Jeansland Podcast

Jeansland

This is why I do this. Jeansland is a podcast about the ecosystem in which jeans live. There are an estimated 26 million cotton farmers around the world, and about 25% of their production goes into jeans, which could mean 6.2 million farmers depend on denim. I read estimates that at least 1 million people work in retail selling jeans, and another 1.5 to 2 million sew them. And then there are all the label producers, pattern makers, laundries, chemical companies, machinery producers, and those that work in denim mills. I mean, the jeans industry, which is bigger than the global movie and music business combined, employs a lot of human beings. And many of them, like me, love jeans. The French philosopher and existentialist Simone de Beauvoir, when visiting New York, said, "Everyone in the New York subway is a novel." I never met her, but I guess she made the observation because of the incredible diversity of people who ride the subway system. I'm convinced the people in our jeans industry are like those in the subway. They are unique, with rich and complex stories to tell, and I want to hear them. And deep inside me, I think you might feel the same way. https://jeansland.co/

  1. Ep 66: The Missing Denim Boom

    6D AGO

    Ep 66: The Missing Denim Boom

    Growth in denim follows a pattern. In Episode 66’s Andrew’s Take, he looks at what has actually driven expansion in the jeans business over time, and why it’s stalled. Every real boom came from a shift in the product itself. New machinery, new yarns, new fits, new finishes. Changes that made people stop wearing what they had and buy something new. That hasn’t happened in a while.   The industry has become more efficient, more technical, more optimized. But it’s also become more predictable. Now all we talk about is how jeans are made, not why anyone wants them. A short look at where growth really comes from, and what’s missing now. Please follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

    6 min
  2. Ep 65—FRESH BLOOD, Part 5: From Volume to Value with Saifullah Minhas

    APR 22

    Ep 65—FRESH BLOOD, Part 5: From Volume to Value with Saifullah Minhas

    FRESH BLOOD is about renewal. Every industry either regenerates itself or slowly hardens. In this Jeansland series, Andrew steps back to listen to the next generation already working inside denim’s supply chain, upstream in fibers, sourcing platforms, laundries, and raw materials. In Part 5 of the series, Andrew sits down with Saifullah Minhas, Director of Sales and Marketing at Delta Garments, a third-generation family-owned factory based in Lahore, Pakistan. His family business, built out of collapse, reinvention, and persistence, exports denim and twill apparel to the UK, EU, and US. From there, the discussion moves through the realities of running a factory today. What happens when a business becomes too dependent on a single customer. How COVID forced a reset from volume-driven production to product-driven thinking. And why shifting a factory’s mindset can be harder than changing its machinery.   They also get into where value is actually created. The pressure to undercut versus the decision to build something more complex. The gap between fabric capability and finished product. And why Pakistan, despite its strength in raw materials, still struggles to define a clear product identity. There is a broader layer underneath it all. Sustainability, and where it breaks down. Not in effort, but in measurement, incentives, and accountability across the system. What can be controlled at the factory level. And what cannot. At its core, this is about direction. About ownership. And about what it takes to move from filling capacity to building something that lasts. Thank you to our sponsor Inside Denim. Saifullah Minhas Director Sales and Marketing, Delta Garments Delta Garments, Delta's LinkedIn, Saifullah's LinkedIn Please follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

    48 min
  3. Ep 64: The Hidden Cost of War

    APR 15

    Ep 64: The Hidden Cost of War

    The war doesn't show up where you think it does. In Episode 64's Andrew's Take, he looks at the war in Iran, not politically, but through the lens of the jeans industry. Orders were booked months ago. Prices were locked when oil was lower, freight was cheaper, and currencies were more stable. None of that is true anymore. Factories across Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Vietnam are absorbing the difference. They didn't start the war. Their countries aren't fighting it. But between energy costs, freight surcharges, chemical pricing, and weakening currencies, the margin on a finished garment simply disappears. The contract is fixed. The cost is not. Andrew breaks down exactly where that gap shows up, and who carries it. Please follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

    4 min
  4. Ep 63—FRESH BLOOD, Part 4: Bridging Design and Production with Hayato Nishi

    APR 8

    Ep 63—FRESH BLOOD, Part 4: Bridging Design and Production with Hayato Nishi

    FRESH BLOOD is about renewal. Every industry either regenerates itself or slowly hardens. In this Jeansland series, Andrew steps back to listen to the next generation already working inside denim’s supply chain, upstream in fibers, sourcing platforms, laundries, and raw materials. In Part 4 of the series, Andrew sits down with Hayato Nishi, a second-generation industry professional whose path into denim and textiles didn’t start with product, but with perspective. Shaped by a global upbringing, Hayato came into fashion first as a consumer, then as a builder. From there, the conversation traces his path through the industry. From early streetwear projects in Boston to building community-driven retail concepts. From there into Shima Seiki, working at the forefront of whole garment 3D knitting technology, and eventually into Lenzing, where he now works closely with brands on fiber strategy and material decisions. Along the way, they get into what actually gets lost in the process. The gap between design and manufacturing. The disappearance of product knowledge as production moved offshore. And why even the most advanced technologies still depend on people who understand how things are made. They also talk about what drives decisions today. Design first. Price second. Materials after that. A reality that complicates the conversation around sustainability, even as the industry tries to move in that direction. There’s also a broader shift underneath it all. New tools, new systems, new ways of working. But not always used in the right way. Especially when it comes to AI, where the real opportunity may not be replacing creativity, but connecting design to production in a way the industry hasn’t solved yet. At its core, this is a discussion about learning. About staying open. And about what it takes to build a point of view in an industry that’s constantly changing. Thank you to our sponsor Inside Denim. Hayato Nishi Head of Key Accounts Business Development East Coast USA & Canada, Lenzing TENCEL: https://tencel.com/ Lenzing Fibers: https://lenzing.com/ Nishi &: https://www.instagram.com/nishi_and/ Hayato Nishi Designs: https://www.instagram.com/hayato_nishi_designs.jpg Please follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

    41 min
  5. Ep 62: The Cost of Conflict with Umer Farooq Qureshi

    APR 1

    Ep 62: The Cost of Conflict with Umer Farooq Qureshi

    Before the garments even leave the warehouse, the damage is already done. In Episode 62, Andrew sits down again with Umer Farooq Qureshi as the industry finds itself caught in the middle of a war it didn’t start. One year after their last conversation, the same pressures are back, only now they’re accelerating. The U.S. is actively engaged in a growing conflict with Iran, and the ripple effects are moving directly through the global supply chain.   The conversation starts on the ground. Finished goods sitting at airports. Flights canceled. Routes closed. Costs rising across every input. Fuel, freight, energy, currency. Orders booked months ago at prices that no longer make sense. From there, the picture widens. A system where suppliers absorb the shocks while demand weakens at the other end. Margins already thin, now squeezed further. A business model built for stability, operating in a world that no longer has it. They get into what this means in practice. Delays stretching weeks. Input costs multiplying overnight. Financial strength becoming the only buffer. And the growing gap between what it costs to produce and what the market is willing to pay. But underneath all of it is a larger shift. Not a cycle, but a transition. From one global order to another. And an industry still trying to operate as if nothing has changed. There’s a bigger question running through the conversation: what happens to the supply chain when the old rules stop working, but the new ones haven’t been defined yet? In this episode, we begin to explore that question. Thank you to our sponsor Inside Denim. Please follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

    24 min
  6. Ep 61: Building the Denim Finishing Industry with Alice Tonello

    MAR 25

    Ep 61: Building the Denim Finishing Industry with Alice Tonello

    Before there was a denim finishing industry, there was nothing. This week, Andrew sits down with Alice Tonello, Chief Brand & Strategy Officer at Tonello, a second-generation company that helped build that industry from scratch. In 1981, her uncle Osvaldo, a maintenance technician in a dye house, saw brands trying to figure out how to wash jeans and built the first machine to do it. No roadmap. No precedent. Just a need and a solution. From there, the conversation follows the full arc. Stone wash to laser. From early processes to technology that now replaces manual work entirely. From 100 liters of water per garment down to something closer to 20 when the system is done right. They get into what actually drives innovation. Not just machines, but proximity to production, tight feedback loops, and people who understand the process end to end. What “Made in Italy” means when it’s tied to engineering, not marketing. And why staying private changes how you make decisions. There’s also a bigger question running underneath the entire conversation: will the industry ever allow a pair of jeans to be worth what it actually costs to make well? In this episode, we begin to explore that question. Thank you to our sponsor Inside Denim. Alice Tonello Chief Brand & Strategy Officer at Tonello Tonello, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube Please follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

    41 min
  7. Ep 60: The Human Side of a Contract

    MAR 18

    Ep 60: The Human Side of a Contract

    In this short, I go back to a moment in the early 90s, sitting across from a senior executive at Calvin Klein who asked me to cancel a fabric order we had already made. I couldn’t. He understood, the goods shipped, and the order was honored as agreed.   Years later, I faced similar situations. Orders were canceled, but there was still a sense of responsibility.  In each case, the customer stepped up and paid for the cost of goods. It wasn’t ideal, but it was fair. And then, something shifted. The same request came again, but this time with a very different tone. What followed was not a negotiation, but a test of leverage, where the outcome carried consequences far beyond a single order.   The business itself didn’t change. The way people handled it did. This is not about one company. It’s about how commitments are treated, how risk moves through the supply chain, and what happens when the meaning of an order starts to erode. At a certain point, it becomes a simple question. What is a contract worth? Thank you to our sponsor Inside Denim. Please follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

    9 min
  8. Ep 59: Pakistan’s Vertical Denim System with Rizwan Shafi

    MAR 11

    Ep 59: Pakistan’s Vertical Denim System with Rizwan Shafi

    Some businesses are built through planning. Others are built through history, disruption, and decisions made under pressure. In Episode 59, I speak with Rizwan Shafi of Crescent Bahuman, one of the defining names in Pakistan’s denim industry. His family’s story begins in the years after Partition, moves through cotton trading and textile expansion, and eventually leads to one of the first fully vertically integrated denim and garment operations in the region. The company’s model was unusual. Fabric, garment manufacturing, and washing were all brought together in one place. Over time, Crescent Bahuman also became the first authorized manufacturer of Levi’s 501 jeans outside the Americas. We talk about how the company was built, from the original Greenwood joint venture to the difficult years that followed when the company had scale but no market. Rizwan explains what it took to convince customers that Pakistan could produce quality denim and garments, and why Levi’s played an important role in that development. We also discuss why his father chose to build the operation outside a major city, creating a 600-acre campus that includes the factory, housing for thousands of employees, healthcare facilities, daycare, and education. It was an early attempt to build an industrial ecosystem rather than just a factory. From there, the conversation turns to Pakistan’s cotton, ginning, traceability, tariffs, women in the workplace, and the shift from long-term relationships to vendor scorecards and transactional sourcing. Rizwan’s view of the next ten years is direct. Pakistan has the raw materials, the industrial base, and the labor. The question is whether it can build a more connected, transparent, and specialized supply chain around them. This is a conversation about industrial memory, national capacity, and what it takes to keep building when the rules keep changing. Thank you to our sponsor Inside Denim. Rizwan Shafi Chief Executive Officer, Crescent Bahuman Crescent Bahuman, LinkedIn, Instagram Please follow us on: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

    38 min
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5
out of 5
13 Ratings

About

This is why I do this. Jeansland is a podcast about the ecosystem in which jeans live. There are an estimated 26 million cotton farmers around the world, and about 25% of their production goes into jeans, which could mean 6.2 million farmers depend on denim. I read estimates that at least 1 million people work in retail selling jeans, and another 1.5 to 2 million sew them. And then there are all the label producers, pattern makers, laundries, chemical companies, machinery producers, and those that work in denim mills. I mean, the jeans industry, which is bigger than the global movie and music business combined, employs a lot of human beings. And many of them, like me, love jeans. The French philosopher and existentialist Simone de Beauvoir, when visiting New York, said, "Everyone in the New York subway is a novel." I never met her, but I guess she made the observation because of the incredible diversity of people who ride the subway system. I'm convinced the people in our jeans industry are like those in the subway. They are unique, with rich and complex stories to tell, and I want to hear them. And deep inside me, I think you might feel the same way. https://jeansland.co/

Information

  • Creator
    Jeansland
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    66
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Jeansland Podcast
  • Show Website
    Jeansland Podcast

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