James Perse Biography

James Perse's Biography

Growing up in Los Angeles, James Perse's life consisted of 2 worlds. One was full of sports, the beach and friends; the other, waiting around for his father, Tommy Perse, at his high fashion boutique, Maxfield. He'd spend hours playing with the sales people and customers, and almost by accident, wound up with an incredible education in the most inventive designs and most famous designers in the world. Life with his father was what you'd expect living in the minimalist architectural gem with one of the worlds greatest tastemakers: James Perse learned how not to touch the clean white walls and to stay off the mid-century furniture. But his James Perse's thing was always sports and everything that went with it. James Perse was obsessed with baseball caps, but could never find a well-made hat, with good shape, fabric and coloring. So James Perse spent the summer of 1991 making his kind of hat for Maxfield, and it was not long before the customers became clients. Movie directors wanted them for their cast and crew gifts, record labels wanted them for their cast and crew gifts, record labels wanted them for tours - and before he knew it James Perse's business was born. One taste and James Perse never looked back. James Perse moved on to t-shirts - at first manufacturing them for other people, but soon found he had discovered another unfilled niche, this time in the retail world. In 1996, James Perse launched the James Perse label, starting with women's knits, refining and perfecting the shape and softness, and having built that, added men's, children's and a home collection. The James Perse business has since grown to include everything from jackets and sweaters to pants and dresses. Everything James Perse creates mixes the sophistication of the design and architecture that James Perse grew up around with the casual warmth of the Southern California lifestyle. In building the Melrose store, He was able to fulfill his dream of creating an experience that would capture his sensibility and allow James Perse to share his passions from clothing to visual imagery and architecture. James Perse is planning more retail stores on the East and West Coasts and to open a boutique hotel that offers people a chance to live the James Perse lifestyle.

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