Sitdown: The Good People

By Glenn Fennema and Boris de Bruijn

Last week we had a short rendezvous with Ivo, founder and co-designer from Good People.

 A 5 year old brand from Rotterdam. It’s already quiet big in The Netherlands, with almost 70 shops. And already expanding to Belgium.

When did you start Good People?

I’ve started Good People around 5 years ago. It started out from a time that I had a encountered some financial and personal problems. I wanted to do something with the thoughts I had and the style I liked.

What’s the thought behind Good People?

The thought is that people should follow there own way. Step off from the know ways. Stop taking yourself so seriously. Embrace the moment, remember what life used to feel like and go for it.

From what do you get your inspiration?

I do get my inspiration from all sort of things and brands. A few brands are Folk, Kenzo and Paul Smith.  All brands which are doing there own things and make things they like themselves.

From where do you get your products? And where do you produce your products?

Twice a year we visit Premiére Vision, a fabric fair in Paris. From there we those the fabrics and import them. Those products come from 3 countries. First off I’m getting my wool and a few shirt fabrics from Italy, because of the great quality. I’m also getting shirt fabrics imported from Portugal. For my high end knitwear and shirting I’m using Japanese fabrics.

The production is in Italy, Portugal and Istanbul. It’s all produced by women.

How far is production right now?

Right now they are producing the s/s 13 collection. Also are we producing samples for the a/w winter 13/14 collection. When they are ready they will be send to our showrooms in Antwerp and Rotterdam.

Do you look at the trends? And do you use them in your collection?

Not really. When we visit Premiére Vision, we write down all the trends. From there on we choose 2 trends at maximum. Then we create a collection around those trends. So our collection mainly consists of products within our own style. We have seen that people are more enthusiast when you create something of your own.

What’s your goal with Good People?

My first goal is to make profit, so I can keep doing what I like.

Next to that is to put on a nice, viable brand. So I can do the things that give me pleasure.

What are your future plans with Good People?

Good people has a few plans for the future. First off we want to expand more in The Netherlands and Belgium. Next to that we will be going to Germany and Denmark.

Hopefully after that we can expand to the Scandinavian countries.

Don’t you guys want to expand to England and Italy?

We don’t have plans to go to those countries yet. In my opinion you need to have a great collection, which separates you from other brands. 

Can you explain in what kind of category we can place Good People, because of the difference within your collections?

The problem is that even we can’t place Good People in a corner. But on the other hand, we don’t want to be placed in a corner. We want to supply both denim shops and dressed shops. To give a good example; Twice a year there is the Modefabriek in the Amsterdam RAI. They normally place every company in a category and place them together. But because of the great dressed shirts, but also the fashion shirts they couldn't place us within one category. 

In what kind of shops do you want to see your collections?

I want to see my collections in both dressed shops and denim shops. Stockist like a Gentlemen in Oud-Beijerland is one of our best in the dressed part. But a Lokal Heroz, based in Rotterdam, is better to put in our high end shirts.

For the future it would be great to be in a dressed shops like Oger and also in a denim shops like Tenue de Nîmes.

Do you regret things you have or haven’t done in your last couple of years?

I do regret one thing. The thing is that I haven’t done a fashion related education. I do have a college diploma in Small Business. But when I started Good People I needed to learn every little thing by myself. Also the people I have met and from where I've got my fabrics, helped my out.

First off we want to thank Ivo for his time and for giving all the information. Remember to check out the collection on www.thegoodpeople.nl.