Our Story
Unequivocally West Coast in both origin and spirit, VENIM was founded in 2018 by Leslie Fong and Kaycee Houchin, who met in design school a decade prior. Their partnership is rooted in a shared passion for impeccable craftsmanship, ethical manufacturing, and unapologetically individualistic designs.
Positioning itself as both a luxury streetwear label and an innovator in custom apparel, VENIM draws inspiration in everything from art, street culture, music, and science fiction to their own family histories of Formula Ford race car driving and disco-era sensibilities.
Leslie Fong - CEO
Kaycee Houchin - Head of Product
Our Philosophy
For decades, the classic denim jacket has served as a uniform for society’s countercultures; an amplifier for self-expression, a security blanket for the world’s most defiant rockstars, and oftentimes an exhibition of political opinion. This has been regardless of race or gender and is increasingly disassociated with class or social status.
VENIM seeks to preserve the denim jacket as this universal symbol of democracy, but also to elevate its design with couture construction details, luxury materials, and unprecedented customization options. This is under the doctrine of “fewer, better things” - that the quality and personality of an object helps maintain its value and in turn, discourages wastefulness.
Our Methodology
Obsessive attention to detail, high-quality craftsmanship, and specialized finishing techniques are what make the construction of every VENIM jacket a subtle artform.
Each jacket is hand-finished in-studio by a dedicated technician. Items that use a specialized customization such as a metallic foil finish vary in appearance due to the unique hand of the technician completing the assembly. For this reason, all VENIM jackets with a customization are one-of-a-kind and to maintain consistency, no two technicians ever work on the same jacket.
Our Promise
VENIM jackets are produced from the excess yardage of other designer denim brands, which is also known as “liability fabric”. This fabric is sourced from some of the best denim mills in countries around the world, which currently include Japan, Turkey, and the United States of America.
Significant water usage, dye pollution, and energy resources are involved in the production of denim textiles. Utilization of pre-existing materials helps to mitigate this environmental strain and allows for smaller production runs which in turn, reduce excess inventory. VENIM is committed to prioritizing responsible production methods in the making of its collections, at all costs.
- Produced from upcycled denim
- Proposition 65 and Oeko-Tex® Standard 100-certified
- Vegan, nickel and lead-free, non-toxic