Today we’d like to introduce you to Ed Twine
Hi Ed, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My story starts in south Florida. Growing up in Fort Lauderdale and raised by my grandparents, I grew up around a military Grandfather who didn’t come off Military in the sense of strictness, but when it came to order and neatness, that definitely rubbed off on me. When he wore a suit he was always so clean, well put together. He taught me how to “spit shine” my shoes and just pay attention to the small details. Somehow I’ve always had a love for fashion which moved me to get one of my first jobs at Sears department store in the men’s section. There I’ll never forget my manager Gus Leon and New York transplant with a heavy New York accent. He taught me basics like your belt should match your shoes, and how to pick the right belt length. He gave me the responsibility of putting outfits on the mannequins and that’s when I really fell in love with putting patterns and colors together. It wasn’t until many years later when I moved to New York City that my love for fashion really ignited. Being in the banking industry I would walk to work from the subway everyday and see all the banking and finance executive on Park Ave on the east side of manhattan walking to their offices and this subtle confidence and their impeccable suits that left a lasting impression on me. To me, to become a successful banker I had to dress the part. My basic principle was that “to attract money I had to look like money.” Always looking for the best deals on quality clothing I used to visit this department store in the financial district called Century 21 close to where the World Trade towers once stood. I could always find good deals there on suits and shirts etc. Walking in that district though there used to be these stands that were setup on the street for men’s ties for $5 each. These were pretty good quality ties in my opinion! Woven not the cheap printed silk stuff. So I would collect them. Eventually I started thinking that I wanted to sell my own ties. So I looked into how I could source them, but they were so expensive, because you had to buy in large bulk to really make a decent profit. It just so happened that a friend of mine worked for the tie factory at Brooks Brothers in Queens. She put me in touch with the factory manager for a meeting to learn a little bit about the factory and tie construction and some of the details. At the end of the meeting they agreed to manufacture my designs for my private brand. That’s where Charles Twine was created. I eventually grew from ties into suits and custom clothing and eventually became more known for my suits than ties and accessories which we later discontinued. Today, I service clients across the U.S. from celebrities and influencers, grooms and groomsmen, to people just looking to enhance their personal wardrobes. It’s extremely fulfilling work to help people look their best on their most important days.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No it has not. There have been many times where I said to myself I was going to just shut it down. There were many challenges from the COVID era supply chain issues, global shutdowns in manufacturing facilities. Disagreements with manufacturing facilities that led to production changes and delays. Cash flow issues from working to guarantee my clients great products when remakes had to be made at no cost to them. There were so many challenges! Even some fraud events where entire wedding parties had suits made, wore them to the wedding then afterward individually all contacted their credit card companies and reported fraud. Those challenges put me on the brink of failure, but somehow I stuck at it and came out on the other end. I eventually months later did get my money back from the fraud but it was a difficult road.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Charles Twine Custom Clothiers ?
As a company my work has been featured on Television networks such as Lifetime, the CW, and we consult for wardrobe departments for Paramount studios, Marvel, and Tyler Perry Studios. It’s been exciting to see some of our work on the big screen and still be able to bring that quality to some of our loyal clients.
We offer extremely affordable custom suit options. We consult with our clients individually to get an idea of their individual styles and preferences, then customize and tailor suiting for their individual styles.
People often ask if we do just pants, shirts or shorts. And the answer is yes! We can bring many different styles and pieces to life.
Although we don’t advertise it much, we also work with women to get them into custom suiting. It’s something we are working to officially launch mainstream to make it available to working professionals and anyone that wants to create unique looks for fashion.
How do you think about luck?
While I don’t believe in luck, I do believe that you can be in the right place at the right time for certain opportunities. I think it’s what you decide to do with those opportunities when they arise that really makes the difference in whether you are successful or not. You won’t always know the path to success but if you get on the path you will without a doubt learn way more than if you never got on it. So I always say start, that’s the only way you’re going to learn the lessons you need to know for success.
Pricing:
- High quality Italian fabric Suits start at $500
- Custom shirts $100
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Charlestwine.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/charlestwine/profilecard/?igsh=MWpoOHJ3ZHAybTdkYQ==
