CULTURE SHOQ

Riviera Club Interview | Sitting Down With Joe Sadler

Posted by Greg Weinstein | Filed under Clothing, Cultureshoq, Features, Interview

When sitting down with Joe Sadler from the popular Riviera Club line, you won’t only be gaining a few words from the wise, but you’ll also hear about how the label had to quickly relocate their headquarters if they ever wanted to get work done from the beach scene to somewhere else not so calming. Riviera Club’s roots date back a few years to the Santa Barbara coastline, and their preppy styles haven been known as the perfect choice for casual beach trips with friends to upscale dinner parties with colleagues. Today you can find Riviera Club quickly popping up at your favorite shops worldwide, but most notably at Ron Herman.

Hit the flip to read the interview.

Culture Shoq: What’s the history behind Riviera Club? Take us to day one.

Joe Sadler: Derek and Greg were college friends at Point Loma in San Diego, and they’ve been dreaming about a brand for around over 7 years ago. After college, Derek spent time traveling Europe selling another brand and building relationships while Greg was living the good life selling surfboards and enjoying southern California. I met Derek while I was DJing the Designers & Agents tradeshow in New York. I was a freelance designer at the time. When Derek and Greg decided it was time to move forward with Riviera Club, they approached me at another Designers & Agents show in Los Angeles and we planned a round of golf the following Saturday and after a few holes and a few beers, Riviera Club was born.

CS: What’s the story behind the name Riviera Club?

JS: When we launched, Derek and Greg were living in Santa Barbara, which some call the American Riviera. But to us, the name easily suggests the relaxed and refined lifestyle that inspires the brand, so it made sense to start work from there.

Although, we learned that a main office in Santa Barbara wasn’t such a great idea if we had hopes of actually delivering on time. Basically, it wasn’t unusual for one lunchtime beer to turn into margaritas and close friends at the beach. So while we still have a small office in Santa Barbara, it’s safe to say we relocated to Santa Monica to get some work done two blocks from the beach and near my apartment.

CS: What are some of the inspirations behind the Fall/Winter 2010 collection? Any favorite pieces?

JS: We had a lot of fun with the Fall season. The inspiration was a whimsical story of a 1950’s dry ski club, which led us to Woodstock, Vermont to shoot the lookbook. We packed a van full of 9 models and met our photographer Randall Mesdon, and stylist Julie Ragolia on a farm 5 hours outside of Manhattan. My key pieces include a washed reversible varsity jacket, brushed wool suiting, and an angora cashmere overcoat.

CS: Talk about the other founders Derek Buse and Greg Ullery, do you all work together or does everyone have their own specialties?

JS: Being a small company we all wear a lot of hats and share a lot of responsibility. Derek is the sales director/president, and Greg is the production manager, the Pete Rose of the business.

CS: Take us through a day in the life of Joe Sadler.

JS: During a normal summer day I’d have coffee on my roof next to the beach in Venice, and read through my blog feed. Apparently we’ve had the coldest summer in over 50 years, so I’ve been heading over to Peet’s on Main Street to take shelter from the fog. After 7 years in LA you could say I’m solar powered.

Depending on where we are in development, I could spend the day at the beach researching, or an entire day in the factory with the sewers. Regardless, I appreciate being close to the ocean in the evenings. Greg and I set up a recording studio in the office, and we relive a lot of stress playing music. We haven’t had much of a social life the past couple years due to the demands of starting a business, but we can see a little light at the end of the tunnel. I think it’s actually quite difficult to call this work. We enjoy every second.

CS: What can we expect from the Spring/Summer 2011 collection?

JS: Spring 2011 is inspired by the golden age of Baja, California and Mexico. Burnt burlaps, and a rustic palette of ox carts and cacti inspire another sun-drenched, tide washed collection of wearable menswear. We’ve had an incredible response so far, and we’re very excited about opening a few accounts, including Opening Ceremony.

CS: Take us through the design process for each collection.

JS: It’s constant. My eyes are always on the look out for something interesting, it never stops. I usually start with textiles. Whether designing them myself, or paying close attention to what the mills are doing in terms of color and texture. I have a graphic design background, so I probably spend a little more time on our mood boards than most designers. Typography plays an important role there. For me the collection is never finished, it could always use a little more of something—I’m never satisfied. Of course I’m usually pleased when we ship the sample collections, but like everyone else I need more time!

CS: Can we expect any collaborations in the future or side projects?

JS: We have a great relationship with Ron Herman. He’s such a legend in the business and we really believe in his vision. We have some interesting things coming up with him in the near future…

Tags: Interview, Joe Sadler, Riviera Club   |    September 7th, 2010   |