Fashioned for success

MANILA, Philippines -  As the grandson and son of fabric suppliers, Timothy “Timmy” Ang was destined to follow in his elders’ footsteps. His lolo Ang Cha came to the Philippines from China and entered a slew of businesses before concentrating on textiles, while his dad William was a subcontractor for some popular local brands.

“We had a warehouse in Caloocan. Growing up, I remember walking past rolls and rolls of fabric,” says Timmy, 30. He was also surrounded by a lot of talent — expert sewers who had time to spare between job orders. “Everything was already there,” he says. “It was just up to me to be motivated.”

With limited background in fashion design, he managed to whip up sketches of contemporary, preppy casual shirts and jackets (“clothes that I would wear,” he says), which he had made and sold under the menswear label Dean and Trent. While the first name pays homage to two gentlemen of distinct style — rebel icon James Dean and suave crooner Dean Martin — the second name “was just something I came up with,” he admits with a grin. “I’m one of three brothers and our names all start with T. If we had a fourth brother, he would have been Trent.”

In a modern twist, Timmy sold his wares, not in a boutique or store, as most retailers have done, but via the Internet, initially through the free site Multiply. It was a pragmatic decision for the young entrepreneur who observed that while women’s wear has a greater impact on its market and tends to sell faster, menswear requires a loyal following in order to succeed. “Multiply was relatively new back then and people didn’t know they could sell stuff there,” recalls Timmy. “I think some of the first items sold on Multiply were clothes.”

Months later, the Multiply site paved the way for the label’s official site, www.deanandtrent.com, which, in turn, got them the much-needed mall space. Crossings Department Store carries Dean and Trent in its TriNoma, Shangri-La Plaza, and Glorietta branches; the label is also available in Anthology at the Power Plant Mall in Rockwell, Backstage at Serendra in The Fort, and at Trilogy Boutique on Rada Street, Legazpi Village, Makati.

Pattern recognition: Dean and Trent’s official website, www.deanandtrent.com, features an online selling system. Customers can even have their measurements taken online.

The Internet has also allowed Ang to reach retailers from around the world: international fashion blogs mention Dean and Trent in their sites, and there have been inquiries from America. “Locally, we’ve had people ask us when we’re going to bring Dean and Trent to their provinces,” he says.

Marketing and selling Dean and Trent online has been an education for Ang. Ironing out the kinks of selling online, however, has been Dean and Trent’s biggest challenge. If shopping online has become commonplace for Americans and Europeans, the majority of Pinoys still haven’t gotten the hang of it.

“That’s so ingrained in the subconscious of Filipino shoppers,” he chuckles, noting that clients prefer to touch an item, physically inspect and sample it, before buying it. “Online sellers will tell you they have such a difficult time doing customer service for this country.” Ang solves this problem by offering size measurements on the website, and sometimes sending two sizes of an item for a customer to choose the best fit. If a client likes the way an item of clothing looks online, but doesn’t like the way it looks on him, he has the option of returning it. “You have to be creative and patient,” says Timmy Ang. For now, online payment ranges from bank deposits to cash-on-delivery (as opposed to the more convenient PayPal and credit card systems in the US). Home delivery is via a carrier who even receives your payment.

While Ang continues to fine-tune his online sales system, the Internet is responsible for generating sales for Dean and Trent in the mall. “You just have to adjust to the local mindset,” he says. “Once you have the loyalty of your clients, you pretty much have it for life.”

Ultimately, Ang’s goal for Dean and Trent is something that would make his father and grandfather proud: “I want to give consumers something different to wear,” he declares. “I want to change the consciousness of how Pinoy men dress — that they don’t have to wear the same knitted polo or the same printed T-shirt.”

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“Internet for All” is an advocacy of Smart Communications to bring the World Wide Web within the reach of every Filipino. To further the advocacy, Smart tapped three of the country’s renowned young photographers æ Jo Ann Bitagcol, Apple Tapan and Jake Verzosa æ to travel around the Philippines and capture compelling images that showcase how the Internet is changing and improving the lives of people.