Jeans are among the most enduring of apparels. Originally designed in the US for cowboys and miners, the denim or dungaree trousers appeal to people of all ages and genders and from all walks of life — the rich, the poor, celebrities, the masses — reflecting a universal symbol of cool.
You need to try Gasoline jeans on to know the difference from other brands, says Thanarad
Jeans come in various styles, from tapered, skinny and straight to low-waisted, loose and flared. The most popular among youth is the distressed look. But classic jeans remain in great demand, as do original brand names, which often don't come cheap.
Yet modern processes have helped reduce production costs, meaning cheaper brands at often comparable quality to name brands.
One of these new jeans entrepreneurs, who even offers bespoke tailoring, is Thanarad Mayteedol, the founder and managing director of Khonrukjeans Co, the producer of Pumpnammun-Gasoline and Garage brand jeans and denim clothing.
"I always enjoy classic and vintage clothing, and jeans have those values," said Mr Thanarad, 36.
"To be honest, I don't see it as a business. It is just to satisfy my passion about jeans and my way of life linked to art and design."
He started selling jeans in 1997 as a third-year university student in the fine arts faculty at Chulalongkorn University, beginning with a small store at Siam Square.
Only a few years later, word-of-mouth advertising from satisfied clients spread the popularity of his little shop, driving up sales and encouraging him to open a second store.
"Luckily we expanded our shop quite quickly because at that time jeans had become such a generic product people were looking for something different, a new style they can't get anywhere else. And we made them," he said.
"There are a few jeans of Thai brands now but most jeans are still from the same international brands that have been there since when I was a child."
So what make Gasoline jeans different from the others?
Quality and service, says Mr Thanarad.
"My family have been in tailoring since my grandfather's generation, so I just added some new know-how about making jeans that would fit everyone, especially Thais. It is hard to describe how they are different from other jeans. You'll only know when you try them on."
His company makes several styles of jeans, ranging from very large to very small, matching a wide style of dress.
"What we learned over the past 10 years is some customers can't find their size of jeans, such as very small. This opened the door for us to make several different sizes, which most traditional jeans companies do not offer because they feel it would complicate their stock management system," he said.
If customers want rare sizes and are willing to pay, Gasoline can make them to order priced from 2,590 to 10,500 baht.
Mr Thanarad says the 10,500-baht jeans are one of the company's signatures. They are hand-made from a special-run fabric that appeals to certain types of customers, he said.
Gasoline also provides other services such as repair and alterations.
"Quality differentiates our brand as we invest a lot on fabric and a deliberate cutting process, while new brands normally invest a lot on marketing instead of quality," said Mr Thanarad.
"We use a traditional method to make jeans where no small details are overlooked. We pay attention from the fabric through to the small buttons."
Starting with capital of only 500,000 baht for Khonrukjeans, the company broke even in less than a year. He registered his shop as a company to run a brand new business in 2012.
Thanarad's selection of denim jeans and shirts are available in many sizes. Kosol Nakachol
The company earned 10 million baht in sales in 2014 and hopes to achieve 15 million baht in 2015.
He says it is difficult to estimate the company production capacity as it only produces based on demand projections. It produces 60% of its jeans in-house. On average the company produces 1,000 pairs of jeans per month.
Gasoline Jeans have outlets at Robinson stores on Rama IX Road in Bangkok, in Chiang Mai and Udon Thani, and the company expects to expand to 10 stores over the next five years.
"As Gasoline Jeans was established in Siam Square, it is where people know us. We will consolidate our four stores around Siam Square and Siam Square One to gain better exposure," said Mr Thanarad.
All the stores are run by the company because it has no distributors. The company joins several roadshows to help customers feel familiar with the brand rather than setting up more shops.
"Most of our sales come from roadshows and we aim to join more. We also plan to expand our retail outlets in other provinces with our customised service, and penetrate the online shopping sphere," he said.
"Most people know us through word-of-mouth, so we will continue to focus on what makes us different: quality and service."