Yesterday, Mike Albo from The New York Times reviewed the denim destination Jean Shop for the Thursday Styles. To get the name out there, Jean Shop relies mostly on word of mouth referrals and reputation as one of the most authentic companies making and selling denim. The brand is fairly press shy and it doesn’t actively seek coverage, so I was excited to see the compnay profiled in the Thursday Styles. Jean Shop is one of the few denim brands that only uses Selvage denim to make its jeans. The store received mostly positive marks for their offerings in Mike Albo’s review. Granted some of the things are expensive, but in my opinion the jeans 100% justify the price tag. In my crazy mind, I break down the cost of a pair of jeans by the number of times that I will wear them. So that makes $240 less of a big deal, because that’s only 32 cents per wear! I’ll admit, it is not based on any sort of common sense or logic.
Eric Goldstein, one of the owners of Jean Shop, summed up my philosophy with denim. “Despite his vast knowledge of fabrics and finishes, Mr. Goldstein says that raw, untreated denim is the way to go these days. He encourages customers stuck in the Age of Excess to simply wear their jeans, let things happen naturally and stop trying to faux-paint their wardrobe.” That is exactly what I am doing. I have been wearing two pairs of Jean Shop jeans for the past three plus years. (Pictures of my jeans are below.) Both pairs (The Rocker, size 32) started as totally raw denim and have been naturally working themselves in over time. I never wash them but will dry clean as needed.
Below: The original, my 2005 Rocker.
Below: Close up of my 2005 Jean Shop Jeans. Notice the labeling, reminds me of Cintas uniform labels.
Below: Breaking in, my 2007 Rocker.
Top photo from The New York Times.
so funny to hear you justify your purchases by the number of times the object will get used. i thought i was the only neurotic person who did that. i totally agree starting with raw denim is the way to go. jean shop is super. i am partial to 5EP. keep up the great blogging. ben
This makes me want a pair of jean shop jeans now. I’ve been wanting to try them on for a while now and have hear positive things. Like Ben above I’ve been partial to 5ep as well as APC .
You may have to keep us up to date on the progress on your 2007 jean shops.
I too love the quality jeans that the Jean Shop produces, HOWEVER, I DO NOT like the horizontal stitching on the back pockets, when purchasing “CUSTOM” jeans at this price, you should be able to have them made the way you want. I understand the function of this stitching but i DO NOT keep my wallet in my back pocket.
I bumped into the Jean Shop in m.p district by a total accident, I had broken my belt whilst shopping and while my old pair of Nudies were falling off, had to find a place to just buy a belt…came out from the j.shop with a pair of new jeans and no belt. :)
needless to say, I´ve worn them on ever since, absolutely love the cut, the quality is second to none, and the service in the shop was excellent too.
highly recommended.
I just stopped by the meatpacking location earlier today and I MUST say that the Jean Shop lives up to its name in every aspect. As a slightly bigger guy, APC’s, Nudies and PRPS denim aren’t an option for me being that they are on the slim side.
However, finding the selvage denim I always wanted at the Jean Shop was EXTREMELY easy. I was in and out of the store within 5 minutes, wearing the jeans.
Trust when I say that I never felt better spending $250+ on denim.
Thanks for the feedback, we have launched a new site, please let me know what you think eric@worldjeanshop.com. We you can now purchase product as well.