HAVING confronted a kidnap gang in Venezuela and dodged a bullet whilst trailing a wanted man in Pakistan, you wouldn’t expect the fickle world of fashion to be high on Ross Kemp’s to-do list for 2013.
But then again you may never have had the misfortune of trying to find a pair of 32”-38” waist jeans with a 32” leg.
“They’ve always got a 36” leg,” said Kemp, sat alongside business partner David Mallon at the Northern Quarter base for their new clothing brand Standard Issue.
“I don’t know who retailers think these people are. Are there giants wandering around?”
"The generation I sit in now, we know we’re getting older and we want to do so gracefully rather than trying to wear Hollister for example. It looks wrong."
He’s not completely gone soft on us though. The idea of a clothing brand actually came about during Kemp’s day job as documentary maker for Sky, out in Afghanistan.
“The soldiers were wearing big brands, but they were just rotting in the conditions, up to their waists in irrigation trenches. I just thought God these guys deserve something better than this. And then that got me thinking of guys my age and what is out there to wear.
“There’s a lack of labels for men in their mid-30s and mid-40s who want to look okay but don’t want to appear like they’re trying to look like their sons or dads.”
In keeping with Kemp’s passion for healing the world, Standard Issue will also team up with a charity of choice each year. But not just any old charity. Charity is as charity does according to Kemp.
“Having travelled the world I’ve seen some charities that are very familiar to people in the UK, but as far as I’m concerned don’t do very much.
“A lot of the money they have goes on administration – 60 to 70 per cent in some cases - and that’s not why people should be running marathons for them.
“One that is a good charity is MSF (Medecins Sans Frontieres). I know most of the money they raise goes directly to the people.”
Ross Kemp and David Mallon
After deciding on the name, Standard Issue, “a military term that’s universal”, Kemp set about getting to work on seeking copyright. It was only then he realised the name already had an owner who, luckily, knew a thing or two about the retail industry.
“It was a meeting of minds, and a meeting of north and south too,” said Kemp of his business partner, Mallon, who also owns notable Northern fashion brands ElvisJesus and Ringspun, both of which ironically cater for a more metrosexual customer.
Quite the opposite then of Standard Issue, described by Mallon as an “anti-fashion man’s brand, not for the boys”. Still in the planning stages, the aim is for a strong online presence featuring a full range of clothing with underwear and accessories too.
Mallon said: “The initial idea of being very military inspired has moved on. It’s not going to be overly designed or fashionable. We’re hoping to triple stitch everything so it lasts forever and price wise it will sit on the same level as say Superdry.”
And who better to fly the flag for a real blokey brand than a double ‘ard Mitchell brother of course. Despite having left Eastenders ten years ago and made a success of investigative journalism unintentionally, juxtaposed with that rhythmically comedic voiceover, Kemp still admits he would never rule out a return to acting, or the Square for that matter.
“They said I couldn’t go from being a soap actor to doing documentaries. I’ve done that and I’m not going to stop doing that. At the moment I’m not being offered any acting work but you should never say never in life. If the opportunity presented itself and it felt right I’d have a look at it.
“But I do feel passionate about this clothing brand too. There’s no point me going into this and putting my time into it unless I put the effort in. It’s about doing something we can be truly proud of. You reach a certain age where you’ve got to give things a shot.”
That effort will, according to Kemp, be spurred on by his own shopping experiences, which highlight a lack of love on the high street for men like the Mitchells. Jeans are just the tip of the iceberg.
“The generation I sit in now, we know we’re getting older and we want to do so gracefully rather than trying to wear Hollister for example. It looks wrong. We’re not trying to lead people; it’s going to be classic, timeless and durable. Look at Bear Grylls with his Craghoppers clothing range. He does it very well. Standard Issue was generated from the way I feel about the high street.
“We’re also going to get normal guys to model our brand, rather than that androgynous look that seems to be so popular. I don’t know why it’s popular because none of the guys I meet look like that. Maybe I don’t hang out in the right places?”
And with six countries in the pipeline for Kemp’s next Sky expedition, it's unlikely he'll be meeting them any time soon.
Standard Issue will launch later in 2013.
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