MEET: DAPPER FACTORY:

Designs on creating an industry

Derek Smoot is seen at the Dapper Factory Friday, May 23, 2014.

Dapper Factory

Address: 2325 Western Ave.

Phone: 702-433-8437

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.dapperind.com

Hours and days of operation: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday

Owned/operated by: Derek Smoot and Guadalupe Calderon

In business since: May

The Dapper Factory

Guadalupe Calderon hands a sample to Derek Smoot at the Dapper Factory Friday, May 23, 2014. Launch slideshow »

Describe your business.

High-fashion design. We manufacture clothing and accessories.

Describe your fashion background:

I have owned and operated Dapper Industries, a men’s high-fashion accessory line since 2010. The Dapper Factory was founded May 2014.

Who are your customers?

For Dapper Industries, which sells men’s formal accessories, clients range from small boutiques across the country to many celebrities such as Bruce Buffer, Mario Lopez, MMA fighters and news anchors and prominent nightlife personnel.

Dapper Factory also has an impressive clientele building up. We have done uniforms and accessories for LVH, Aria, Cosmopolitan, Envy nightclub Indiana, Double Barrel restaurant (at Monte Carlo) and many more. We have made rock climbing equipment, yoga wear, kickboxing pads, leather wallets, belts, suspenders, swim trunks, underwear, hats, scarves and casino dealer pouches, to name a few things

Why start a garment-manufacturing company in Las Vegas?

Eighty-five percent of garments made in the USA come from California. Las Vegas is advantageous for business and tax reasons. We can do what they can do — cheaper. We have billion-dollar casinos that need uniforms and want to look sleek and current. Seasons change and so does fashion. We can design, create and produce it all here in town.

How many designers does Dapper Factory have, and how does a designer become part of the factory?

There are a growing number of designers that manufacture with Dapper Factory. Some have large companies, and some are start-up companies. Anyone with a desire to make garments in quantity can be a client. If the client only has sketches and no samples, we can even make the samples.

What makes your business unique?

We are the only company in Las Vegas with the capacity to cut and sew thousands of garments of the highest quality in a timely manner.

We are also a retail storefront with an incredible selection of high fashion, jewelry, swimwear, sportswear and ready-to-wear apparel.

What’s the most important part of your job?

I am here to create a true fashion industry in Las Vegas. I am going to enlighten the people about high fashion and quality garment construction. Just as the average Italian has a better grasp on fashion than the average American, I see an opportunity for Las Vegas to be a trend-setting mecca. We have the wealthiest, most successful residents and visitors. We see firsthand the latest trends from other countries as they come into town.

What is the hardest part about doing business in Las Vegas so far?

Finding quality customers who want quantity production. Most people in the industry don’t know that we are here yet. We also have to get our fabric and hardware from other states.

What is the best part about doing business in Las Vegas so far?

We are setting the trend. People want what we are doing. A local designer can now come to the Dapper Factory with a vision or a sample, and we can help them bring their designs to life. Quality made in America.

Where do you see the company in five years?

The Dapper Factory will be in a much larger building, secured as the go-to source for garment production in Las Vegas. We will be working with and harvesting talented designers that sell high volume. We will be intercepting large accounts from California because the labor and taxes are less expensive in Nevada. We will be well known, nationwide, and likely have our own television show.

Tags: The Sunday

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