This week, we sat down with one of our buddies, Bryan Horn, to talk about the origins of Over Under Clothing. He's a Georgia boy expat running a wildly successful company out of Jacksonville, with over 350 retailers nationwide. We'll be teaming up with Over Under this Friday for our fourth annual Florida v. Georgia Kickoff Party at the store. It's always a great time and we hope to see ya'll there!
Tell us a little about your background. Where are you from, where'd you go to school, how'd you develop a passion for the outdoors?
I'm from Sandy Springs, Georgia. I attended Riverwood high school in North Fulton County, and then went on to major in Business Marketing at the University of Georgia.
I developed a passion for the outdoors at a very young age thanks to my father and grandfather. My grandfather was from Mobile, Alabama and he loved to hunt and fish. We spent lots of time at my grandparents house in Hope Hull, Alabama and that is where I was able to get out of the suburbs of northern Atlanta in to the woods to hunt deer, quail, turkey, etc. as well catch plenty of freshwater fish with some of my granddad's favorite old lures.
I was always more at home in the outdoors than I was anywhere else. My grandfather had a few different birddogs and, as a youngster, there is nothing more fun to me than carrying a shotgun around in the woods with man's best friend at your side. Not only did my grandfather and father introduce me to the outdoors, but they drove home the fact that we always had to have an appreciation for and respect what God created and has loaned to us.
How'd you get the idea for the brand Over Under Clothing, how'd you get it started, and what were your key products to launch the brand?
I worked at a fine men's haberdashery right after graduating from UGA. That is really where I came to know and understand fine quality clothing and timeless design. It was at the store that I became familiar with brands such as Vineyard Vines, and Southern Proper, which were brand new at the time. I appreciated both of those brands and their lifestyle appeal, but I really wanted to do something on my own that had more meaning to me, personally. I was an avid outdoorsman and fell in love with the breed of Labrador retrievers in college, so this is really where the idea for Over Under was born. I felt like having a brand that focused on the sporting lifestyle and my love of the outdoors as well as man's best friend was something a lot of people could relate with.
The very first products we launched the brand with were:
- the Cannon's Point Single Shot Belt
- the Gentleman's Front Pocket Wallet
- the Finest in the Field Dog Collar (with matching leash)
- our bridle leather Shot Shell Key Fob
- and eight t-shirt designs.
I know American made products are the staple of the brand. Tell us why that's important for you guys and why Americans should care about it.
"American-made" is important to Over Under Clothing because, as I began to set out with my initial research for Over Under, I found out that less than 1% of clothing that is sold in the US is actually cut and sewn here. I grew up in a family that was dedicated to buying American-made products, so I told myself that the main thing we wanted to do different than any other clothing brand would be to create something that was authentic in the fact that we were truly helping keep and create jobs in America. Just two decades ago, "American-made" truly meant something, and it usually meant better quality. It is Over Under's mission to make that true again. We believe fellow Americans should care about our mission because we've learned firsthand of the harsh working conditions and low wages that foreign workers are paid to produce some of our competitor's clothing. We believe in keeping, and creating jobs here while producing goods that are made by American citizens being paid a fair wage. Keeping dollars within our shores fuels our country's economy and that is a basic trickle down economic formula that we whole heartedly believe in.
Tell us a little bit about some of the US manufacturers you guys use.
Two of the US manufacturers that we would like to share a little bit about are our belt manufacturer located in Pennsylvania and our wallet manufacturer in North Carolina.
Our belts are made by an Amish community using many of the traditional tanning methods, as well as the primitive handtools that have long since been replaced by machinery in most other belt manufacturing facilities. I felt like teaming up with Amish manufacturers was ideal because they have been making saddlery and tack-leather goods for multiple generations and they never skimp on quality!
I was able to visit with our wallet manufacture in North Carolina just recently. It was an experience I will not forget because I was able to shake the hands of over 20 employees that we personally help get a paycheck because we chose to make our wallets in the USA.
What are some of your favorite items from your fall collection?
That's a very tough question because I think this is my favorite collection we've had thus far, so I have many favorites. If I had to choose to three of them, I would say that our men's Waxed Briar Field Jacket, our new Bison-Hide Belt with authentic buffalo nickel, and our Old School Camo Cordura hat are some of my favorites.
What do you like to do in your spare time away from Over Under?
When I have spare time… which is pretty limited these days... I enjoy spending time with my wife, two little girls, and now nine-year-old chocolate lab Lottie Grace. She is actually the inspiration for our logo. Due to having young children, I don't get to hunt and fish nearly as much as I used to, but I still manage to get out in my flats boat, duck boat, and kayak a few times a year to chase redfish and waterfowl. I am very excited for my girls to get a little older so that they can join me on these adventures. Not only do we believe in American manufacturing, but our company motto is "Preserving the Sporting Lifestyle", so it's very important to myself and my team to pass along the importance of preservation and conservation for our natural world to the next generation.
Tell us some your favorite memories about Georgia v. Florida weekend.
Actually one of my favorite memories from the Georgia Florida weekend was just last year. Being able to co-sponsor an event with Beau outfitters and meet fans from both teams the Friday before the game was a lot of fun. We made custom cornhole boards for both teams and even gave away a YETI cooler for all of those that participated. It is always enjoyable to see the town of Jacksonville and the San Marco Square area packed with fans on this weekend. It is even more so meaningful and memorable when people get behind local businesses and local brands during GA vs FL! Being a diehard Georgia fan though, it's an awesome weekend all around and I have a lot of great memories throughout the years.
Shop Bryan's Look:
Hat | Old School Camo Cordura Hat (Dropping soon!)
Jacket | Waxed Briar Field Jacket
Belt | Over Under Hoofpick Belt
BEAU x OVER UNDER EVENT INFO:
Join us for a Florida Georgia Kickoff Party with Over Under Clothing
Check out Florida + Georgia gear including our Beau Exclusive Preserving the Rivalry Tee // Manifest Distillery Tasting // Snap a photo in front of our huge banner, tag both @beauoutfitters and @over_under_co OR use our snap custom filter (show us at the register) and receive 10% discount codes for Beau in store + overunderclothing.com!
And most importantly... look out on Instagram for our BIGGEST GIVEAWAY OF THE YEAR!