Denim head culture was alive and well at Bluezone in Munich last week. New initiatives, speakers and exhibitions celebrated denim’s heritage and the stories the industry has to share.
Bluezone introduced “Homegrown Denim Legends,” a new program that highlights the work of influential denim personalities and brands from the DACH region.
Despite Bluezone being a market focused on the German denim industry, Tilmann Wröbel, the founder of the denim consultancy Monsieur-T and Bluezone trend curator, said the focus is often on the imprint U.S. and Italian have on the industry.
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“We deeply believe that there are some important things to share about German companies,” he said.
Wröbel’s fireside chat with Erwin O. Licher, the founder of three German denim brands Pash, Freeman T. Porter and Herrlicher, kicked off Homegrown Denim Legends.
Licher shared how a job selling mineral water led to a gig traveling around the Bavaria region selling jeans to retailers for the French brand Donovan Jeans in the 1970s. He opened his first denim store in Giessen in 1973, followed by a second and larger store in 1978.
The entrepreneur stepped back into the distribution business with Pash Jeans a few years later, designing and selling the label’s baggy, trend-forward styles for the next 10 years. He launched Freeman T. Porter in 1992 in response to the flood of lifestyle denim brands emerging from Los Angeles. At this time, Licher said consumers were being drawn to denim brands that had a background story. He named the brand Freeman T. Porter after his biological father who lived in St. Louis.
By 2004, Licher was prepared to step back from the denim business. Enough money was made to live comfortably, but with encouragement from his wife, he fired up another brand, Herrlicher. The brand continues to sell men’s and women’s jeans as well as sportswear and outerwear.
Homegrown Denim Legends was also an opportunity to highlight Germany’s ties to Levi’s. The Levi Strauss Museum—the birthplace of Levi’s founder Levi Strauss in Buttenheim, Germany —brought a traveling exhibition to Bluezone. The exhibit spanned Strauss’ childhood, his difficult journey immigrating to the U.S. in 1848 and how he arrived in California during the height of the Gold Rush.
The exhibit featured replicas of the first jeans, information about Levi’s trademarks and how the brand became part of American pop culture.
Levi’s was one of the denim brands recognized by Denimhunters founder Thomas Stege Bojer and Long John founder Wouter Munnichs in their presentation about creating strong advertising and social campaigns.
Specifically, Levi’s latest campaign starring country-pop artist Shaboozey, and chef, restaurateur and television star Matty Matheson caught their attention for how it highlights Levi’s durability and Western heritage. Despite Western being “super-hot,” Stege Bojer said the campaign comes across as authentic storytelling and nods to Levi’s two-horse pull logo from the 1930s.
Nudie Jeans’ emphasis on buying less and buying better in its ongoing “Create Tomorrow’s Vintage” campaign. Stege Bojer said the campaign is “typical Nudie” in the sense that it’s a message the Swedish brand has reinforced since it launched with raw jeans, encouraging consumers to create their own wear patterns.
“They don’t change their messaging each season or jump on trends, and they are consistent across all platforms. You will see the same message on YouTube, Instagram and in their shops,” he said.
