Adam Lippes on his full-steam-ahead namesake brand

With a majestic New York skyline in the background of his computer screen during this interview, Adam Lippes exudes a humble yet matter-of-fact take on his namesake brand, which has surged in its success post-pandemic.

While we chat, an exterior material hoist is busy making trips up and down as it adds another ‘brick’ to a new high-rise under construction. It’s a fitting scene for Lippes, who is also constructing his own real estate footprint by opening three inaugural retail stores in the past year with more on the horizon.

Lippes, whose brand was founded in 2013, is generally a chipper guy, but he has a lot to smile about with the wheels in motion and set to accelerate. FashionNetwork.com spoke to Lippes about how his uber-luxe timeless clothing has become a hearty business.

In the past year, Lippes and his team have opened three stores—in addition to its inaugural retail location in Brookfield Place—Houston, Palm Beach, and the Salon 828 on Fifth Avenue, which boasts a stunning Georgian-era room full of 18th-century historic grandeur infused with modern sophistication.

The designer attests the biggest ‘door’ is the brand’s e-commerce. Beyond online data that drives most brands to pinpoint a market ripe for a retail store, Lippes homed in on the store locations by the endless in-store appearances for trunk shows with wholesale partners where he met his customers, what he refers to as “the old-fashioned way.”

“I know where we are going to work,” Lippes said.

According to the designer, there is more planned for 2025 and beyond, as its direct-to-consumer (DTC) business has grown from 10 percent to 30 percent in roughly the past five years.

“We are very close to a deal in London and are actively pursuing Dallas, Aspen, the Miami Design District, and Madison Avenue, which we just walked yesterday in the freezing cold. I’m excited to be in Palo Alto, but Los Angeles isn’t a target because it’s not the core audience for what we do.

“The goal is four next year, followed by roughly four yearly for up to 15 stores total; we have to be a little bit opportunistic in this,” Lippes said.

Ideally, the sweet spot is spaces 1,500 to 2,000 square feet where the projected sales exceed two million dollars annually. He’s also set up a team in Tokyo to open wholesale accounts, with deliveries starting in June and eventually a retail store there, too.

This optimistic growth for the privately held brand of high-quality American sportswear is a far cry from 2020, when, like many companies, surviving the pandemic wasn’t a certainty.

“These businesses have a lifecycle; we are not a trend business. When you start, you’re the new kid with much hype and growth. Without intense capital to compete to keep growth through marketing, etc., I and many compatriots find the business plateaus or drops, leaving many out of business. We went through a plateau period with little growth,” said Lippes adding, “Then the pandemic hit, and all bets were off. I thought, ‘If we go out of business now, it’s not my fault,’ but we made it through with hard choices such as staff furloughs, design decisions, some pricing adjustments, and the government’s help.”

“We buckled down, and the investors, including myself, were cautious and made it through. Coming out of the pandemic has just been explosive. I’d never seen in my 20 years in this business,” he added, noting he was also attracting a new customer.

The label benefitted from the post-pandemic retail boon, which offered some sweet deals on rents for many brands due to the vacancies that ensued once the Covid-19 pandemic restricted non-necessity shopping.

“The Brookfield store was a proof of concept, albeit a small one. We have great wholesale partners like Saks, which has treated us very well throughout the acquisition of Neiman Marcus, a good wholesale partner, and several specialty retailers. Now, we are focused on retail. We brought in our first CEO with experience in European retail and luxury,” Lippes continued.

Lippes describes his offering as “refined American sportswear” that offers top-quality European fabrics, elevated sewing techniques, and lining styles in 100% silk.

“I challenge you to show me another American brand that does that,” Lippes mused.

His CEO is Marco Probst, a C-suite executive at brands such as Chloé, Hugo Boss, and Delvaux, where he was the brand’s CEO. Thus, Probst brings the European luxury mindset and know-how to Lippes’ business.

Investment dressing, with pieces you mix and match, great suiting, trousers are business churners, while collections feature novelty styles such as a butter yellow nylon poncho for the upcoming fall season.

“Our customers understand quality; they aren’t managed by pricing, and if you present them with something expensive that they understand the quality, they respond. For example, we recreated an archive of Dior cashmere silk couture fabric from 1999. A pair of pants was $2,990, so it was only in our shops, and we sold out,” he continued.

He pointed out that the business consistently stocks 25 percent of its most coveted offerings.

Lippes still supports in-store appearances with wholesale partners such as Kirna Zabete and the Conservatory in Dallas, where the brand recently took in $200,000 in a few hours.

The brand stores and e-commerce offer hand-curated antiques by Lippes, and just debuted the home and table collection he and Zoë de Givenchy collaborated on featuring hand embroidered linens, French faïence earthenware, and Lobmeyr Austrian crystal glassware. Past collaborations include De Gournay wallcoverings, Oka tableware, and chic Western boot maker Partlow. Come November, the brand is unveiling its first handbag, which will be made entirely in France using old-world artisanal techniques with good-quality leather construction and subject to tariffs.

“We’ll be the only U.S. brands that make bags in France at the top of the price bracket. I’m worried because I can’t drop 25 percent on top of these bags except for customers to smile and buy them in three colors. So, we’re trying to figure it out; these will be sold in our store. We’re lucky to sew most of our clothing here in New York. However, we import all the fabrics, so it’s still an impact. Going forward the next two seasons, I’m concerned about the margins,” he said, noting that it will be easier to navigate items sold in his stores.

While the tariffs have furthered the global political discourse, Lippes likes to keep the clothing and Washington, DC, separate, though First Lady Melania Trump has worn his designs.

“Politics and fashion, for me, do not have any business together. Many designers would disagree. I was trained by Oscar [de la Renta]; I didn’t go to fashion school. I went to Cornell. I learned everything from him. What I do is a blend of the two because that’s what I learned: Oscar dressed everybody. He was great friends with the Clintons, and great friends with Laura Bush, and with the elder Bushes. He saw it as a great honor and his duty as an American fashion designer to represent American craftsmanship the best he could. And I agree with him today, 100 percent,” Lippes said, adding, “I put my head down, do my work, and try to avoid what’s being thrown at me. It’s such a good moment. I’m so thankful for this moment, and I hope it continues. There are always headwinds, and we’re just in a little bit of a headwind moment, but we’ll power through.”