Verral Rathod, President and co-Founder of J. Hilburn

For a corporate finance guy, the road to success begins with a well-tailored shirt. For Veeral Rathod, ex-financial professional and co-Founder of men’s luxury apparel line J. Hilburn, that same tailored shirt is where the road ends.

Veeral began his career in finance after receiving a liberal arts degree from the University of Pennsylvania, getting his foot in the door at a Wall Street firm after graduation with the help of friends. Eventually landing in Dallas to serve as Vice President at a private equity firm, Veeral knew his career as it stood was not the end of the road.

Deciding to follow his entrepreneurial instincts, Veeral co-founded the J. Hilburn company, along with business partner Hil Davis, in 2006.  Structured around a business model with combined elements of e-commerce and direct sales, the company offers luxury men’s apparel direct to consumer at a significant discount from traditional retail. Utilizing a small army of “Personal Style Advisors” who measure clients to achieve a tailored fit, and circumventing the usual store overhead, J. Hilburn passes savings on to the consumer, while sourcing luxury fabrics from the same vendors as well-known brands.

Veeral credits much of the initial success of J. Hilburn to finding the right advisors, as well as the right vendors, early on. Or maybe he just knows the power of a man in a well-tailored shirt.

1.   Fashion is evolving as men are increasingly concerned with their appearance and how their clothes fit. Do you think a company like J. Hilburn would have been successful 15, or even 10 years ago?

The current timing is perfect for our business model for several reasons, which didn’t exist 10 years ago:

(1) American men are finally starting to care about better fitting clothes, personalized style and high quality fabrics.  The men’s apparel segment has been growing faster than women’s for the past 5 years, and tailored apparel is the leading category.

(2) Luxury brands have outsourced all their production, and this gives us the ability to source directly from the same fabric mills and manufacturers.  At the same time, luxury brands have continually marked up their prices and taken massive profits at the consumer’s expense.  So now we’re in a time where consumers want high quality goods, but are less willing to pay the absurd markups.  Since we sell direct, we deliver luxury apparel at half the price of traditional retail stores.

(3) The emergence of Dell, Amazon and Zappos prove that consumers will shop online.  Our unique model of direct sales as well as ecommerce gives us a direct relationship with our customers, and saves guys from having to go to the mall.  Once we have a customer’s measurements, they can go online and design custom shirts and pants as well as purchase sweaters, belts and cufflinks.  J. Hilburn offers the best elements of value, customer service and convenience.

2.  How did you learn the basics of the fashion industry and what more would you like to learn?

Both Hil Davis, my business partner, and I started our careers in investment banking, so the intricacies of fashion, retail, technology and business operations are all new to us.  We did a lot of research and sought advice from knowledgeable people, so that contributed to our ability to launch our custom shirt program.  Since then, we’ve been able to attract incredible talent that has proven experience, such as our VP of Product Development – Jon Patrick – who has 10+ years creating menswear for Polo Ralph Lauren.  We still have a lot to learn, and our primary goal for 2010 is to develop signature product that defines us as a luxury brand.

3.  Has your company vision changed at all since receiving venture capital?

From day 1, Hil and I have always believed that we can fundamentally change the retail world and build an world-class company.  Venture capital funding enabled us to accelerate our business plan and spend behind product development, ecommerce and infrastructure.  So while our vision has always been the same, we now have the capital resources to execute on all the strategic initiatives that will build the brand and grow our market share.

4.  What do you think men appreciate more about your business: the product or the service?

I think they appreciate both – what guy wants to go to the mall, spend twice as much money, and get clothes that don’t fit well? Our products deliver luxury at unmatched pricing and our style advisors provide both convenience as well as fashion advice.

5.  Why do men find it so difficult to piece together an outfit?

Men aren’t able to visualize as well as women, and most guys don’t want to spend the time preparing outfits.  So we train our style advisors to help guys pick the right colors, patterns and looks for their lifestyle.  Additionally, our website will feature tools and content to help men piece together outfits.  Currently, our customers can design custom shirts online, and see that shirt in real-time (just like building a car online).  We’re currently expanding that technology to suggest additional items, such as matching pants, belts and cufflinks, and then put it all together in the custom apparel builder so they can see the whole outfit on the screen.

6.  What do you enjoy most about owning your own business?

I never feel like I’m ‘working’.  We have a very unique business model that’s never been done before, so I enjoy the challenge of building the company and seeing it come together every day.  Additionally, I think our corporate team as well as our style  advisors really enjoy being part of J. Hilburn, and it’s a great feeling to know you’re making a difference in someone else’s life.  One of our style advisors once told me: “J. Hilburn gave me and my family the opportunity to dream again” – that’s pretty powerful.

7. Describe the person who would best complement both your life and your business.

Someone who is intelligent, confident and has a sense of humor.  Someone whose willingness to take calculated risks is matched by their ability  to dream with me.  Most importantly, she should build my strengths and complement my weaknesses.

8. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

In 10 years, I think J. Hilburn will be synonymous with renowned brands like Ralph Lauren and Zegna. By then, we should have seasoned executives running the company, so I look forward to spending my time building our brand and working with our style advisors.

Veeral’s Bio:

Veeral Rathod is the President and co-Founder of J. Hilburn, a luxury men’s apparel company based in Dallas, Texas.  J. Hilburn brings luxurious, personalized men’s apparel to the market at affordable prices through a combination of Personal Style Advisers and an elegant e-commerce site.  Prior to founding J. Hilburn, Veeral Rathod was a Vice President at Cogent Partners where he was responsible for sourcing and executing private equity transactions. He also spent two years at Credit Suisse First Boston in the technology mergers and acquisitions group in San Francisco.  Veeral earned a BA in International Relations and Economics from the University of Pennsylvania.  He is an avid car enthusiast, a Dallas Cowboys fan, and enjoys traveling.

Want to connect with Veeral? Follow him on Facebook!