Seth Weisser & Gerard Maione – the gentlemen behind the New York based clothing company What Comes Around Goes Around – know a cool piece of clothing when they see it. When I stopped by the company’s sprawling TriBeCa office a few weeks ago, Seth and Gerard were giddy over a score of vintage Levis XX jeans acquired from real-life ranchers in Colorado. The decades old denim was strewn across the worn wooden floor of the two founders shared private office. “What makes these jeans special is the fact that the leather patches are still intact” said Seth Weisser. “You rarely see them with the patches still on the waistbands. Usually [the patch] will have deteriorated and fallen off from the years of wear,” he added while inspecting the cache of vintage jeans.
A hunting themed selection of vintage clothing from What Comes Around Goes Around.
WCAGA is a sort of Disney Land for vintage lovers. The highly curated and appointment-only “Archive” space is beautifully merchandised with different themed areas of vintage clothing, all of which are based on seasonal trends. A lot of outside designers frequent the aptly named What Comes Around Goes Around, to buy inspirational pieces that serve as the basis for their new collections. The one of a kind vintage clothing that is displayed at WCAGA, is acquired from flea markets and shops all over the world.
A sea of vintage denim.
Plaid wool jackets.
The process is excruciatingly involved, especially when you think about and the knowledge of antique clothing that is required. To successfully run a company like WCAGA there are many factors to consider: 1. being able to discern good vintage from bad vintage 2. knowing how to find the good vintage 3. what vintage pieces will sell to your trend-minded designer customers. All of this is what sets WCAGA apart from your local Thrift store – which is the understatement of the year. The hours of work that it spends mining and sourcing the one percent of good clothing from the other ninety nine percent. I like to think of it as triple distilled vintage.
The AW08 WCAGA men’s collection.
In addition to selling an amazing selection of vintage clothing and fabrics, WCAGA also designs, manufactures and markets a line of contemporary men’s and women’s clothing under the same name. I managed to get a peek at the very cool new AW08 line. The men’s collection features trousers, woven shirts, knits and outerwear. The collection, which ranges in price from $50 for graphic tees to about $1000 for outerwear (note the amazing leather jacket in the picture for fall), strikes a great balance between vintage inspiration and contemporary design. The woven shirts in particular, which are made from some really cool fabrics, are worth a look. Where to buy info is below.
What Comes Around Goes Around
WCAGA Collection | Vintage Archive 13-17 Laight Street, 5th Floor | Retail Store 351 West Broadway
Greetings, ACL,
I really like your blog and I check it out all the time. I’m actually going to order some Pointer Brand stuff based solely on your advice.
This store looks pretty cool, I think I may have even been there before on a trip to NYC. Just one thing about it bugs me. True to the New York habit of stealing from Boston, these guys make some brash remarks about being the first to merchandise thier goods seasonally, really showing vintage as fine clothing, and that they have the biggest selection of old denim. Truth is, Bobby from Boston has been doing it since before anybody else, in a shop in a hard to find part of town, without a website. He won’t accept credit cards, and keeps weird hours sometimes. To boot, WCAGA’s retail store is even styled almost identically to Bobby’s. It’s clear to me that in all likelihood, WCAGA’s proprietors have visited Bobby from time to time.I don’t want to sound all sour grapes, but credit belongs where credit is due.
http://thebostonphoenix.com/boston/news_features/hip_check/documents/02379851.htm
(not the best article from not-the-best weekly, but yo get the idea)
Dear Giuseppe,
Thanks for the comment and the good info on Bobby from Boston. I am familiar with him and was by no means saying that WCAGA is the only show in town or that they are the originators. That said, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Regards,
ACL
True enough. Anyway, keep up the good work.