The Italian premium jeans brand Roy Roger’s is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year. Guido Biondi, its creative director, talks about this unique birthday, and some key aspects that built this brand’s long life, but also looks at its future in a modern and contemporary key.

Roy Rogers is celebrating an important anniversary this year. How will it mark it?
In 2022 Roy Roger's will blow out 70 candles. It is an important milestone for us, especially because we are not only such a long-lived Italian company, but also because all the countless economic storms and finally the pandemic have allowed us to hand down the company created by my grandfather in 1952 for three generations. These are 70 years of history of a company that created the first Italian bluejeans made with American canvas. It will be a year of festivities and celebrations, which have seen first of all the creation of a special 70th anniversary collection inspired by our archival garments–the first five-pocket model with the iconic zipper on the back pocket - what my grandfather had called "Jeans Normale" (meaning the "normal" jeans) and the first flared jeans that baptized the women's line in the Roy Roger's family in the 1960s (to name just a few styles). Another initiative that is part of our celebrations is the digitization of a good part of our historical archive through unusual images for an archive. Last but not least is also a special attention that Roy Roger's has paid to the green world for several collections now. So much so that even the choice of the fabric for this celebratory collection is made with a denim entirely made from reused cotton. What is the purpose of the archive you spoke about in practical terms, besides the celebrative ones?
By sharing the historicity and value of the materials, details and accessories that identify each piece of our production, Roy Roger's wants to showcase all the know-how and culture that has been forged over our 70 years of history. Great attention was paid to the representation of the archive garments, not in a nostalgic way, but in a modern and contemporary key. You said that Roy Rogers chose a sustainable fabric for celebrating its 70th anniversary, but how did the brand expressed its care for the environment in the past for the brand and how important will this aspect be for its future?
Roy Roger's jeans have always been Made in Italy for 70 years, and this is already an emblem of eco-sustainability. Over the years we have moved closer and closer to eco-sustainable techniques and materials in order to keep up with the times and reinforce this concept. What goals does the brand have for the future in terms of protection and increased attention to quality?
This has been part of our philosophy since we started. Quality and made in Italy are two key points of the brand. And it is precisely from the importance of Italian manufacturing that the high quality of the finished product derives. In this way, for years Roy Roger's has contributed to keeping alive Italian craftsmanship excellence that would have been lost over the years. A precious heritage that today is synonymous with “well-made.” Considering that tradition has always been a key aspect for your brand, how will the jeans and fashion markets evolve in the future?
We believe that denim is a consumer good and it is now a staple of the fashion industry. Behind the success of any denim project there must be an equally structured communication project. This combination is essential to increase the desirability of the garment.