Thoroughly sophisticated menswear

Sure there's a place for streetwear in men's fashion, but you won't find scribbled tees at Genae, as Belinda Smart reports.

Genae founders Adam and Mickey Gjinaj should know a thing or two about how to launch a men's retail brand.
With almost two decades of experience between them, the brothers share a diverse background in fashion design and retail, including key roles with prominent Australian brands including Calibre, Bettina Liano and Mooks.
Clearly they have been around long enough to know a gap in the market when they see one, and Genae - the name is a play on their surname - is destined to fill that gap, says co-director Adam Gjinaj.
"We've found that men's fashion is either very formal or upmarket, typified by labels like Calibre or AG, or the opposite, in other words very casual streetwear. Genae sits somewhere in the middle. It's a sophisticated casual look," he explains.
The label specialises in designer, casual, high quality, street smart and fashion forward menswear for day or night, with styles including pants, shirts, coats, jackets, knitwear and tees and prices ranging from $159 for shirts, $179 for pants, $159 for knits and $249 to $549 for jackets.
Its target customers are males aged between 18-40 years of age, "who are confident, masculine and appreciate quality," says Gjinaj.
"Although our market is especially conscious of fashion trends they are by no means stereotyThe brothers travel abroad and work with local agents to source fabric from Europe, mainly from Italy but also Spain, Austria and Germany and often steal a march on northern hemisphere labels by securing fabric for the Australian season six months ahead of its northern hemisphere counterpart.
Genae is also a proudly Australian made product.
"We support Australian made because the quality is so high and we can work closely with our manufacturers to finely monitor the creation of our garments.
Because all garments are locally manufactured a considerable amount of effort is invested to create the fit of each style."
"Our signature piece would have to be our shirts, in particular our classic western style shirts. We pride ourselves seeking out the most distinctive yet wearable fabrics and trims. For winter this year, we are featuring a double breasted woollen over-coat has been an exceptionally popular piece."
Genae is also fast making a name for itself as a purveyor of swanky, locally manufactured knitwear. Using primarily Italian yarn, the striped knit - featuring colourways and stripe designs created by the brothers from scratch - is fast becoming a Genae must-have.
Directional enough to be considered edgy, yet high quality enough to play a long-term part in any stylish man's wardrobe, Genae is clearly about garments to be treasured.
If style, longevity and design values are bywords for the label it follows that the concept of "fast fashion" most definitely is not. The label releases two ranges per year for spring/summer and autumn/winter range and limits injections of fresh lines to three or four styles each season.
It also takes a cautious and steady approach to promotion. Exposure is a major issue in developing sales for the label, concedes Gjinaj -- "we believe strongly in our product and know that more market exposure would definitely help the future of the brand and increase sales" - but maintaining the exclusivity of the brand image is by far the highest priority.
"Our label is not mainstream and it is our primary intention that customers feel unique and distinctive while they're wearing something by Genae. We tend to therefore promote through the sole use of PR and editorial featured within a narrow selection of local publications."
The Genae store - which opened for spring/summer 2004 after around 18 months of planning - is located in Little Collins St, its slick fit out projecting the air of a store that belongs in the heart of Melbourne's city and fashion district, and has attracting a loyal following of Melbourne shoppers as well as more seasonal bursts of visitors.
Ultimately of course it's the product itself that is defining Genae as a standout label.
"The most rewarding aspect [of running our own label] is finally being able to create products and define trends according to our own vision, distinction and style. The best thing so far is being able to witness first-hand, the growth of the market's appreciation for both our product and for the core principles that we pursue and believe in so strongly."
Genae has all the hallmarks of a label that will travel far - in more ways than one. For no matter how successful the label proves, the brothers know that with a small population such as Australia's as the label's primary market, keeping an eye on export opportunities is just another part of running a viable business.
Indeed the brand has already received strong interest from Tokyo agents, but it is not in any hurry, says Gjinaj.
"It's really important for us to get our systems right. We've been around for 18 months and it would be so easy for us to overstretch ourselves. We want to develop a solid base first. If we can't supply wholesale clients reliably then we could end up doing the label a big injustice."
The same can be said for retail expansion. The brothers' dream over the next five to 10 years -- "to build a portfolio of stores within Australia and become an established superior, strong brand that is nationally recognised for our defined sense of style and attention to detail" -- could easily be shattered by over-stepping the mark, he says.
"I think [menswear retail label] Calibre had something like three stores for about seven years before it started expanding and that's the way we would probably want to approach it."
"We're in it for the long haul. If it takes us 10 years to get there that's fine because eventually we know we will get there."