Denimology

Designer Q & A - Dr Denim Jeans

This week's Designer Q & A is with Alexander Graah, Founder of Dr Denim Jeans of Sweden.

1) Why do you think after 200 years jeans are still one of the most popular items of clothing?

Firstly, casual clothing has become increasingly accepted in a lot of social settings, which of course has to do with the entry of designer jeans in the 80s. Since there’s continuous R&D going into denim production, there is constant evolution and an ever increasing variety of things you can do with denim – more so than on any other type of fabric. This keeps denim interesting and sets it apart from other types of fabrics.

2) Last time I counted there were over 50 brands of premium denim jeans, what makes your jeans stand out from the rest?

Quirky Scandinavian design at value-for-money pricing available only at selected high-end retailers. That’s quite unique.

3) Who do you imagine is a typical customer?

We make jeans that we like and that we hope others like as well. We keep things very down-to-earth, and I believe that’s a strong reason why our jeans appeal to a variety of people who have one thing in common: they know a good pair of jeans when they see them.

4) Where do you get your inspiration from?

Our sources of inspiration vary a great deal. Sometimes we see something of interest in an old film from the 80’s. Sometimes we just come up with ideas of what we feel that we’re missing in our own wardrobes and design it from there. It also happens that we find some nice fabrics in a fabric collection and then start dreaming away about what we can create from those fabrics. These are just examples of course.

5) Which style and wash of your jeans are flying out of the shops the quickest at the moment?

That’s a style called Snap (see above), although we’re selling very well across the collection. Snap is a great fit because it’s very versatile.

6) Are there any essential jeans that everyone should have in their wardrobe?

Regardless of which direction the fashion’s going, everyone should have a nice pair of red selvage jeans, properly worn in.

7) What are the first pair of jeans you remember?

A pair of Replay 910 which I was given by my parents when I was 12. They were by far the hottest jeans you could wear back then.

8) What have been your favourite pair of jeans that you have owned?

Too many to mention.

9) What have been your favourite pair of jeans that you have produced?

One advantage of designing your own jeans is that you get to do as many great jeans as you like, and you have free access to the warehouse – so picking one favourite pair is pretty much impossible.

10) How many pairs of jeans do you currently own and which are your favourites?

Right now I have about seven pairs in my wardrobe, which include a couple of different colours of Snap (see above), a pair of Unagi (selvage denim) which I’ve never washed, a pair of Terence, and some other goodies. You might think that I would have piles of jeans, but working with these things all day really makes you pick a couple of favorites and stick with them.

11) Are you a "wash your jeans after each wear" person or a "wear your jeans for six months before you wash them" person?

It varies a bit depending on what the jeans are like to begin with. It happens that I wash them monthly. There’s no good reason to wash a pair of jeans every day or every three days other than wanting to kill them. Needless to say, I also have my share of raw denims which haven’t seen the inside of a washing machine and probably never will.

12) Do you own jeans for different occasions (for instance I have work jeans, smart jeans, weekend jeans, holiday jeans, jeans for going to concerts in, jeans for gardening in) if so what have you got?

Not really. I like to use all of my jeans for everything. They feel more personal when you’ve been through a lot with them, and there’s so much you can do with shirts, shoes and accessories to set the right mood for every occasion.

13) Which is your favourite jeans shop?

I enjoy browsing at Selfridges, mostly because of the size and selection they carry, but there are many great stores – too many to mention.

14) Which celebs are currently wearing your jeans?

In Flames (www.inflames.com). And probably many more that we don’t know of.

15) How important big an effect does it have on your sales when a celeb is seen wearing a pair of your jeans?

It’s hard to quantify. We’re not actively doing product placements on celebs and are not really keeping track of it. Obviously celebs do make a difference but we can’t put a number on it.

16) Who is your current favourite denim icon (male & female). I am thinking the person who has the most denim style?

My brother and Kate Moss.

17) Which character (male & female) from a movie had the most denim style?

Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in Dirty Dancing immediately come to mind.

18) Which person living or dead would you most like to see in a pair of your jeans?

Johnny Depp.

19) If jeans had not been invented, what would we all be wearing?

Obviously, we would have eaten pills instead, not wearing anything.

20) And finally, any predictions for denim in 2007

You’ll be seeing more of us. Designers will continue working on the premise that ‘less is more’. There will also be an ever increasing variety of interesting new fits. I also believe that you haven’t seen the end of the Scandinavian invasion - far from it.