I realized while was out walking Ozzie & Lou this morning that it was almost twenty years ago to the day our first Fitigues collection hit the shelves. The adventure that followed was action packed, filled with excitement, fear, celebration and fun...and those were just the Mondays!
The morning after we bid our final farewell to Fitigues, something kinda crazy happened; Someone emailed me a photo of the historic 1928 Anchor Manufacturing Building in downtown Phoenix's old Produce District...or, as the cops used to call it, The Deuce. It was eerie how much this building resembled the 1910 Chicago juke box factory we'd re-claimed, re-stored & converted to our Fitigues home base in 1995.
Day one and already too much time on our hands... we hopped in the Jeep and headed downtown to check out the building and part of town we didn't even know existed, The Warehouse District. We'd learn that most of these gems had been bull-dozed, replaced by new arenas & parking lots. Only a few were left standing and those too were in danger of demolition.
But not this one...this one spoke to us. She told us stories about her past...a Ford dealership, Hensley's Budweiser warehouse, a city bus garage and other industrious American enterprises. Then she whispered softly and told us what she wanted to be...and we listened.
Andi & I have always had a passion for things that are authentic, genuine & loved over time. We believe that simplicity is life's true luxury...that when we borrow from the past we're contributing to the future.
Now, as we launch our new brand, R&R Surplus, past experience (wisdom I guess) tells us that the best part of this adventure will be the journey as well...the destination...again, an unknown.
Re-claiming & re-cycling...re discovering & re-considering...re-interpreting then re-issuing...a little R&R inspired us to create R&R Surplus and the historic place we now call home.
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