Menswear is an important ingredient in the recipe of Roots success
Holding up half the sky, men are a vital part of the Roots world. Walk into any Roots store and you’ll see the pride of place afforded menswear. Roots has always been highly popular with men dating back to the first store in 1973 and the negative heel shoes.
As customers, men certainly are not simple. They’re more challenging than women when it comes to fashion and catering to their idiosyncratic ways. Those in the Menswear Department (designers, technicians, graphic artists, buyers) are keenly aware of the differences between the male consumer and his female counterpart. For example, as a general rule, men are less prolific shoppers. And a lot of menswear is actually purchased by women for their husbands, boyfriends and sons.
This month, the new menswear collection for spring started arriving in stores. Promoted under the banner “The Future Looks Bright” (see previous issue of The Source), it features vibrant colours and in many cases includes socially progressive messages.
Over the past year, part of the design mission for the Roots man has been to create the perfect sweatshirt and sweatpants. The Cooper Pant is a prime example, particularly the upcoming vintage salt and pepper version. That pursuit of excellence is a guiding principle for everyone in the menswear department.
Long before the clothes arrive in the stores, the menswear staff begin a multi-staged collaborative process on the second floor of the Head Office. It begins with
Rita Shulman, Senior Designer, who creates a storyboard which features a colour palette for the upcoming season. From there, designs are drawn up with inspiration from a wide variety of sources ranging from travel, art, sample shopping, Roots customers, movies, magazines, history, runway shows, international fashion forecasting services and a large amount of people watching.
“Designing menswear is very challenging at any company,” says Rita, who studied at Ryerson in Toronto and worked at different fashion houses including Club Monaco and Bluenotes before coming to Roots in 2005. “Men are very particular. The product can’t be too ordinary or too fashion forward. The fit has to be right. It must be comfortable. The weather has to cooperate. For example, most men won’t buy a parka until it’s 40 below and snowing! And to boot, most men don’t like shopping.”
For Rita, the Roots man prefers casual and functional style. “What I really like about Roots menswear is who wears it,” says Rita. “It’s really fun to see completely different types of people wearing the clothes in completely different environments, from a teenager to a middle aged man, from a cottage to a hipster bar downtown. As a designer, I appreciate that for Don and Michael, quality is very important which many brands pass up in order to achieve lower price points.”
Helping Rita in the design process is
Dylan Anderson, Associate Designer in the Menswear Department. “Defining the ‘Roots man’ is extremely difficult,” says Dylan, 32, who joined Roots in 2005 after moving to Toronto from Vancouver where he worked in fashion for ten years. “In my opinion, the Roots man is an active guy who wants to look good without working too hard at it. He ranges in age from 13 to 65. He takes pride in his Canadian heritage, enjoys his family and spends time in the outdoors.”
Like for other menswear and womenswear designers at Roots, the company’s heritage and culture are a source of inspiration and pride for Dylan when creating new products. “I see our menswear, and Roots as a whole, as a true leader and purveyor of the Canadian lifestyle and also Canadian fashion,” says Dylan. “We’ve very lucky to have a deeply rooted Canadian heritage that the majority of our competitors have no way of reproducing or emulating. Simply put, it’s all in the beaver.”
For all its importance in the look of the product, the design is only part of the overall process in having successful merchandise in the stores. Once the designs are drawn including the graphics (which for menswear is done by graphic artist
Tracy Klem) and detailed, the technicians (
Margaret Marcysiak, Senior Technician) and
Caroline Brentnall, Technician) take them and create an in-depth technical package outlining all the features and embellishments of the garment.
Given all the variables involved, the technicians have to be masters of detail. “In my eyes, what makes the Roots style for men distinct is the attention to detail,” says Caroline. “The care and thought that go into each and every product. From the selection of a contrast thread colour that is only visible on the inside of a garment to the refinement of a logo. Every aspect of the garment is carefully considered.”
It is then sent to the manufacturer to make a sample or prototype within a few weeks. That is then fitted and reviewed at the Head Office where Co-Founders
Don Green and
Michael Budman play an important role in evaluating each product and contributing to its design. Product Coordinator
Syd Beder is also a key member of the team. Once an item is judged as being up to the standards of Roots quality and aesthetics, it’s sent to be actually manufactured.
Although not officially involved in the design of the product, all the members of the menswear team work closely together and often offer their feedback and ideas to the designers. “I like the detail that goes into Roots menswear garments,” says
Olive Brown, Product Developer. “I like that our garments can look clean on the outside with classic style lines. I like that there’s also always some great hidden bonus, such as an inside ipod pocket, two-way zippers, or printed lining. All these details, plus the combination of classic casual with a stylish, modern twist and great graphics, and the highlighting and promoting of Canadian culture, are what make the Roots product unique.”
Essential to the success of the menswear collection is the role of the buyers who are responsible for deciding the relevant quantities to order for each product. Under the direction of Jarar Kazmi, Director, Merchandise Purchasing and Flow,
Martha Galora looks after the actual buying of menswear products. “Regardless of the season, the biggest challenge with buying is always trying to combine all the elements that make up the assortment that the stores eventually see on their sales floor,” says Martha, Merchandising Manager. “The people who are directly involved in the Menswear team who put it all together work very hard to ensure that each season starts off with the best possible assortment. We carefully choose suppliers, and not every piece will make it as a Roots product if it’s not up to our standards.”
As Sourcing Coordinator for menswear,
Karen Bryan-Kirkham is instrumental in helping select the appropriate suppliers for each product. Team spirit is an indispensable component in the Menswear Department. “Since there are so many different members of the team involved at different stages, right from development to production and distribution, one of the biggest challenges is to ensure that everyone works together to ensure that the right product reach the stores at the right time,” says
Shehza Behrainwala, Manager, Merchandising Planning. “Each and everyone of us in our department does our own little bit and in the end we hope that our efforts translate into a successful assortment at the store level.” -
R.S.
Menswear is an important ingredient in the recipe of Roots success
New collection is called “The Future Looks Bright” with good reason
The collection is the fruit of several creative minds working in harmony in the Design Department at the Roots Headquarters in Toronto. Jules Power, Rita Shulman, Dylan Anderson, Karl Kowalewski, Elsa Desouza, Lynne Morris, Marisa Battaglia, Stephanie Briers and Tracy Klem represent menswear, womenswear, leather goods, accessories, kids, baby and graphic design. Together, they bring a richness of backgrounds, styles and sensibilities to the table.
Sounds pretty simple and straightforward but it’s not. With each product, there’s so much more than meets the eye. What the customer sees is only the last stage in the product’s multi-faceted evolution from the original idea to the actual manufacturing. It’s all part of the creative and production process at Roots that’s both intuitive and logical.
Although the ‘Future Looks Bright’ theme is unique to Roots, it reflects certain current trends. For example, one of the elements in the collection is a nautical theme, which is in fashion this season. Roots integrated it with an environmental angle in the graphic T-shirts for men and women which highlight the message ‘Save Our Oceans’.
New “Future” collection inaugurates use of informative hangtags
US television producers can’t seem to get enough Roots
• The People’s Court - The judge of the widely popular American “judge show” in which actual small claims court cases are heard, ordered micro fleece fabric zip-polos. Some 220 polos with embroidery details on the neck and sleeve were shipped to the offices of the show in New York and Los Angeles.
Los Angeles when the makers of the US-based drama series needed branded products for the show’s cast and crew. The hoodies were made in Canada from 80% cotton and 20% polyester fleece fabric with distressed print details.
• The Jimmy Kimmel Show – Executive Producer Jill Leiderman of the late-night Jimmy Kimmel Show purchased more than 350 full-zip hoodies for the program’s staff and ABC TV’s executives. Made in Canada from 80% cotton and 20% polyester fleece fabric, the hoodies have with white satin twill appliqué and embroidery detail.
Fashion cognoscenti from Canadian media take in ‘trunk show’ at Roots
They were received by Diane Bald, Founder and Director of Roots Home and Denyse Green, Founder and Director of Roots Yoga. Company Co-Founders Michael Budman and Don Green were also present for the gathering. As part of the refreshments, guests were served organic coffee (now sold at Roots Bloor Street).
What a month! Spotlighting the top-performing stores in December
Taking attendance of special guests at Roots stores
· Birmingham, Michigan - Actress Cheryl Hines, most famous for her role as Larry David’s wife on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, shopped at the store while preparing her wardrobe for this month’s Sundance Film Festival.
Results from pilot project to determine benefit of in-store kiosk with computer
Staff usher in holiday with annual celebrations
The leather factory hosted its traditional holiday lunch for its employees with freshly cooked turkey along with potatoes and fresh vegetables. Karl Kowalewski, Director of Leather and his brother Henry Kowalewski, Plant Product Manager at the factory, participated in the celebrations as they always do every year. As part of a lucky draw, Leather Stitchers Ibette Urbine won a 32" LCD High Definition flat screen TV and Maria Silva won a mountain bike with anti-shock suspension. All employees also received a turkey and other gifts.
Baker, Director of the DC, held a holiday luncheon on the premises for his entire team. Adding to the holiday spirit, they were accompanied by Buddy the Roots Beaver and Mrs. Clause. Several prizes were given away including a 27” Toshiba TV, won by Jaswinder Phull and two Panasonic Microwave ovens won by Yvette Gordon and David Cheng. Other prizes included a music system and Roots items.
Spotlight shines on the man on the move who delivers the goods
Windsor launches line of city-branded Roots products
Stores in Western Canada show their real colours by helping their communities
• Kingsway, Edmonton, AB – Store Manager Sheila Brisson and her team donated their Christmas staff party money to Catholic Social Services, which provides support to new immigrants in Canada. They also collected money among the staff by selling bottles of water in recent months to purchase Roots clothes and toys for an immigrant family.
• Chinook Centre, Calgary, AB - Store Manager Denise Bazzana and her team donated their Christmas Party funds to the Alberta Children’s Hospital.
• Kamloops, BC – Store Manager Darlene Thorne and her team saved all their empty bottles of water in the store during the whole year, and recycled them to get money and buy food for the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Mayfair, Victoria, BC – Store Manager Bob Heyes and his team donated money to the grocery chain Thrifty’s Feed a Family campaign. With this money, they were able to purchase hampers for 12 families.
Manager Lea Weir and her team arranged a clothing drive for the Women in Need Society, which helps women and children. They also donated their Christmas staff party money to buy Roots clothes for underprivileged children in their community.
The littlest customers show their Roots
Roots.
The ski-city line of Roots apparel that arrived in stores in recent weeks is not just stylish but also a source of information. Inspired by popular North American locations, the collection features creative graphics reflecting the lifestyle of each chosen ski resort – Whistler, Banff, Mont-Tremblant, Aspen, Park City, and Sun Valley – and spotlights the year in which each was established. For example, the oldest is Banff which was founded in 1880.
To meet the big needs of a little baby, the right diaper bag can make all the difference. The solution from the Roots Babies Department has attracted many parents.
As part of the ‘Future Looks Bright’ campaign (see cover story), four new pieces have been added to the kids collection. For girls, the latest shirt to hit stores is the Haily long-sleeve T-shirt. Available in lotus pink, honey peach, and sunrise yellow, the brightly-coloured shirts feature positive messages: ‘The Future Looks Bright’; ‘Down to Earth’; and ‘Ready For Anything’.
The latest baby collection of the season is the Organic Layette Group. Made from 100% organic cotton, the environmentally friendly line has a soft texture just right for babies. Each piece features the traditional Roots beaver logo and comes in Solid Ice, Striped Ice and Driftwood.
Easy ways to help the environment
Easy ways to stay healthy
Someone’s obviously taking notice of the communication and public relations work of Roots. In January, Co-Founders Michael Budman and Don Green received the 2006 Award of Excellence for Communication and PR from the Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS). Awarded primarily for actions taken over the previous year, it is the greatest honour a business leader can receive from the professional association of communicators in Canada.
