The Story
Two lives in denim.
One belief in better clothing.
Civilianaire began as a return — to smaller production, closer control, and garments made to be part of a life. Gene Montesano and Barry Perlman have spent decades making American clothing. This is what they built next.
Chapter 01
The beginning.
Gene and Barry met in the American apparel business long before Civilianaire existed — two people convinced that a garment could still be a considered object, made carefully, worn hard, and improved by both.
Chapter 02
Lucky Brand.
Before Civilianaire, they helped shape a chapter of American denim at scale. That work taught them what production can be — and what it costs when scale becomes the point. They stepped away when they had learned enough.
Chapter 03
Returning to the work.
They chose to build smaller. Fewer garments, closer to the workshop, developed with fitters and pattern makers they trust. The point wasn't nostalgia — it was control.
Chapter 04
Civilianaire.
The name is a proposition: the everyday person, elevated. Not workwear as costume, not luxury as pretense — clothing built with the honesty of a workshop and the consideration of a life-long practice.
Chapter 05
Buy less. Choose well.
Our philosophy is short because it doesn't need decoration. Own fewer things. Choose them carefully. Wear them often. Let them become part of the life you actually live.
Chapter 06
Today.
A small California workshop, a Montecito storefront, four connected collections, and a long list of garments we're still refining. There is no season and no rush. We continue because the work is worth continuing.