Jack Star Jeans-Premium and High-Rise
To make a mark on the premium denim market, Angie Furlong is hitching herself to a star: Jack Star Jeans.
Furlong, a veteran of Guess? Inc. and Lucky Brand Jeans and head of lifestyle clothing company Blue Dot, designed blue jeans in four basic rises and seven different washes for her new line, which is launching for Spring 2005. The rises are named after women and the washes after cities. The Santa Fe wash, for instance, has grinding and whiskering. “It looks like you’re out on the ranch,” Furlong said.
What differentiates Jack Star from other lines in the crowded denim market is its high rises. In addition to 6.5-, 7- and 8-inch rises, the company offers a 9-inch rise. Furlong also created pants made out of subtly colored brushed twill with 8.5- and 9.5-inch rises.
“There are a lot of us 40-plus moms, working moms,” said Furlong, who named the 9-inch rise after herself. “I don’t think it’s right to wear something too young for me.”
But it’s OK to look sexy. Jack Star, derived from the names of Furlong’s young son and his cat, uses Italian stretch denim. Furlong set the inseam at 34 inches, two inches longer than the average length, because she noticed many women wear heels with their jeans.
Stylish details include pockets lined in navy ticking stripes.
Sixty retailers—including Chicago’s E Street Denim and San Francisco’s The Bar—have already placed orders. Classified by washes, wholesale prices range from $66 to $82. Furlong projected that annual wholesale volume will reach $2 million.
The only top in the collection is a fitted denim blazer ($80 wholesale). Furlong said she plans to add denim short shorts and a men’s line for Summer 2005, as well as sweaters and leather jackets for Fall 2005.
The line is carried by Leila Ross Sales in Los Angeles, Carlos Marin in Miami and Susan Greenstadt in New York. For more information on the Los Angeles showroom, call (213) 488-9833.
—Khanh T.L. Tran
