I'm interested in this razor blade

now.

So I sold them on the street because I bought them, I don't know where, and I had a little side hustle.

Nice.

Anyway, that was a minor thing, but I, so I did that and I worked always Saturdays and I always was forced to work, but it was good.

It was very good.

And so I'm a worker and I never give up on things now, now a million years later, but getting into the business, I did that.

Midwest.

Yeah

...

most directors.

So I said, "Why?" I mean, I said, "Where's the integrity?" I got ushered right out.

And then after the press conference [laughs] the next day-Uh, Don said to me, "You know, I made a mistake.

Now it's all over the papers, my family was just..." "Oh, okay, you made a mistake." And he said to me, um...

And I, I was...

Sure.

Tell us a little bit about the business, but I- I'd love for you to stop, to start at a high level to explain the business in total in terms of where it's coming from, wholesale, stores, and online.

Well, uh, it's hard to explain without saying what it was six or so years ago, but in any case, it was only a thought in our minds of what it could be and should be.

And frankly, right now we're starting to, uh, get some of the good traction that I always like to see, although it took a bit of time.

We are current...

Well, it was tiny with, uh, no stores when, uh, we started, Alex and I, and, uh, Somsack is the third, uh, relaunch person and, and a founder, uh, in the relaunch.

So there's the three of us, uh, and what it was and what it is, it's a long way from that.

Um, it was, uh, just a feeling about, uh, vision, uh, et cetera, on what it could be, and now we're getting close, although you never get 100% 'cause you're always climbing the mountain.

Where, where are you seeing the success within the business?

Well, how would you put it?

he didn't fit the job description of a dad.

And he wasn't that nice to my mom.

He wasn't nice to me.

And I kind of give him credit for my success today to a degree.

But he wanted to be successful.

He acted like a big shot.

What was it?

I have, yeah.

Yeah.

So pressure, difficult.

That summer was the Olympics.

Business was horrible.

Why? Because we were up against two for $26.

Yeah.

So I'd love for you to just put into words, what do you see the role of a CEO as? Or a leader in any sense?

Yes.

And I grew up in the 40s and 50s.

Well, I lived there in the Bronx through high school.

And I lived very, you know, now it's not the way you say a lot of people live.

But then the Bronx, Barnes Avenue was a very kind of, I don't want to call it a working class family neighborhood, but it was mostly Jews and Italians.

It was near Allerton Avenue, which was our main shopping street.

One elevated stop north of Pelham Parkway, which most people know because Bronx Zoo, a hospital.

Yeah, but throughout your career, after your kind of childhood, whether that be Gap, Old Navy, J.Crew, Alex Miller, what are your biggest thoughts?

Are you eating the cost of higher goods? Are you passing it on? How do you deal with it?

How do we deal with it? You know, use our judgment, our intuition, our gut, which are three important characteristics.

Here's what we're doing.

We're looking at what tariffs have kicked in.

We're evaluating what prices are worth.

We're known as a very fair-priced brand.

A lot of brands are much more expensive.

Do you hesitate to do anything that could cause a storm on one side of the political aisle or the

It's like you're a curator, really, right?

Beyond right.

You know, I had a big debate the other night.

There was 10 of us at dinner, and the subject of AI came up.

One woman was on the board of AI, and they were all my friends, but I get a little passionate.

My wife says, calm down.

They said, well, it's going to cost a lot of jobs.

Was that the goal? Like, how calculated were you about that? Or was that, again, just gut?

We're on radio.

Anyway, but they were famous.

Four fall into the gap.

Very tacky.

Horrible clothes.

Yeah.

Everything was on sale.

done?

Since you say, you know, how's the higher end? How's the higher end?

Well, what I hear...

And, you know, I hear it's very difficult.

There's price issues out there, which, you know, some of the prices are whatever.

And this big expansion.

And the people, I think, this is a personal opinion, it's not such a big deal to wear designer clothes.

thing anymore.

You pay more, obviously, to do that here, don't you?

Was there a moment when you realized he wasn't a big shot or-

Well, I'll tell you, it's an interesting story.

Uh, I used to work-- He worked in the garment coat company.

He wor- he worked buttons.

He had a, kind of a low level-ish job.

Well, I didn't wanna face that.

Um, and he, um...

... from every available source.