All in the Family With DL1961
When it comes to a love for denim, it was ‘like mother, like daughter’ for the leading ladies of DL1961 Premium Denim Inc.
For Sarah Ahmed, the creative director for DL1961, joining her family’s business—where her mother, Maliha Ahmed, is the CEO—after finishing her degree at Parsons in 2011 was a point of pride, especially in carrying on the tradition of quality and craftsmanship the brand has come to be known for.
The New York City-based premium denim brand committed to using sustainable resources to make its cutting edge garments has been on a mission to fuse technology with fashion to perfect fit, incorporate ethically sourced performance fibers and exhibit innovation—all while having the littlest impact on the environment.
Ahmed has played a major role in marrying technology with the demands on fashion, drawing on her own expertise having studied interface design and management at Parsons. She’s also been the face of the brand, helping lead it to its position as a leader in exclusive premium denim.
Carved in Blue caught up with Ahmed to learn a little more about what growing up in a life of denim was like.
Carved in Blue: What has made DL1961 so successful?
Sarah: In order to be successful, every button has to be right, every image has to be perfect. Everything has to basically show the entirety of what DL is, which is the best brand of premium jeans out there that gives you 360 degrees of movement, gives you that lift, sculpt, and tone. Our product shows the entire story. The way we do that is because my mom is head of product as well, and I’m head of design and marketing, we are both very detail oriented, yet we have a good, holistic view of the business at all times.
Carved in Blue: What have you learned from your dad so far in this business?
Sarah: What I get from my dad is a very systematic approach to execution and a very systematic approach to bringing something to life – bringing an abstract part to life.
Carved in Blue: And your mom?
Sarah: With my mom it’s like every day. She’s so deep in product and I’m so deep in design that it’s amazing to come together because our goals are the same. We also have an excellent working relationship too because I feel there’s a lot of respect. At the end of the day, we have made it together and that is something very special. Of course you go through ups and downs but I think that is really identifying that these are the people who want your best interests and that is rare in this world. It’s a very cruel world out there. If you’re in such a competitive space, having that core team is so important. Everyone always asks me, ‘Isn’t it hard to work with family?’ No it’s not. I mean, where else are you going to find people that are highly functional, very talented, very hardworking, have a perspective and a drive AND who also want the success as bad as you?
Carved in Blue: When did you know you wanted to join the family business?
Sarah: I think when you grow up around with so much indigo, it’s in your blood. You grow to have an appreciation of it – an appreciation of the art and technology that goes behind it. It’s not like other segments of the fashion industry like cut and sew. This is a specialized process. The fact that we were the first innovators in this space, always resonated with me. I didn’t know if I wanted to do denim, but I knew I wanted to create something—and still do—that inspires people, and our denim is not just a fashion brand with a celebrity, it’s a brand that feels like a little bit of extra spring in your step because you feel supported. I feel like the jean is doing something more and it’s going to carry you throughout your day. I was supposed to work for Google and actually, I didn’t. This was before start ups were cool and there was no glorified culture behind it, it was hard work of really rolling up your sleeves, long hours, doing anything and everything from cleaning the floor before you leave to organizing the closets, to having meetings with the head of department stores. That was all in a day’s work and I think having no ego about it, and still having no ego about it, is the best thing ever. Because no one is above their job, no one is above any job. And I think a lot of things get lost in translation these days because everyone is a startup and an entrepreneur and I think that very few people know what it truly means to be an entrepreneur. For us, it means supporting a community, supporting factory workers, supporting our global partners, supporting our office here in NYC. We are responsible for tens of thousands of families, so I think that is really something that does motivate me. It makes me want to do better and make me really focus on growth.
Carved in Blue: What was it like when you started in your family business?
Sarah: So when you are starting out there’s no rule, you have to do everything. There were five people when I started here, now there are about 75. We’ve grown an average of 15 percent in a space that’s really suffering. People have exited very abruptly but we are growing. Our growth is due to the fact that we have a product that is varied but is well priced. It’s high quality and has an incredible sell through. We’ve seen this time after time. Eight out of 10 times people have tried on our jeans, they buy them. We’ve seen this proof of concept when we have those subscription models partners or we see ourselves in department stores. We are strong there. People will touch the product and put it on and nothing changes, and they are like ‘This is no ordinary denim.’
The introduction of TENCEL® fibers in our jean has perpetuated that. I think that it really changed the game because you never see the jean that is really soft, but also has something that is from the 1980s. You have that vintage look, but in a jean that is from 2017.
Carved in Blue: Do you think the people part of the business can get lost in the fray of things like financials and everything else?
Sarah: Yes, and the people part is strong and is what is giving you this highly specialized product and technologically advanced global product, which is a perfect example because we use TENCEL® fibers which comes from Austria and beech trees in Europe and those beech trees are now creating the denim out there. How crazy is that? Now think about all the people in the middle that make that happen.
Carved in Blue: What’s the best advice you’ve received from your parents?
Sarah: I think every day is something different but it’s on the realm that you’re just never above anything. You always have to stay relevant. Complacency is a recipe for disaster. If you sit back and say ‘Oh you’re amazing’ if you shoot the greatest campaign with the hottest star, that means nothing. Once you shoot it you need to put it in motion so everyone can see it. So the work never ends. You can never get lazy. You have to keep working. At the end of the day what you do is bigger than you. I think that is the biggest message that I have.
Carved in Blue: What do you think is in store for the future of denim?
Sarah: We have many brands, which spread across many different market segments, and I think jeans are one of those universal items of clothing, with different price points in different markets in different body types, male and female. And within those different segments, there is a need for a certain type of denim at a certain price point for a certain market. It’s a holistic view, and we are in a very unique position because we are vertically integrated so we have to have our finger on the pulse of what is going on in all those different segments and how do we deliver the best possible product for that price point directly to the consumer, so that is what we are working on. We have our under $100 brand Warp + Weft, we have our premium brand, other various brands and we’re also doing private label.
I think the whole story is that we are the brand behind the brand. We really want to deliver incredible jeans for whatever price point or whatever market segment you are sitting in. Understanding the nuances understanding the details go behind that in order to deliver the best possible product while keeping the integrity of the supply chain. Keeping the integrity of our vendors is really cool for us.
Carved in Blue: What does Carved in Blue mean to you?
Sarah: It feels like my life. It means a platform celebrating the heritage behind indigo. It is celebrating the processes, the people, the supply chain, telling their story. Because a lot of it gets lost—it is really an art. Art should always be celebrated and appreciated. And Carved in Blue creates a platform to do so.