What brings you to Neiman Marcus in Atlanta?
I’m showcasing my new fall and holiday collection. In our collection, we have some coated python jeans. We have colored leopard jeans, ankle-length jeans, leggings and regular straight-leg jeans. We have a variety for all.
Who wears CJ by Cookie Johnson?
CJ by Cookie Johnson is a premium denim line that has its contemporary styling for a woman with a real feminine body type. It’s for a woman who has a shape — the other premium denim out there for women with very straight-up-and-down body types. This jean accommodates a curve. It’s a jean that, I think, is a woman that’s probably 30 to 35 years old. She’s a mom, a working girl or just a wife. She has style, she has taste, and she wants a jean to fit her body type. There are not a lot of jeans out there that fit real women. This jean is for the woman who is looking for something that has style and quality.
What’s the inspiration behind the brand?
I originally designed the jeans for myself, because I have a hard time trying to find a jean to fit me. I have a curvy body type and I’m not huge, but I just have a shape and I could not find a jean out there that would fit my body type. And, it was really frustrating. It came to a point where it was almost depressing to try on jeans. And jeans are an item that’s part of your lifestyle these days. Jeans are something, like, the “it.” If you have the “it” jean, you’re, like, the cool person and it gives you a little style. And, so to not have a jean to fit you, you felt like you couldn’t participate in this carefree lifestyle. I knew I wasn’t the only one out there like that. I wanted to design a jean for that woman.
Why is the relationship with Neiman Marcus an integral part of the CJ by Cookie Johnson brand?
Neiman Marcus is a good partner for CJ because Neiman Marcus really takes a lot of value in customer service. Neiman Marcus knows their customer and when you walk into their department, there’s always somebody there to help you. If you describe to them what you’re looking for, they can take you directly to the item that would work for you. This works for CJ because a lot of people don’t realize that this jean is different. You can’t just look at the jean on a rack and know why it would have a different fit. Because we have the same premium styling that most of the other jeans do, and we are very much on trend. So, it takes a great salesperson to be able to explain to the customer that this jean has a different fit to it. And that’s the biggest difference, that it has a different fit. And that’s why Neiman Marcus is a great partner because they have the most well-versed salespeople. And I know because I am an avid Neiman Marcus shopper. Don’t tell my husband.
When deciding on what fabrics and what styles to use, what do you look for?
How do I look for the different fabrics that we use and come up with some of the really cool styles that we have? I have a creative director that works with me, and she travels to London, to Paris, and she gets all the great inspiration. She gets great ideas from those areas. We buy fabric from all different places: China, Italy, Turkey. So, it just depends on what we’re designing at the time, what kind of fabric we use. But, we are based in California and there are lots of different fabric companies there that come from all over the country and they bring samples in for you to look at. So, we take a lot of time to really make sure that we find a fabric that is soft, because to me, comfort is a number one for CJ. Comfort is very big, and also quality. So, we determine how we can we get that comfort along with the quality and put it into that shape that will hug and contour to your body.
Which three travel destinations around the world inspire the brand?
Three travel destinations that I find inspirational for my jeans and also very relaxing, I would say London. London is a big place and it is a pretty big mecca for fashion, Paris, and I found some really cool things in Milan. It’s really interesting when I travel for vacation I always take a minute to run out and look at the stores and see what they’re showing for jeans. European styling is usually where the fashion comes first and, so, I usually like to go places in Europe and look for really cool new styles.
What are three tips for someone interested in designing clothes?
Three tips for someone who desires to be a designer. Number one, you have to go to school and get the [required] education because there are a lot of new things, new techniques out there like computer programs that are really big for designers to use nowadays. You have to be well. I also think it is important to do internships for different types of clothing lines. Whether it’s ready-to-wear or it could be couture. I would do a couple of internships in different places while you’re going to school if possible. That would give you an idea of what it’s like working in the workplace at a wholesale company, and it gives you an insight on how things are run. When you finally come to the point where you want to start your own line, you’ll have the knowledge to do it.
It’s so important to have the knowledge to know what you’re doing. That’s why work history is so important and school is so important. One thing that I did, I partnered in the beginning because I knew that I didn’t have the infrastructure to start the jeans. I didn’t have the machines. I didn’t have the manpower. I didn’t have the product actually. So, I partnered with someone who has been in the business forever and that got me started. Now I still have a partner but I think I’m at the point now where I’ve been in the business for five years now, I can go out on my own. I can feel confident that I can do this by myself. I think that it is super important to get the knowledge and to get the business sense from partnering and then venture out on your own. Of course, the biggest thing, you have to raise some capital. Let’s not forget that capital.
Any final words of inspiration?
Being bold and stepping outside of my box to start this company was a big deal for me. I encourage all of you, if you have a dream, go for it. Do whatever you can to make that dream happen because you only have one lifetime, and you want to do the best you can for that one lifetime. So when you get older and you want to look back on your life, you can say, “Hey, I actually went for that dream, and I actually accomplished it.” So, for me I just decided at this point in my life, the kids were getting older, the whole mom thing, and I said, “You know what, I’ve been wanting to do this my entire life. I’ve been in fashion forever. I went to school for fashion, I worked in retail for years, and now I want to start my own line.” It was scary, but I took a chance, and I took a leap. I just went out there, and took a deep breath, and I just went for it. Of course, I had people in the business that I knew. That’s important to find someone in that business, buddy up with them, get the information from them, and then go out and do what you need to do. So, don’t be afraid, because you’ll look back on your life one day and you’ll go, “I should have taken a chance and done that.” We don’t want that. You want to go out there and do it now.
–tiara lamm
