Kody Phillips on Kody Phillips

There’s a birthday at the Kody Phillips office, which explains the huge chocolate cake.

Resting on the middle of the office’s center table is the perfectly boxed, personalized frosted cake, surrounded by sketches, samples, an in-progress Lasso Shirt, lots of half-finished iced coffees, and some leftover Chinese food from the birthday lunch.

Crowded by clothing racks, Phillips is perched on the windowsill in the back of the studio, producing a lookbook for the label’s forthcoming collection entitled Cabaret. His wife, Ryanna, has her hands in the Lasso shirt, sewing final touches onto the embroidered edges.

This is a typical Wednesday afternoon at the Brooklyn-based studio, which Phillips just fully moved into a few weeks back after “outgrowing” his and Ryanna’s apartment. “We’re a little family,” Phillips said, as his team expands to include more creators, creatives and, as a result, cake-worthy occasions.

Phillips, a self-described “Pantaloons Champion,” first started the brand over a decade ago, though he and Ryanna have really ramped up the New York City-based outfitter’s ready-to-wear in the past year. A proud purveyor of proper pant styles, Phillips has perfected his most recognizable “Rip Van Kody” silhouette – Phillips says the pocket count is still disputed – while pushing the needle on raw denim pieces and hiding features underneath hems and seams.

“Functionality is my preferred method of designing. Even if you don’t see it, it’s hidden. I’ll put pockets in with hidden zippers. It keeps it fun for me.”

Despite having five and a half things going on at once around him, the designer sat down with us for a nearly no-distractions discussion on the growth of his brand, interrupted only by the unveiling of a life-size model of Phillips’ head, set to appear in a forthcoming lookbook…

Is Kody Phillips the brand a reflection of your personal style?

Kody Phillips is a reflection of what I’d want my style to be if I were like 6’1 and two times more handsome.

How long has fashion been a part of your life?

My interest in fashion goes back a while. Growing up, I went to private school in Ohio for 12 years, so we’d wear a uniform, and any time I got any sort of outside, non-uniform view of fashion, that was exciting for me. The main inspiration at the time was Ryan Seacrest. You remember the jeans and the sports jacket combo? That had me f*cking heavy locked.

I couldn’t draw when I started making my own clothes, so in those early days, I’d literally cut stuff up and sew or glue it together. I used a lot of glue.

What were some of the early pieces you were experimenting with?

I was making custom snapbacks in 2013. I got a job at a screenprinting place, and that was my first real hands-on experience with fashion. Every day, once my shift ended, I’d print my own designs.

When did you drop your first piece under the Kody Phillips label?

I dropped my first “Kody Phillips” piece in 2014. It was okay. I got my first sewing machine in 2015, and then started doing a lot of patchwork and reworking until about 2021. That stuff sucked. I got into cut-and-sew when COVID hit, and that’s when the brand became successful and things started to make sense.

When was your first full collection launched?

Technically, last year.

What was going through your mind when building that out?

Nothing.

Is that how you tend to approach things – without listening to external pressures or industry trends?

Yeah. Yeah, not at all. If I have an idea similar to a trend that's happening, I'll definitely prioritize that, but I'm not gonna stop what I'm doing to capitalize on a trend.

How did you approach that first full collection?

I’m not even sure I’d call that a release a “collection” because I made it and dropped it piece by piece. There was a drop schedule. It was a very spread-out “collection.”

What would you consider your first collection?

This upcoming collection is the first one that, from inception to end, I’ve had a goal I’m aiming for.

How is that approach different from a piece-by-piece approach?

It’s so hard to approach a full collection. Every six months, you have to put out 80 items that look good together and tell a story. Whereas, if you focus on one piece, you can work on perfecting it. You can explore every single detail of that garment in as much time as possible.

What were some of those pieces you devoted a significant amount of time to early on?

The Curve Jeans. That was the first big hit we had. We sold 1200 pairs in like 20 minutes. Those numbers definitely skewed my perception of success in the future [laughs]. I think that was just the right time, right place. It gave me a little more confidence to try new things.

Your Instagram bio is “Pantaloons Champion.” How has the brand’s pants range evolved?

I’m obsessed with pants. I love pants so much. Pants are fun to make, and they make your outfit so much better. You can’t buy good pants for a good price. So, I took it into my own hands. And learned how to make good pants very, very well.

What’s your most popular pant?

The Rin Vap Kodys. The Curved Jeans are also really popular and so are the the Mr. Poopy Pants. That’s our overall best-selling pants.

How did you come up with the name?

Placeholder.

How have the Rip Van Kodys evolved?

Only the silhouette has changed. The design has stayed entirely the same.

How many pockets do they have?

It’s disputed. Some say 15, some say 18. I don’t know…

"Functionality is my preferred method of designing. Even if you don’t see it, it’s hidden. I’ll put pockets in with hidden zippers. It keeps it fun for me."

Functionality is so prominent in your pieces. What’s one of your favorite examples of this?

My absolute favorite example of this is something that hasn’t come out yet. It’s the Accordion bag. It was made specifically for one use. When we moved to New York City, we learned you have to walk to get groceries. So I made a bag that gets bigger. You can carry it there empty, small. It expands as much as you want as you unzip it. Functionality is my preferred method of designing. Even if you don’t see it, it’s hidden. I’ll put pockets in with hidden zippers. It keeps it fun for me.

When did the idea for the Lasso shirt come about?

When we went to Paris for the first time last winter. We already had the general Lasso shirt idea, but then we sourced these buttons in Paris and just wanted to put our trip into a little item.

Why do you think it’s popped off the way it has?

I don’t know. I don’t price things crazily. I love middle-range. It’s my ideal world. It’s super important to me. There’s no reason it has to be expensive.

Are you a perfectionist?

I am. I made probably 30-something revisions of the Lasso shirt.

What were some of those details you messed around with?

We reverse-engineered all of the buttons. We bought them at vintage stores in Paris and had to match all of the designs correctly. Also, with the lasso rope – I designed that from scratch. When we got the first sample in person, it was a rayon blend, and it bled and shrank when we washed it. So, we remade it in polyester. The next sample we got came with tape. So, we figured out how to make it with a zig-zag stitch.

Do you personally test the items?

Yeah. Every single item I’ve dropped, I’ve made and tested in-house.

Your marketing – like the content starring your older, outspoken office neighbor, Eddie, for example – also sets you guys apart. Could you say more about this?

We just try and do what feels right. I have the luxury of just being a guy on the internet, like, my brand is my name. I didn’t even have to add an extra letter. It’s just me. I like making people laugh, so we always try to incorporate humor. Cinematography is important. Always some fun characters. Eddie, from one of our recent campaigns, is just our neighbor. He lives downstairs. He’s ridiculous. He wasn’t playing a bit at all.

Are you playing a bit?

Nope. Just me.

What did you envision your brand becoming? Was it this?

No, it was not this at all. I don’t think about that stuff too much because I’ve just done it my entire life. I’m definitely further than I thought I’d be. I’m really glad people like it so much because I have a lot of fun doing it. I’m only making what I like to make right now.

What have been some key milestones in the brand’s journey?

Dressing Drake for his tour last summer was awesome. We got to go see him wear our pieces, which was insane. We worked on it for 17-hour stretches over the course of a month You see him wearing it on your phone, but then you see him performing in it, and it’s f*cking wild. My Paris showroom was another big moment. Seeing the response to my clothing so far from New York City was crazy too.

Would you categorize Kody Phillips as a high-fashion brand? A streetwear brand? Both? Neither?

In between. I like making clothes. That’s my favorite part. Making it. I’m more high fashion – but not so high fashion. But also not streetwear. Somewhere in the middle.

You recently moved out of your home office, into the new studio we’re chatting in today. What was that shift like?

I love the new space. I hate that I waited so long. I worked from home my entire life. We had just grown too big to fit inside our apartment. We were climbing up the walls. I sold my couch. I sold my f*cking coffee table. I threw out all of our furniture. It just got to a point where we had to move. How can you fit 10 people in a New York apartment?

"We're a little family. I want to keep them all forever."

What makes a good pair of pants?

Honestly, the main thing is the crotch depth. They have to be at least 290 GSM. You have to get anti-wrinkle stuff. A nice, high-rise nine-inch zipper. Deep pockets. Heavy pocket lining. There’s no reason pocket linings ever have to be thin. They just hate you.

How do you know when to evolve a piece in a further collection versus just leaving it as is?

That’s a great question. I don’t know. Usually, when I figure that out, it’s too late.

What inspires you?

Old vintage fashion. Hardware. Old computers. Cars. A crane. Buildings are cool.

If you could style anyone, dead or alive, who would it be?

Right now, it would be Timothee Chalamet. Dead? Steve Jobs. I’d make him a nice blue Rip Van Kody to match his jeans.

What are some of the challenges you face as an emerging designer?

Everything is hard. I say I’m a professional problem solver. Balancing price points is hard. Making new things is hard. Content is hard. Expanding is hard because I feel like many people are making many decisions for me on my behalf and aligning everything in the same direction when I don’t even know the direction yet.

How do you not get burnt out?

I don’t know. I don’t think I could ever dislike fashion. I don’t look at other things too much.

What’s next for Kody Phillips?

I love the idea of being in some luxury retailers. A mix of that and DTC.

Would you ever do home goods?

I would. But only if it’s fun. Now my home’s empty.

What’s your advice to young designers?

Drop everything else and keep doing it. You’ve gotta work all day, every day. All night. Just lock in. Don’t be a different person. Don’t fake it. Make something affordable. Make something in black and white. If you’re going to drop a fun thing, always make a black and white version because people will buy it. Make things easy for people to buy. Make a website with Apple Pay. Make it cheap. Make it simple. Make it easy for people to get their hands on. Be nice. Be personable. Put a personality behind it. And nice images – whatever that means to you. And save your money. And find a manufacturer. Okay, that’s it.

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