Collars & Co. In the Press
I recently came across an forward-thinking menswear item from Collars & Co. The progressive brand has changed the game in the shirting industry. They developed an original dress-collar polo. Essentially, it is a comfortable stretch polo shirt with a structured dress collar. The style provides a hassle-free way to look polished with all the benefits of a classic dress shirt. I own one and I fully endorse the item. More importantly, I am interested in watching this brands development - moving into the near future.
The company operated a two-week pop-up in Tysons Corner, Va., last year, and found that in-store customers spent more per transaction and were more likely to buy again.
Collars & Co. will open its first physical store next month at a mall on Michigan Avenue in Chicago under a short-term lease. “If we make this store successful, our plan is to scale and roll out many more stores,” Mr. Baer said.
This innovative polo shirt will make going from the office to the course easier than ever. The viral product combines a formal English dress collar with the silhouette of a 4-way stretch short-sleeved polo shirt. Layer with a jacket or sweater during the work day for a comfortable but professional look and shed down to the polo when it’s time to hit the links.
One success story Johnson offers is that of Justin Baer, the founder of menswear brand Collars and Co., which has nearly 32,000 followers on the app. Baer started last April with a video recorded by his 7-year-old daughter on an iPhone, which got 50,000 views by the end of the day. Since generating $40,000 in the first month following the release of the video, the company's sales have increased an average of 40 percent a month.
The entrepreneur recommends small-business owners start simple. "I think people get caught up in being perfect," Baer says. "Just get it out there and test it. TikTok is a great proving ground."
In April, Justin Baer posted a video on his TikTok, where he had almost no audience to speak of. The video showed him talking about the problem that inspired his brand, Collars & Co. — the annoyance of wearing a lumpy collared shirt under a sweater — along with a demonstration of his alternative.
The featured shirt has a dressy collar but a soft pullover body meant to look smooth and seamless under a sweater. Baer had only ordered a small batch of 500 pieces, not sure if it would actually take off. But the video went viral, being viewed more than 800,000 times. Within two days, the company had sold out all 500 pieces. Within four months, Baer went from buying 500 shirts at a time to buying 6,000 at a time. Soon, he said, he’ll be increasing those orders to 10,000 to keep up with demand.
Collars & Co. is not a golf brand, but it’s been embraced by golfers, including Sir Nick Faldo, the esteemed British player who won three Open Championships, three Masters and 41 times on the European tour. Now a CBS golf analyst, in his playing days Faldo was ranked number-one for 97 weeks.
Here, Faldo talks about his new role as ambassador, the golf legends he emulated as a player and what he’d bring to a Collars & Co. collaboration.
WWD: How did you discover Collars & Co.?
N.F.: I actually saw one of their ads on social media and bought some of their shirts. I was impressed with how Collars & Co. elevated the classic polo shirt by adding its signature collar. I was also drawn to how comfortable and versatile the polo is, not to mention that it feels amazing, and I don’t have to worry about getting it dry cleaned. I immediately became a repeat customer!