As a young creative, Designer Joe Millman traveled back and forth between his birthplace of New York City and his adopted hometown of Philadelphia. During these early trips, he found himself drawn to the streetwear styles that were heavily influenced by the music, art and entertainment of the day, yet was forced into wearing a strict, classic prep-school uniform to school each day
Little did he realize at the time, but this style tug-of-war that was part of his daily routine was defining his style vocabulary—a vocabulary which he would later use to write the story of his current fashion collection.
A graduate of the prestigious fashion merchandising program at Marist College, Millman founded Chamberlin during his sophomore year, at the height of the pandemic. He taught himself to design clothing and spent the last years of college refining the production process. It was during a semester abroad in Italy where Millman learned to truly appreciate the art behind fashion that is tantamount to the Italian fashion experience.
Each Chamberlin collection views NYC through a different lens. Chamberlin celebrates high-quality, locally and sustainably crafted clothing that is subtle in statement to seamlessly fit into an existing wardrobe while never being simply an “elevated basic.”
Millman has set out to redefine the way New York street style is sold. Instead of relying on the “right” store to find his collection and buy it, then wait for the “right” customer to come in the door and buy his collection, he has chosen to go directly to his core customers where they walk… the streets of New York City.
Every weekend, Millman and his team can be found selling the collection at tables on the sidewalks of the city that inspires him. Conventional wisdom holds that only a T-shirt or a hat or a pair of sunglasses can be sold this way. Millman has proven this belief to not be true in the least.
He explained, “My customers are on the streets of New York City and we decided to take Chamberlin to them. Each week, I have several tables set up around New York City, and I can move them each day to explore a new customer base.”
“Once I’m successful in a given spot, I return there again,” added Millman. “I routinely sell $888 leather jackets and $168 cardigans on the streets. But equally importantly to the sale, I meet my customer face-to-face. I hear from them firsthand. It’s a priceless exchange.”
