enter AG Jeans.

 

The son of infamous jean manufacturer Mr. Ku, Samuel Ku

 

AG was founded in 2000 in a partnership between Goldschmied and infamous denim manufacturer, Yul Ku from Koos Manufacturing in California. Goldschmied left in 2004 to start new ventures and left his namesake brand in Mr. Ku’s hands. Since then Mr. Ku’s son Samuel has assumed the position of design director of AG Jeans since 2008.

Here’s the skinny:

 

  • Designed in Los Angeles, made in the USA and Mexico.
  • 85% of the fabrics used are top quality Japanese fabrics, the rest are all Italian. The softness of the fabric comes from the fibre itself rather than its treatment: for instance pima cotton yarns and sateen weaves. Certain fabrics are exclusively designed in collaboration with denim mills exclusive to AG. Premium fabrics are a core component of AG designs, and materials are sourced that benefit customers as well as the planet.
  • Use of eco-conscious fibres including Tencel and Modal which are biodegradable.
  • Investment in the latest technology in order to increase the efficiency of manufacturing facilities. Heat-saving equipment recycles heat from commercial dryers, reducing laundry energy consumption by up to 46 percent.
  • AG takes great care to reduce the amount of waste generated in production. Patterns are cut in a way that maximize fabric yardage and keeps the amount of leftover materials at a minimum. Excess scraps are collected for recycling, and are repurposed as home and car insulation.
  • Ozone technology harnesses the natural bleaching capabilities of ozone gas to give a range of overall and specialty bleach effects with substantially reduced environmental impact. This technology can be used to clean pocket backstaining from normal washing processes, or to bleach denim to a lighter shade. It also destroys all air borne micro-organisms including bacteria, virus, mold, fungi, spores, etc.

 

It’s in the details.

 

  • The opening seam of the fly has been moved so that the opening is not bagged out. This creates a cleaner edge and less bulky feeling (as well as preventing a nail break ladies!)
  • No bagged out pocket bags to create a smoother line on the top block.
  • Extra reinforced layer within fly button waistband to create increased strength. This is particularly relevant because of the use of lighter weight and stretch fabrics currently in fashion.
  • Chain stitch hems and the use of high-spec sewing machines to produce the garment that cost twice as much as traditional sewing machines.
  • Vertically integrated facilities, give AG the unique ability to carefully monitor and control production processes.

 

The AG customer is very loyal and once they start buying AG, they rarely leave. As the story goes, one customer loved his jeans so much he kept repairing them, and repairing them until finally they got so destroyed he could no longer wear them (out in public at least…) Anyway, he loved the pair of jeans so much he couldn’t bring himself to throw them away. He decided to send AG a letter with his story along with the pair of jeans. You know where this is going right? Yep, AG kept the jeans and retired them in the AG archive and sent him a new pair. True story, we swear. But that’s how much some people love AG.

Come see what all the hype is about! We have styles for both men and women in various washes. And what better time to use your denim coupon than right now on a pair of AG Jeans?