We love hearing from our customers, whether it be photos of you in your clothes, questions, ideas, feedback- it's all valuable! Recently we received this very thoughtful comment that we thought was worth sharing along with our response:
"I think that your clothes look incredible and I love your clean, simple website. But I will admit that I was a bit taken aback by your price point. Do you ever sell last year's clothing as a discount or put your samples on sale for a reduced price? I would love to try your product, but your price tag is my biggest obstacle. Continued success with your very cool clothing line."
Our response:
Thank you for your thoughtful comments. You're absolutely right, our clothes are a bit pricey, but that has a lot to do with our process and all the costs involved in the making of each garment. Debra, the designer behind Rebe, works with high end fabrics (cottons, organic cottons, linens, etc...), many of which are imported from Japan and a few local companies. The fabric costs alone start at $17 a yard and most of the garments require many yards of fabric as they are cut to fit loosely on the body. Debra works with a very small team of people, 2-3 individuals who hand cut and sew each piece. All the garments feature details, these are the things that make them so special, but they require extra time to sew. For example it is hard t o find a Rebe garment that doesn't feature one or a combination of the following: pleats, multiple pockets (many of them lined), gathers, button holes, macrame and hand stitched detailing, as well as shaping and piecing. I think another major factor, that has great impact on the price point, is that all the garments are made in the USA and Debra pays a high living wage to the individuals who make her clothing. This is something she believes in and it insures that the quality of her goods remain excellent from piece to piece and year to year.
It is hard to justify spending a lot of money on a single item of clothing, as an artist I struggle with this myself, living on a tight budget. I think understanding the costs and reframing the idea of what handmade clothing can be in our lives is helpful to understanding it. The idea behind Rebe is that all the garments are designed to be worn together, they are season-less (you can layer them in the cold months or wear them alone in the warm months) and one garment can be worn many different ways. Most importantly when treated with care, they will last you many years, upwards of 7-10 is very typical for a Rebe garment. My hope is that people will buy less but buy better (more sustainable and in support of beautiful things they love and the individuals who make those things).
I would guess that 95% of my wardrobe is Rebe. I've built my wardrobe over 15 years, taking time to collect beautiful pieces I feel good in. Most of our customers are returning customers. I don't know many people who buy one Rebe garment and don't come back for more. With that said, we absolutely do have annual sales and we travel all over the country meeting our customers face to face so they can find just the right pieces for them.
Warmly, Hillery
