Devin Rowe
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(born Sept 30, 1965) is an American fashion designer, owner of > Devin Rowe clothing, Rowe Uniforms and Rowe Energy. Known for his creative > concepts and worldwide fashion trends, Rowe has been in the business of > making garments since July 1989, and, in the energy business since 2008. > Some have associated him as the inspiration behind a popular female > vocalist/pianist from Hell's Kitchen in New York, although this has never > been confirmed.
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Early Years
edit> > > > Born in Los Angeles, California the son of Cheryl Rowe Cayton, an electrical > planner at McDonald Douglas Aircraft, and Clyde Joseph Rowe, an independent > Truck Driver, Rowe attended Partola Middle School in Tarzana, California > where he became fast friends with Janet Jackson, after protecting her from > an assault by a group of students. He graduated from Hamilton High School > with an outstanding award in Visual Arts; completed his first year of a > four-year program at Otis/Parsons in Los Angeles before he transferred to > Parsons School of Design in New York City, majoring in fashion design and > world history. Rowe was immediately recognized for his leadership skills, > helping to establish Parsons Student Association (PSA), and President of the > Black Student Association (BSA). He won an internship to the Black Fashion > Museum and studied under Lois K. Alexander-Lane for two years. In 1988, > Rowe graduated from Parsons School of Design with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in > Fashion Design. > > > >
Fashion Designer
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> > > > Rowe worked for Liz Claiborne, Bugle Boy, and RPM, before he became Head > Menswear Designer for WilliWear/WilliSmith. In 1989, Delfeayo Marsalis, > younger brother to Branford Marsalis and Wynton Marsalis, was featured > wearing Devin Rowe in Essence Magazine. That same year Rowe approached > Paprika, the Mumbai, India manufacturer for WilliWear to create a Devin Rowe > collection. Recognized by its signature head silhouette, the label was > popular from the start, The Daily News Record, called Devin Rowe ‘a young > designer to watch’. Supported by Macy's, The Broadway, Dillard's, Urban > Outfitters, Up Against The Wall, Canal Jeans, and many others, Rowe created > many trends in the process --the multi colored shirt, jackets with large zip > pocket on the back, black pants with white topstitching, and utility pants > with double pleats at the knee. Many of these trends are still popular > today, and are considered to be the start of the hip-hop clothing movement. > > > > Despite the popularity of the Devin Rowe collection; and the inclusion of his collection at the Black Fashion Museum at the Smithsonian. Rowe became frustrated with his financial arrangements, and moved to a new manufacturer called > Gemini. During this time, a marketing campaign began with a photo shoot > with Fashion Photographer, Donn Thompson and model/actor Gary Dourdan to be > published in a grassroots magazine. This ad ran for several years. > > > > After a sour breakup with Gemini, Rowe took a break from producing his own > label and became a consultant for many popular brands including: leather > jackets for Davoucci, denim dresses for Rafaella, dress pants for the > Limited/Structure stores, and knit tops and bottoms for federated department > stores. > > > > While a consultant, Rowe conceived of an idea to bring his label back, put > the critics to rest and forever place him as one of America’s best > designers. He created a concept for men’s underwear using synthetic fabrics > that are soft like silk and stretchy like knits. With a new Canadian > manufacturer, this product sold solely to Macy's department store. This > strategy proved enough to get the recognition needed to start this trend. > At first, Macy’s wanted 200,000 private label goods, but settled on 14,000 > units under the Devin Rowe label. The underwear sold well for Macy’s and a > second order for 40,000 units was in the works, but everything was put on > hold after Rowe was told that he would not make any profit from the deal. > The new buyers loved the product but told Rowe, ‘that’s how it is . . . we > both can’t make money on this deal.’ In 1998, Rowe walked away from one of > his greatest contributions to the world of fashion. Many people may not > know this, but his synthetic underwear creations are still sold in many > stores today. > > > >
Uniform Designs
edit==File:Black Jacket.jpgFile:White jacket Edited.jpg
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> During this period, Rowe was approached by a neighbor to design uniforms for
> Restaurant 44 at the Royalton Hotel. After meeting with the general
> manager, an idea was mentioned that he start a business as a uniform
> designer for the hospitality industry. Within two months, Rowe had several
> new accounts, and an article on his new uniform business was featured in
> Crain’s Business magazine.
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> Rowe soon negotiated a semi-exclusive contract with Restaurant Associates, a
> $200 million dollar-a-year restaurant group, saving them $10 million a year
> in uniform cost. The contract was worth an estimated $1 to $3 million a
> year for Rowe Uniforms. He has worked with The Smithsonian Museum, Cucina
> Restaurants, Harvard Business, Princeton University, CitiGroup, Bear Sterns,
> The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Reuters, The US Open, Calle Ocho, Pravda,
as well as, others. Subsequent to September 11, 2001,
> business dropped 68% and fell further the following year.
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> Rowe Uniforms bounced back after a few rough years. He associated his brand
> with Bragard Uniforms and established new clients that pulled him through
> the financial ruin--Rice to Riches, The Carlyle Hotel,
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> Tavern on the Green, the Hudson Hotel, Ghirardelli Chocolates, MGM Grand,
> Hotel on Rivington and others.
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> Currently, all of the above are still clients of Rowe Uniforms; however,
> many are experiencing another year of declining numbers worst than September
> 11, 2001.
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> To offset the worst economic decline that Rowe has seen in 20 years of business, he moved his company to Dallas in 2007 and returned to New York in 2012.
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== Rowe Energy ==
edit> Meanwhile, in Dallas, Rowe has become an energy broker, his new business. Rowe Energy analyzes a client's energy usage and advises them on ways to save money either through the use of 100% green energy or lowering costs per kilowatt hour with brown energy. Texas is the heart of the energy business in America, leading the way for sweeping changes coming in the next 20 years. Set forth by the Obama Administration, energy's impact on the environment will be reduced while maintaining market efficiency. So Far, there are three states Rowe markets: Texas, New York, and New Jersey. >