California Apparel News

When people saw the 6-foot, 6-inch Jamaal Carroll walk into a room, they generally assumed he was a jock. While Carroll played football in high school in Huntsville, Ala., he felt that he had more to offer by making clothes for the big-and-tall category, which includes men taller than 6’1” and weighing more than 200 pounds.

“It’s almost like the fashion industry forgot about the big boys,” said Carroll, who is now based in Los Angeles. “I have to live with it daily. I’m looking to fill a void and solve a real dilemma.”

He founded the big-and-tall fashion line Oublier Collective to clothe men like himself. Oublier is the French verb for “to forget,” which illustrates where people with his body type fall on fashion’s radar, he said. Sales for big and tall made up 11 percent of men’s apparel dollar sales in 2019, according to market research company The NPD Group. While big-and-tall men can find clothing within special sections at department stores such as JCPenney and specialty retailers such as DXL, Carroll wanted to design stylish, contemporary clothes that could be found at trendsetting boutiques.

After a few years of selling through his direct-to-consumer channel and his Instagram profile, oublier.us, he introduced the line to the wholesale channel at the Feb. 4–6 Liberty Fairs trade show in Las Vegas. He also exhibited at Sip & Marvel, the event founded by National Football League player Chris Smith to showcase work from designers of color. It took place Feb. 13 in Chicago around the National Basketball Association’s All-Star Weekend.

Carroll manufactures his self-financed line in Los Angeles. While developing a fashion line requires a lot of do-it-yourself efforts, Carroll said that it sometimes seems like he is starting from scratch. Since there are limited options for hiring big-and-tall models, Carroll serves as the fit model.

It’s been more than two decades since there was a relatively plentiful period for stylish big-and-tall men’s clothing, when urban styles and brands celebrated big-and-tall in fashion.

“Urban brands such as Mecca and Rocawear understood bigger guys,” Carroll said. Once those brands experienced a decline in popularity, it became harder to find big-and-tall clothing that was stylish, he said.

For Oublier, he sought to design stylish, elevated basics. Looks include the Axis tee, which features scoop hems in the front and back.

“I love playing with raw seams and overlapping seams,” Carroll said of the Axis. “It also has a kimono sleeve. It gives an edginess to everyday T-shirts.” Another T-shirt features a fishtail-style hem in the shirt’s back.

In addition, the line features military-inspired parkas, zip hoodies and an outerwear piece that mixes the silhouette of a trench coat with a shawl neckline. Oublier also hopes to offer something that few big-and-tall brands provide, Carroll said. Pants for big-and-tall men are often consigned to bottoms that might make them look bigger. Oublier’s skinny pants are tapered toward the bottom of the garment, which give a skinny silhouette, he said.

The brand’s T-shirts retail for $80 to $100 and the pants for $200 to $300. Sizes range from XL to 5X. Later in 2020, Oublier also will be offering large sizes. There’s a lot more categories to explore, Carroll said.

“I’d like to get into lifestyle and living spaces,” he said. “If you’re big and tall, sunglasses never reach behind your ears. When you sit down on a couch, you always wonder if it is strong [enough] to hold you or if it can support your upper back. This is the ethos of the brand.”