Design your own jeans, custom-made for $145

We’ve covered numerous design-your-own clothing opportunities over the years, but it seems fair to say that jeans are perhaps the category where such capabilities are needed most. After all, “most of us wear jeans every day, yet finding jeans that actually fit and flatter is still a struggle,” as indiDenim puts it. “Muffin tops, gaping waists, baggy thighs, bunching fabric, camel toe, highwaters, dragging hems, and inappropriate butt exposure abound. Something must be done to stop the madness!” Enter indiDenim, which offers a way for consumers to design their own custom-fit jeans. Customers of indiDenim—whose parent company runs a like-minded site for custom-made dress shirts—begin by selecting from among several jeans cuts, including slim and relaxed fits. They then choose the fabric, rise and styles they’d like for the pants’ fly, leg, hem, pocket and overall treatment. Women’s options at indiDenim include super-low to high-rises, multiple leg styles and more than 30 different back pocket options; men can make their jean a basic five-pocket or add carpenter styling. Both sexes, meanwhile, can select sanding and distressing treatments. Next, customers answer a series of straightforward questions about their body—including their height, weight, inseam and descriptions of their overall shape—and indiDenim’s proprietary algorithms spit out sizing specs that are used to create completely customized patterns. Without any human intervention, those patterns are sent to the company’s manufacturing partners, where the fabric is cut by computerized cutters and sewn in highly specialized sewing lines. From there, indiDenim washes, quality-checks, packages and ships the garment directly to the customer in about four weeks. Perhaps most interesting of all, indiDenim allows customers to return custom items for any reason, and makes adjustments at no extra charge. In the site’s Design Vault, meanwhile, consumers can buy, browse, rate and comment on jeans designed by other members of the indiDenim community. Pricing from California-based indiDenim begins at USD 145, including free shipping anywhere in the world. Given the prevalence of jeans, seems to us there’s room for more than one contender in this market. One to emulate on a localized or niche basis? Spotted by: Susanna Haynie