Heritage Forever: The Details
When you’re focused on moving the big picture forward, it can be easy to let the details fall to the wayside. It’s even easier to lose track of them all in the hustle and bustle of releasing a finished product out into the world to forge its own story.
We didn’t want that to be the case with the Heritage Forever denim jacket, commemorating five years of CMBD and toasting to many more. We loaded this one with hidden details - some obvious only to the wearer, some visible to a vigilant onlooker, but all tracing back to the story of our first five years in business. Read on for a peek into some of our favorite features.
5
People say it takes ten full years to truly become an “expert” at something. At five years and change old, we are proud of where we are, and cognizant of how far we have to go. We will not back down in our stance as expert denim enthusiasts, but can humbly admit we have much ground to cover as we enter our next five years, and even more to learn beyond that.
We’ve said before, and you’ve heard from other brands you know and trust - last year (our fifth year in business) was about learning and re-learning flexibility. As we hit that halfway point in supposed expert-hood, we learned the value in understanding complex problems by utilizing different lenses, echoed the sentiments of fellow founders and creatives that as brands we must stand up for what we believe is right, and remembered the insight we can gain for ourselves when we take a moment to listen to someone who has experienced life differently than us.
To us, the Heritage Forever jacket symbolizes all of those ideas in a physical form. A physical reminder of the ways we choose to honor the heritage in our industry, while leaving our own unique stamp on the landscape. A reminder of the first five years of creating the thing we saw clearly in our heads, but hadn’t been executed upon until we made it happen for ourselves. What the jacket symbolizes to you - should you choose to hang one in your closet - is up to you.
Jacket Design
A big thing for us as we’ve grown into our brand identity as it now stands is minimalism - both in design and in practice. With all of the distraction around us, we’ve migrated to designing pieces that don’t add to the hum of daily life, but provide simplicity and efficiency to your day-to-day. If nothing else, we want to make picking out your go-to kit one step easier in working with you to find your favorite piece.
This jacket is that for us. In short, this is our spin on the classic Type 2 jacket silhouette. In tune with keeping design streamlined and minimalist, we went for chore coat-style pockets - a subtle nod to the design behind the heritage pieces that have inspired us since finding our fixation with denim in the 90s. In a nod to our founding roots in the raw selvedge journey, we were sure to include selvedge detail throughout the jacket. And, in spirit of innovation, we opted for pleats across the front sides of the jacket - a small detail that is sure to stick out in a sea of selvedge.
Our favorite detail, however, ties back to our five-year anniversary. The guy sitting across from you on the train may not know the significance, but the “V” stitching down the front pleats is our way of honoring five years of CMBD (V being the Roman Numeral for 5). And given that Year 5 was our year of adaptability, we hope the “V” embellishment will serve as a reminder for you to take change in stride, as well. And, all that being said - even if he doesn’t get it, the guy on the train will probably think it’s pretty cool anyway.
The CMBD Elephant
A new player for the CMBD has entered the chat - the CMBD Elephant, designed by our good friend Eva O’Krent, is an idea that has pressure-cooked in our minds for most of our journey as small business owners.
Elephants are, by nature, travelers. If you’ve been around for a while, you’ve picked up that we are, too. In the summer months, we’ll be packing up the herd and relocating to a new base, starting a new chapter in the history of our brand and for the Miller family. Other attributes that have always stood out to us include a human-esque ability to express joy, gratitude, and compassion - traits we strive to embody as entrepreneurs and purveyors of heritage goods in the denim community. And, as the old saying goes, an elephant never forgets. Neither do we!
Given the significance of the jacket we hold close to us, this felt like the right opportunity to introduce the elephant, screen-printed on the inside back on the jacket. And he’s wearing selvedge, just like you.
If you get the chance to hold one of these in your own hands, you’ll know that these aren’t the only details we’re talking about here. We have to save some, though, you know?
The Heritage Forever jacket is available now, in a limited release with limited sizing. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.