Published Work

By Kathleen Nicholson Webber

Originally posted in HAND/EYE Magazine on November 30, 2016.

By Kathleen Nicholson Webber

Originally posted in HAND/EYE Magazine on November 25, 2016.

By Kathleen Nicholson Webber

Originally posted in Triple Pundit on September 13, 2016.

Social entrepreneur Jason Keehn, CEO of Accompany, worked in fashion brand strategy for most of his life. Mid-career he felt he was missing a sense of purpose. He went back to graduate school to study global ethics but knew policy work and academia weren’t for him. How could he combine ethics and fashion in an entrepreneurial venture?

“I asked myself: Why wasn’t I currently an ethical fashion shopper? I shopped ethically for food,” he says.  In 2013, he set out to create a socially responsible brand that he calls a Barney’s-meets-Whole Foods e-commerce site selling curated high-end apparel, accessories and home goods from around the world.

On Accompany, you can buy everything from a baby alpaca fringed poncho dress made in Peru or a windowpane woven dress from India, to a black horn inlay bracelet from Kenya, a beaded clutch from Guatemala, or a leather backpack from Ethiopia. The products are artisan made, fair trade and also serve a philanthropic or humanitarian need.

The traditional craft techniques used in making the products on the site are reflective of the cultural heritage of a community. “People are looking for brands that are sustainable and related to human values. We have 125 brands impacting 43 countries that are stylish and do the most good, “ Keehn explains. “The idea of supporting people and communities inspired the name Accompany.”

The Accompany design team comb the world looking for items for their shoppers who are fashion forward, words not normally reserved for eco/fair-trade. Some are contemporary fashion labels like Lemlem, an Ethiopian line of handwoven clothing found in high-end retailers like at Barney’s. “At Lemlem, for example, we are simply picking from their line of sheets, knowing they produce ethically and fit our conscious sourcing model,” Keehn explains. With other brands, his team works closely on creating exclusive designs for Accompany that are often a design shift or color change of an existing style.  “With other partners, we are creating products from scratch for the site.”

Everything Keehn and his team does comes back to human impact. Merchandise they choose on the site supports artisans with indigenous craft, often in remote regions without market access; or fair trade workshops focused on paying above-average wages, good working conditions, training in underprivileged areas and capacity building. Keehn believes consumers are looking for a “return to humanity” in their shopping choices.

“In our modern techy world, with so much digital impersonal communication, and faced with large, opaque corporations steering our lives — people are, in response, really appreciating things made by humans for humans — the maker, the artisan, cultural authenticity, handcrafted items that are special and not mass produced, but rather made with intention and with a unique personal touch.”

In three years, Accompany tripled the number of brands it works with. When creating original items with artisans, it’s an interesting balance to make sure the company respects the craft and traditions of the “maker” community, while at the same time giving the products a modern twist to make them marketable.  “I think it’s in the intersection of modern trend and the timeless tradition of the crafts and ethnic influence — the tension between the two — where the products become truly compelling,” Keehn says.

“It’s a respectful collaboration and co-creation,” he continues.  “Many of the artisans appreciate the outside push to try new things, get them out of their comfort zone a bit more, shake things up artistically.  And at the same time, we don’t want to simply be commercializing their heritage of craftwork or appropriate their culture.  It’s a balance – respect and representation should always lead the exercise.”

While initial research shows visitors to the site are mostly from the New York metropolitan area, the company’s scope is expanding as consumers learn more about ethics and sustainability in fashion and hear about Accompany through social media and press.

“Consumers are now becoming educated, and therefore guilty, about making the wrong choices,” he says. “And at the same time, they love the positive stories of making a difference, knowing that something on your body was made intentionally by a person with local skills in an overlooked corner of the world, who is appreciative of the fair work and environment.  It feels nice to know that as you wear your clothes, and tell that story when you’re asked about it.”

For the same reason, gifting is a huge area for Accompany.  “It’s so great to give a special, unique item that has a positive impact,” Keehn says. “We are all aware that we have too much ‘stuff’ and overly commercial, mass-produced items don’t have the same meaning that they used to, compared to something made by hand, influenced by a remote local culture, and authentically different than everything else you see.”

By Kathleen Nicholson Webber

Originally posted on New Jersey Monthly on March 22, 2016.

Jason Schott, 42, spent his childhood sweeping the floors of his family’s New Jersey coat factory.  Now, as COO for the Union-based company, Schott NYC, he still loves the smell of leather as he walks the floor, managing day-to-day operations of the brand his great, grandfather Irving Schott started with his brother Jack in his Lower East Side apartment in 1913. Irving first made a raincoat; later, the brothers were commissioned by the Air Force to make bomber jackets and pea coats for soldiers in World War II. After the war,  the pair created a classic motorcycle jacket that landed on the back of Marlon Brando in The Wild One and became James Dean’s signature look. Both styles are still in the line today. In the ’70s and ’80s, the brand, known for its rebel look, became a favorite of rock and punk artists like Bruce Springsteen, the Ramones, Blondie, Joan Jett and the Sex Pistols. Today’s superstar fans include Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Rihanna.

But mere mortals have loved Schott’s jackets for years, and now a new legion of fans have discovered the collection. “For years people saw us as a jacket company. [We’re] now a lifestyle brand with sweaters, shirts, sweatshirts, hats and T-shirts,” says Schott. He’s even collaborated with designer Ralph Lauren, who visited Schott’s New York store one day and admired the vintage jackets on display.  Schott worked on a few styles with the designer under the Double RL label, which retailed in both companies’ stores.

The majority of Schott’s time is spent in Union at the offices and factory with his mother, the president, and his uncle, the CEO, and 100 employees. “We invite people to tour our factory, and they are amazed at the amount of work that goes into one jacket,” he explains. It takes about eight hours to complete one, and 40 to 50 hands touch it. Prices range from cloth coats at $175 to leathers that run as high as $1,300. When many companies moved production overseas for cheaper prices, Schott resisted.

“In places like Japan, they’ve appreciated made-in-America brands for a long time. In the last five years, I think Americans are doing the same. Through our website and social media, we have told the story of how the product is made, and customers are interested in that. I think the trend in fashion is supporting heritage brands, things that hold up over time.”

By Kathleen Nicholson Webber

Originally posted on Sustainable Brands on October 27, 2015.

If washing and drying clothes is a major culprit in the environmental waste wars, what if there were more natural fabrics that repelled stains, resulting in fewer washings? One such solution, introduced by Kelby & Co. at the Fashion Tech Lab demo day this summer, is being rolled out in the market next month.

Dropel fuses hydrophobic (water- & stain-repellent) nanotechnology with cotton fibers to create enhanced cotton that resists stains as stubborn as soy sauce and red wine. Spills can be rinsed off with a squirt of water.

Founders Sim Gulati and Brad Feinstein are working with cotton now, though they say they have the capabilities to blend all types of natural fabrics such as cashmere, silk, linen and wool.

“Maintaining natural feel (softness), breathability, draping and all other fabric characteristics are our differentiators,” Feinstein says.

He says Dropel is working in the types of innovation usually reserved for polyester.

“We want to move away from synthetics towards a world where we can use natural textiles with added benefits that require less energy and resources in the process,” he says. ”We’ve used synthetics for decades and we believe we’re at a point now where we no longer need to resort to petroleum-based fabrics for innovative properties. We provide a sustainable alternative.”

The proprietary development process was designed in a research lab and adapted for mass-scale manufacturing. Feinstein and Gilutai have filed their first patent application for Dropel.

While the company is currently working with a handful of luxury menswear ecommerce companies, the team sees the fabric as being suitable for women’s and children’s wear, home furnishings, and uniforms. Dropel Fabrics is expected to come to market soon – the company has begun trials with several brands for Spring and Summer 2016, with some doing full garment manufacturing with the company and others sourcing the fabric. Regardless, the company says brands like that the innovative fabric with embedded technology is a purchase consumers can feel good about.

“We feel sustainability and environmental care are elements of our value proposition,” Feinstein says.

Dropel is the latest in a spate of recent fabric innovations aimed at decreasing the environmental impact of textile production and use:

• In 2014, Scientists at City University in Hong Kong revealed a new treatment for cashmere that enables it to self-clean with some help from the sun. The technology coats cashmere fibers with tiny particles of the mineral anatase titanium dioxide. When exposed to sunlight for 24 hours, the mineral starts a chemical reaction creating oxidants that act as tiny electric currents to break down dust, dirt, bacteria and even trickier stains such as coffee and wine. If the project succeeds and is commercialized, it could lead to substantial savings on energy, water, washing liquids and dry cleaning chemicals.
• In April, textile upcycler Worn Again announced a partnership with H&M and Kering to trial a first-of-its-kind textile-to-textile chemical recycling technology that is able to separate and extract polyester and cotton from old or end-of-use clothing and textiles. Once separated, the aim is for this unique process to enable the ‘recaptured’ polyester and cellulose from cotton to be spun into new fabric, creating a circular resource model for textiles.
• In August, Swiss upcycled bag and clothing brand Freitag expanded its F-abric line of European-grown and -produced workwear with a compostable, cotton-free jean — the E500 jean line will comprise 81 percent linen and 19 percent hemp. The jeans will contain neither rivets nor nylon thread, making each pair 100 percent compostable after the removal of buttons.
• In September, adidas announced Sport Infinity, the sportswear giant’s plan for a new breed of sporting goods that will never be thrown away. Instead, football (soccer) players will be able to constantly reimagine and recycle their dream products using an inexhaustible 3-D “super-material.” The company’s goal is for every gram of sportswear to eventually be broken down to be remolded again into new products in a waste-free, adhesive-free process
• And just last month, Levi Strauss launched its Levi’s Wellthread™ Collection, which touts a holistic approach to sustainable product design: The line was made in 100 percent cotton for easier recyclability, by empowered workers — and includes the first garments to feature Levi’s Water<Less™ fabric, which saves more than 65 percent of the water in the dye process, as well as Water<Less denim finishes, which use up to 50 percent less water.

By Kathleen Nicholson Webber

Originally posted on The Americanologists on October 18, 2015.

In November of 2012, the giant red doors of Stars & Stripes Ltd. on Philadelphia’s Chestnut Street were opened to the public. The building is a circa-1881 decommissioned Gothic-style church with original wood details and soaring leaded glass windows. Inside, you’ll find an elegant shop with a stylish collection of American-made clothing and home goods.

The store is owned by the husband and wife team of Jan and Robert Chevalier. Ten years ago they bought the church to house Robert’s furniture business, but left the parish house empty. A friend suggested it would make a great store. “Why not?” thought Robert, who has been an entrepreneur his whole life. ” I never want to look back and say I wish I had tried that.”

They filled the space with antique displays, but found it challenging to stock those displays with the Made-in-USA clothes they imagined. Their first season, they found only 30-40 vendors. “We found, in the beginning, everyone wanted to talk about it but no one wanted to do it,” says Robert.

“We would stop by booths at the trade shows and tell them that we wanted Made-in-America merchandise. They’d say, ‘Good luck with that’,” says Jan. Now the store, which is meticulously styled with vintage art, artifacts and accessories, has merchandise from close to 175 vendors.  They also wanted the merchandise to cater to a range of customers – from the college student to the career person who lives or works in the area.

The look at Stars & Stripes is classic American style with a twist. The men’s area is stocked with heritage brands like Bills Khakis (above), which makes sportswear ranging from boxers to overcoats; Haspel,which brings a new perspective to traditional gentleman’s style; Gitman and New England Shirt Co, two storied Ameircan shirt-makers; B. Ella, a knitting mill producing fun and comfortable socks for men and women; R. Hanauer, a manufacturer of classic silk repp ties and bowties, and Schott NY, a company that has made iconic coats for over 100 years.

On the women’s side of the store there are Leota, NY wrap dresses, architectural-looking career separates from Nora Gardener, new takes on classic shirts from Bell by Alicia Bell and merchandise from Fresh Laundry, like the sweater coat shown above. In accessories, there’s jewelry by Jan Michaels of San Francisco and Brewster Designs of Lambertville, NJ.

Felt and leather Graf and Lantz (Los Angeles) handbags pop on the shelves and are among the most popular items in the store.

Home pieces include Faribault Woolen Mills throws (Faribault, MN), and Visual Comfort Lighting (Houston, TX).

Stars and Stripes Ltd. is open daily 10 to 6, Sundays from 11 to 5. The store is located at 2129 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia PA. They can be contacted at (215) 587-2129.

By Kathleen Nicholson Webber

Originally posted on WWD.com on September 22, 2015.

This fall, Pope Francis, the Dalai Lama and the Forbes Under 30 Summit will descend upon Philadelphia, putting the city in a spotlight not seen in many years. Next July, it’s the Democratic National Convention that will come to town, bringing with it throngs of delegates and tourists who like to shop.

They’re in the right place.

Since 2013, 25 national stores have come to Center City Philadelphia and nine retail-driven developments have been built or are under way in Center City. In the next few years, more than 2.3 million new square feet of fresh retail space is expected to be added to what has already helped earn it the number-two spot on Condé Nast Traveler’s list of best cities and neighborhoods in the world for shopping and fashion, as chosen by the magazine’s readers, behind Barcelona. In 2014, national stores making a big splash included a 100,000-square-foot Century 21, a 39,000-square-foot Nordstrom Rack, and a 29,000-square-foot Uniqlo, which is the Japanese fast-fashion giant’s only free-standing flagship outside of New York.

But it wasn’t that long ago — 2007, to be precise — that Michelle Shannon, vice president of marketing and communications of the Center City District, sat around a table with brokers, developers and retailers wondering how they could attract more stores to plant a flag in the district.

The data seemed strong enough to entice businesses to come to town: Since 2000, population increased 16 percent downtown. According to the 2015 State of Center City report, Millennials (ages 19-34) now represent 40 percent of the greater Center City population and household incomes are hovering around $107,000.

But back then, brokers had a hackneyed image of the city.

“People thought Philadelphia was an old Rust Belt, blue-collar city that was unsophisticated and whose main diet consisted of cheesesteaks and soft pretzels,” said Shannon.

So she gathered a team that could show outsiders the “new Philadelphia story.” Shannon formed The Philadelphia Retail Marketing Alliance in 2008 to improve the quality and quantity of Center City’s retail offerings. PRMA started advertising in trade publications and chatted up the city at retail trade shows. A glossy promotional piece, with images of independent stores and restaurants along with testimonials was presented to potential leasees. A site was created, Philadelphiaretail.com, to highlight shopping; it has an accompanying campaign with the tagline “Be In On It.” Shannon brought fashion designers to the Eventi hotel in Chelsea to meet writers and tell them about the fashion scene in the city. She paired with partners visitphilly.com, the convention and visitors bureau, and the City of Philadelphia and held a press conference in New York to say “give us a look.”

Laura Krebs Miller, vice president of Cashman & Associates, a public relations and marketing firm, invited writers to check out firsthand what Philadelphia retail was all about. She took them on tours of top shopping neighborhoods, experiencing The Philadelphia Collection (Philadelphia’s version of fashion week) and visiting the design spaces of the Philadelphia Fashion Incubator at Macy’s, both initiatives that were outgrowths of the PRMA.

“Many hadn’t been to Philadelphia in seven to 10 years,” Miller said. “They couldn’t believe how incredible and lively the whole scene was — shopping and dining, arts and culture. Writers would often make comparisons — while shopping in the boutiques and designer co-op shops in Old City neighborhood, they’d say ‘This reminds me of Cobble Hill in Brooklyn, or The Village.’”

“The surge of Philadelphia’s retail offerings and commercial development over the past several years is a reflection not only of our city as a highly desirable place to live, work and visit, but also of the determination of the individuals on a civic level that work through the mechanics of the infrastructure to help make it happen,” said Mayor Michael A. Nutter. “There is heavy investment from the City in seeing these large-scale capital projects and marketing efforts through and we’re proud of how far we’ve come. It is a significant time for retail in Philadelphia.”

Over the past few years, national brands have flocked to Walnut Street and Center City West, one of the city’s prime shopping districts. One retail pioneer, Joan Shepp, long held a coveted spot on Walnut Street but when retail demand increased and rents rose there, she seized the opportunity to move to bigger digs at 18th and Chestnut, where she now has a 9,200-square-foot store with rooms of apparel and accessories, from buzzy to contemporary to edgy — J.W. Anderson, The Row, Maison Margiela, Moschino, Public School, Sonia Rykiel, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Dries Van Noten and Nicholas Kirkwood among them.

“Rents in Center City District range from $30 a square foot on the residential corridors to $225 a square foot on Walnut Street, the city’s most highly sought-after shopping and dining high street,” said Douglas J. Green, principal of MSC Retail. “Over the past five years, rents have increased by 25 percent in some portions of CCD, to nearly 80 percent in others. This rent growth has been spurred by significant increased demand in residential growth and minimal new product added to the market.”

While Rittenhouse Square was the crown jewel of Center City retail, there is growth in so many neighborhoods now, according to Jacob Cooper, partner and managing director of MSC retail, a family-owned boutique real estate firm. “When you walk the blocks, there is an energy. There is so much construction going on. There are 60 colleges in the region, and [students] have never been interested in living in Center City. But now there is nightlife. It began with the election of (Mayor) Ed Rendell, who was interested in the renewal of the district. In the early Nineties, more businesses came here and in the late Nineties there was a resurgence on Walnut Street.”

Cooper added it’s never been easier to sell Philadelphia.

“Suddenly there was a whole gamut of retailers willing to plant a flag here — from luxury brands to fast fashion. There are store openings every week, it seems,” said Cooper. “Now there are Vince, Bloomingdale’s and Michael Kors.”

The retail footprint is expanding with the development of the area near The Gallery and the Market East area, which the late, renowned developer Tony Goldman started in the late Nineties.

Just last fall, Century 21 took over two floors of the former Strawbridge’s department store. C21 will become the anchor for the new Fashion Outlets of Philadelphia at Market East (formerly The Gallery). Eddie Gindi, executive vice president of Century 21 Department Stores, said his team spent a year visiting and researching Philadelphia while exploring several other cities for their first store outside of New York. “Philadelphia’s culture, wealth of like-minded consumers who align with our mission, combined with the city’s proximity to our operations hubs, ultimately drove our decision.”

The strength of the Millennial mind-set was also a contributing factor. In a year, C21 has seen strong sales in men’s and women’s European departments, women’s contemporary and European labels in the children’s and teen’s categories.

Right next door, construction is under way on the former Gallery. The City Council this summer approved a $325 million, two-year remake of the 1.4 million square-foot mall, built in 1973, which will be reimagined and called the Fashion Outlets of Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust bought the mall in 2003; it owns nine malls in the region, 32 in the country.

“We definitely don’t want to create just another downtown mall.  It’s important that the experience is curated,” stated Joe Coradino, chief executive officer of PREIT. “In addition to shopping, there will be dining, entertainment and events. I like to say we’re going to create a ‘gotta go’ experience, so people tell their friends, ‘When you go to Philadelphia, you gotta go see Fashion Outlets of Philadelphia.’ So we, and our partners, are focused on crafting the right mix of tenants to satisfy the diverse audiences we’ll have.”

Retail expansions are being seen in the suburbs as well. King of Prussia Mall is undergoing its ninth expansion in its 52-year history. This latest will feature 170,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, according to Kathy Smith, director of marketing and business development. Twenty luxury brands will be in the new section, 15 of which are new to the Philadelphia area and to date include CH Carolina Herrera, Robert Graham, Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams home furnishings, Microsoft and a Burberry flagship. The mall currently does about $1 billion in sales a year and receives around 20 million visitors annually.

“Why expand now? There is a demand by tenants to be in the best malls in America,” said David Contis, president of Simon Property Group. “Good malls have a demand for space. “It is not just the luxury customer who shops here. It is young and old, wealthy and middle class.” Millennials are also a target audience Simon wants to appeal to. “They want to shop, walk to the movies and eat out.  People want to gather and socialize, so will have five new restaurants. We want to create an environment where they want to stay longer and shop.“

By Kathleen Nicholson Webber

Originally posted on WWD.com on May 20, 2015.

Tuscan native Simone Cipriani likes to call Africa “the new Italy.” While Tuscany traditionally has been a place where many fashion brands had their headquarters and artisans were at their core, Cipriani feels that “with mass production, the value of fashion was lost.”

This story first appeared in the May 20, 2015 issue of WWD. See More.

In an interview before a recent talk at the Fashion Institute of Technology, Cipriani said he wants to bring that artisanal value back to fashion. As the head and founder of the Ethical Fashion Initiative, a flagship program of the International Trade Centre, which is a Geneva-based agency of the United Nations and World Trade Organization, he and his staff link top fashion talents to more than 7,000 marginalized artisans, the majority of them women, in East and West Africa, Haiti and the West Bank to produce luxury accessories, shoes and textiles.

Stella McCartney underscores the value in fair wages and the empowerment of women in making products through the Ethical Fashion Initiative. McCartney and the EFI began their partnership in 2011 in Kenya, where the designer produces handmade accessories with local artisans specializing in screen-printing and tailoring. She makes canvas bags there, like the Noemi tote.

Ilaria Venturini Fendi of Fendi started working with EFI in the development of her Carmina Campus brand of accessories. She manufactures mainly in EFI’s Nairobi hub. Vivienne Westwood, Stella Jean, Mimco, Chan Luu, Sass & Bide, Karen Walker, Osklen and retailer United Arrows are among other designers who work with EFI. The group also develops and advocates young and emerging designers from these regions like Lisa Folawiyo, Sophie Zinga, Christie Brown and Studio One Eighty Nine, working on product development and connecting them with international buyers.

It was while Cipriani was working in Kenya in 2009 that the U.N. approached him with the idea for this initiative. He combed the markets for artisans making sure workers were paid a living wage, helping to lift them out of poverty.

“Fashion is a vehicle for capacity building,” he said.

In Kenya, where the initiative began producing in 2009, unit volume rose from 7,000 units that year to more than 170,000 units in 2014. From 2013 — when they started with fabric production — to 2014, volume more than tripled from 3,400 meters to 12,000 meters.

Production hubs are now in Kenya, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Ethiopia and Haiti and they have begun working in Palestine, Cambodia and Peru. The organization has offices in Geneva and London and expects to open one soon in New York.

Cipriani sets up the network that trains and oversees the production until the microbusinesses can be handed over to the communities. Building structures takes time. So does wooing designers to join him in this movement.

“This is tough because they know this is a long-term project, not just a season,” he said. “The production times are longer. It is not fast fashion, but many see the benefit.”

Westwood, in her 10th season with EFI, is one who has, and she understands the high price of such artisanal wares comes with the territory. Christopher DePietro, her marketing and merchandising director, says a cheap product is of no interest to them — an embroidered canvas clutch retails for $99 while a duffel goes for $438. “The driving force is whether it is ethically made,” DePietro said.

Cipriani added, “When designers commit, we let them know the boundaries for the country,” like skill sets and materials available.

When ITC started working with half-Haitian, half-Italian designer Stella Jean in 2013, she began buying handwoven cotton fabric and natural-dyed bogolan in Africa for her men’s and women’s lines. These vibrant striped fabrics caught the eye of Giorgio Armani, who invited her to show her spring 2014 collection in his Teatro Armani in Milan.

“My collaboration with ITC Ethical Fashion Project started thanks to my mentor Simonetta Gianfelici [ITC project representative for Altaroma], who introduced me to Simone Cipriani,” Jean said. “The ITC team guided me and gave me the opportunity to go to Burkina Faso, Mali and Haiti. There, I found a rare treasure, looking at the busy hands of extraordinary women who tell, with dignity and hard work, a creative and cultural mosaic without any kind of mystification. Our work together is about a proper, accountable business, which is environmentally sound, promoting sustainable economic development and opportunities in countries that do not need our charity.”

Cipriani has other design houses on his wish list: one in particular is Hermès, because of its history of artisan products.

“Consumers want authenticity,” Cipriani said. “It’s a huge movement that can change the paradigm of fashion. When we talk to salespeople in stores, they say consumers like hearing the story behind the product.”

EFI has social impact studies on these businesses, which some of EFI’s designers use in their marketing. “Some say, ‘this is a good product on its own, without that distinction,’” said Cipriani, “but I say, let’s spread the message.”

Luxury retailer Hirofumi Kurino, founder and creative director of United Arrows in Japan and Taiwan, makes clothing and accessories in Africa including clutches and totes with beading done by Maasai women for their Tege United Arrows line.

“The more I come to know fashion, the more I am attracted to handmade materials that [reflect] craftsmen’s culture over mass-commercialized products,” Kurino said. “The EFI project enables manufacturing of handcrafted products while helping to improve life conditions of the producers. This is not only meaningful, but also enriches our heart.”