A New Culture of Clothing
If you visit Downtown Opelika, you can’t miss the revitalization happening. Nestled next to a local record store and a hidden speakeasy lies Griff Goods, a locally-owned men’s clothing shop. This small-town shop is part of a bigger mission: to offer sustainably sourced clothing and goods to people who normally would not have access to them.
Recently, Hueman Collective had the opportunity to sit down with Abby Griffin, owner and operator of Griff Goods, to discuss her new clothing shop and how community gave her the courage to bring sustainable clothing to Opelika.
How did you get started in the fashion industry, and how did you decide to open Griff Goods?
I've always kind of known I wanted to be an entrepreneur in some capacity. A lot of my family members are entrepreneurs, so they kind of always pushed me to explore that and consider it as a possibility. They were definitely key in helping me get this going, but I became passionate about the sustainability side after working with a women’s clothing line for six years, and during that time, I got to see how most of these companies source their clothing. Different brands go to these trade shows and show their line coming out for the new season, and buyers from the retail companies come in and choose the styles that they want to carry. Then, the brands and manufactures ship the clothing to them after it’s produced. And it was all made in China, as is most all the boutique line clothing, which is the most popular and most accessible clothing for women.
At every trade show, I'd learned a different piece of the puzzle—I would kind of see like, "Oh, this is the name of this factory, and this is where they get this fabric from.” And I would research those factories because my bosses wouldn't tell me anything about them. Through my research, I learned the processes that they were using were just horrible, and it was a detriment to me because I was working for this company for so long, helping them sell to people, helping people buy these products that are killing the environment and are potentially made in sweatshops. So, that really took a toll on me.
You know, it doesn't make sense when you look at a shirt, and it's designed in Los Angeles, it's made in China, and you can have it at your door for $6. There's no way that that's done ethically. You can't mark down fabric costs—fabric costs what it costs. You can't mark down shipping. The only place that you can cut cost is with labor. So that kind of shows you how awful the system is. So that's kind of where the sustainability came into it.
I studied fashion design in school at SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design) in Atlanta. Then, I moved here for a job and went back to school at Auburn for fashion design. When I moved back here, I decided to live in downtown Opelika, and I've been here for almost five years now. I've been able to see the growth over those five years, and it’s been kind of special.
You could see that there was a really good community here. It was so nice to be able to go to school at Auburn and then leave campus and come home to such a welcoming community. Being down here, you naturally get plugged in by meeting people at the coffee shop or at the distillery or brewery.
Getting plugged in and meeting people really helped me understand what a community was. I feel like the community here is stronger than any place I've ever lived, so that's why I decided to stay here and open this store. I mean, I couldn't have imagined the support that I've had here, not only from my family, but from the Auburn and Opelika community. I cannot imagine opening a business anywhere else. I don't know how it would have been possible.
Wow, even after living in a larger city like Atlanta?
Yeah, and you know, everyone asked me, "Do you want to move to New York?" Because that's what a lot of people in fashion design do. They go to New York, and you know, if you’re wanting to start a small business, you don't really stand out there. It's tough, but I think that just circles back to how wonderful our community in Opelika and Auburn is. Like, who do you surround yourself with, and how can you help each other? I've just never lived anywhere else that had this strong of a sense of community.
Sustainability is a core part of your business. How would you describe sustainability to a customer who isn't familiar with sustainable clothing?
That actually happens all the time. Usually, I start with the fact that I only carry brands that have certifications on all their factories, and they control pollution, employee wages and benefit programs and ensure safe factory and building codes. It's not about the location. I get a lot of questions about if everything is made in the United States–no. It's not about location for me, it's about the factory. Because there are amazing products that come out of India because of the history of textiles there, and there are actually a lot of sweatshops in the United States that people don't know about. So it’s more important to me to make sure that the factory and manufacturing process is good, regardless of the location. That way you can know that you're getting a good quality product that didn't harm the earth or harm anyone making it.
For a lot of my products it also goes back to the fibers. I have one brand here called Jungmaven. They use a percentage of hemp in everything that they produce, and hemp is the easiest and cheapest crop to grow because it doesn't need pesticides. Because of that, there's no extra cost associated with the chemicals, and there's also no residual chemicals from the pesticides that make into the final product. Also, hemp can grow almost anywhere. You can grow it in Alabama or you can grow it in Washington. Plus, it's honestly better for your skin. A lot of people don't realize that their skin absorbs everything that you put on it, and that includes your clothing too. If you're wearing a shirt with some really bad chemicals in it, your skin's absorbing it. So taking it down to the factories and the fabrics of the clothing is kind of the basics of sustainable clothing.
“It doesn’t make sense when you look at a shirt, and it’s designed in Los Angeles, it’s made in China, and you can have it at your door for $6. There’s no way that that’s done ethically. You can’t mark down fabric costs—fabric costs what it costs. You can’t mark down shipping. The only place that you can cut cost is with labor.”
How do you discover brands, and how do you decide which ones to partner with and sell in the store?
So, I love to travel, and all the brands that I carry are brands that I've found while traveling. I kind of discover them as a customer first and see how I react to their clothing. Then, the second step to that is the research. I do the research on the brand by going to their website, sending them emails, and asking about where everything's produced.
A lot of companies are very transparent and willing to tell you where their clothes are made and what factories they use. Then, I take the third step where I go to market and meet with these companies. So I'll go to trade shows or showrooms and ask them about all the factories that they use and if they know of the certifications that (the factories) have. Then, the companies that have the certificates provide them to me and I go over them. If the company doesn’t have them and if they aren't working with a good factory, then I don’t work with them. I have left before. I've had to say, "Sorry. Thank you." Then, I explain to them that I'm focused on sustainability and that I want to be able to educate my customers on where their clothes are made.
It goes back to that company getting involved in their processes, which is so important. If you're running a business, you need to be involved in every single aspect of that company and making sure that it's doing what it's supposed to be doing.
One of my favorite brands, Corridor, the owner of the company is also the designer of the line. After market, he goes to India where his factory is, and he's there for six months with them. He lives in India, and he's in the factories every single day. He's there, in the factory, making sure everything is what it says it is.That way, there can be no speculation on the process and the sustainability behind it because he's checking in every step of the way.
What is one of your favorite brands to work with, and how did you come to meet them?
Okay. I might go back to a local artist for this, because I do want to not only be a place where you can find new and interesting clothing brands, but I also have some local artists here that I really love and really admire. I want Griff Goods to be a place of collaboration across all mediums. So, Mary Ann Casey is a local painter. I consider her to be her own brand. She is from Auburn, and I met her through Hannah and Barbara Birdsong who owns Perch Jewelry Studio. Mary Ann is this amazing woman who has this crazy gift, and anytime that she's in the room with you, she's holding your hand and looking you in the eye and is just so kind. Her energy just seems to flow everywhere that she is. I mean, it's like an orb of good energy that follows Mary Ann.
The first time that I met her, I was just amazed. I was blown away by how she reached out to people, and you could tell just how much she loved every single person she met. So, whenever I got the chance to open the store, she came in and said that she was so happy here, which made me so happy, and she wanted to show her art here. So, she brought some of her abstracts and some of her figure paintings, and now we have them in the store. I just love that she is from here and has been here most of her life. She's so plugged into the community.
I’m sure that you’ve been able to meet and learn about many sustainable brands that you love. How do you choose which ones carry from season to season?
I don't necessarily focus on how many brands and how many things can I put in here. I try really hard to curate everything that I bring in so that it fits well together. I don't want this to feel like a consumerist space. I never want people to feel like they're being forced to buy something. I want for people that come in here and need help with their wardrobe, I want them to feel comfortable in anything that they put on. And I'm not afraid to tell them like, "No, this isn't working for you. Let's try something else." I never want to push anything on anyone. I want it to feel just comfortable. I want people to feel really welcome here, and I want people to leave feeling super confident in what they're wearing. I think that, back to the sustainability behind it, I think that if people know that they're wearing a really great product, it's going to make them feel even more confident because they know the story behind that product. And, you know, the clothes will be a little different from what you see around here everyday. You're not going to find a lot of these clothes available in the Southeast. So, I hope everyone can leave here feeling very confident.
“That’s when I realized, it doesn’t matter where you live—it matters who you surround yourself with. I can move to any city in the world, but I’m going to be lonely if I don’t have a community, and that is what I’ve found here.”
What made you decide to focus on menswear rather than women’s or even both?
My choice to go with menswear kind of started when I was in design school. I gravitated towards menswear—the colors and the shapes—and I feel like my personal style sometimes gravitates more towards a men's style of clothing. So it kind of started in design school, and then I looked at the market for the southeast. There's not a lot of menswear in the southeast, so my choice was partially because what I'm drawn to and partially what I felt was needed.
What was the process like restoring an old warehouse building and transforming it into a clothing store?
So, originally, I spoke with the owners of this building and mentioned that I'd love to have a studio here and focus on men's clothing. Then, when it came time for these buildings to go under development, Mama Mocha’s was the first, and seeing their reception and what this area was becoming made me realize that I really wanted to do this. The owners of these buildings, they're so great, and they really want to help small businesses start and cultivate a great community of business owners. They want to focus on businesses that are willing to stay here, put roots down in Opelika, and will be part of this community for the long run.That really stood out to me.
We started in July of 2018 and finished in December or 2018, so it was kind of a long process. If you saw the photos before, you would have thought this building needed to be torn down. It was really bad. There was no floor here, just concrete. They worked with me to design the space how I envisioned it. Then, in December it was open.
What were some of the biggest challenges that you had during the renovation?
The biggest challenge was that I've never done any sort of renovation project before, and it is hard. It's so hard. I mean, even the small things, like figuring out ADA compliance for bathrooms and getting precise measurements. Which luckily, the group that's doing the development of all these buildings, they have a really awesome team with them that has been doing this for a very long time, so they were able to give some advice. It was really tough trying to envision what the space was going to be in the beginning. I knew I had this idea in my head of what I wanted it to be. I wanted it to be a very welcoming space and feel super warm and cozy—where people feel like they can bring their coffee in and hang out.
Putting the garage door in was a huge plus for us. People walking by really like the energy, and I feel like it draws people into the store. It's really special. But, understanding what goes into construction and how many people are involved, how many different companies have to come for electrical and concrete and brick plumbing, all that kind of stuff just takes a while. It was just a big challenge overall, but the awesome team made it happen. We wanted to keep the original beauty of the building and incorporate it into the interior design of the store.
What do you think the value of our community is?
I think feeling welcomed by every single person that you meet, it makes you aware of and actually feel how much you are really worth. People care about you, and the people in Auburn and Opelika are so kind and so willing to go out of their way to help you. It just makes you feel so welcomed and special. I think that you can't put a price on feeling accepted. And, coming from Atlanta, a big city, I was missing that so much. I moved to Atlanta because I wanted to get into a big city. I thought that living in Atlanta, I'd be surrounded by all these amazing creative people and have all this stuff to do, but honestly, I've never been so lonely in my life. Then I moved here, and I felt like I didn't know a soul, but I quickly got plugged in to the community and immediately felt so welcomed.
That's when I realized, it doesn't matter where you live—it matters who you surround yourself with. I can move to any city in the world, but I'm going to be lonely if I don't have a community, and that is what I’ve found here.
From a small business perspective, the small business owners in Opelika and Auburn are so supportive of one another. We all have the same mindset towards community, and we all work together. If the record store is doing a show, we're all like, "Hey, let's get a food truck out, and let's do some interactive art, and let's just make it feel fun for anyone that wants to come." I think you strike gold when you have that many people supporting each other in a community—you wear my clothes, you buy his records, you drink her coffee. Then, on top of that, you have this community that wants to be down here, and support us, and come to our events, and engage in the community. It's just so much more than I could ask for.
You can experience the store for yourself and shop sustainability at 719 1st Ave., Opelika, AL 36801, or you can shop Griff Goods online at www.shopgriffgoods.com. Keep up with news, sales, and even community events by following Griff Goods at @griffgoods.
For more information on what to look for when shopping sustainable goods and see what Griff Goods requires when considering new brands, check out their guide below.
Griff Goods’ Guide To Sustainability Resources
What to look for when shopping sustainable goods