Introduce yourself to Profilo Basso Fanzine readers
and tell us about your background.

 Hello, I'm David and I'm the founder of Patriam. My
background in relation to clothing is as a collector, I started collecting
clothes, jackets mostly, when I was around 17. I became fascinated with the
work of Massimo Osti in particular, this led me to look more closely at the
design elements of menswear and eventually to starting my own brand. Outside of
clothing, I am an electrician and I currently work in the wind industry.

Tell us when and how the Patriam idea was born.
What is the meaning?

 The idea for starting my own brand really came from a
feeling of being disconnected to the 'big' brands that I was buying, there
seemed to be little innovation and the prices increased dramatically season on
season. I then started to look at smaller independent brands and found that
there were a few offering really good, well made clothing at a fraction of the
costs of the big brands and this encouraged me to give it a go. I had also
noticed that despite a huge number of people in Scotland being passionate about
their clothes there are very few brands that are based here and even fewer that
manufacture here as well.

 The name Patriam is Latin for Homeland, and this speaks
to our aim of keeping the brand as close to home as possible, we manufacture
everything in the heart of Scotland and use materials from around Great
Britain. It also displays the universality of the brand as everyone has a
homeland, the designs are influenced from around the world and this illustrates
that whilst we are based in Scotland our clothes are designed to be used around
the world and moulded to each individual users environment. One of the most
exciting things so far is seeing how our customers have used and styled the
same overshirts in completely different ways!

In one of the first posts on Instagram you write:
“We aim to help local people and businesses wherever possibile, the entire
collection will be made in Scotland from materials sourced as close to home as
possible. We also wanted to use this process to help local charities, bringing
as much benefit to local people who need it…” I think it is a great initiative.
How come this choice? Can you explain more about it?

 The decision to use local businesses was one that was
taken right at the start of the process, this was due to me wanting the
clothing that we make to represent the area we are from as well as to ensure
that it was as sustainable as possible. It has also made it much easier to
ensure that our process is as transparent as possible, for instance for our
first two Overshirts we have listed detailed cost breakdowns to show customers
exactly where their money is going. We believe that this will help to build a sense
of trust between us and our customers going forward as there is nothing hidden
about what we do.

 Another great thing about using local businesses is that
there is a wealth of talent in Scotland, and Britain more wildly, and it has
been fantastic speaking to and working with people who are just as passionate
about what they do as we are.

 The charity aspect came from me wanting to give something
back. I have been in a privileged position myself of being able to buy and
collect expensive clothing for a long time and so I felt that it was important
that people who haven't been this fortunate can also feel some benefit from the
brand. Our chosen charity is currently Perth Foodbank, it was chosen as it is
doing invaluable work in our local community ensuring that struggling families
are given a life line and some breathing space during the current cost of
living crisis.

You got off to a great start right away by
releasing two great pieces. How come you chose two overshirts as your first
release? Tell us how you experienced the various steps from product creation to
implementation. I imagine it was exciting.

 Thank you. We chose overshirts as they can be worn in all
seasons, especially here in Scotland, and so they lend themselves to becoming
real wardrobe staples. They are also highly functional pieces of clothing with
great scope to tweak designs and create something that can be both bold and
subtle depending on how it is used.

 It was very exciting going from the initial designs
through sampling and eventually to having the first batch ready to sell. Seeing
the designs come to life has been by far the best part, we have been lucky in
that we’ve worked with some really talented people who were able to realise our
designs without many adjustments needing to be made making the process as
smooth as possible!

You are from Perth, Scotland. Does where you live
influence in any way what you produce? Can you find everything you need close
to home?

 Yes, it definitely has influenced what we have produced,
even the names for the first two overshirts come from hills that overlook
Perth.

We have tried to create clothing that represents where we
are from, hence the reason that we have used waxed cotton as our main material.
This was initially developed in Britain from the 1500s onwards and we are lucky
enough to live very close to Halley Stevensons who make some of the most high
tech and durable waxed cotton anywhere in the world!

We feel that using materials like this gives our products
that feeling of being quintessentially Scottish, hard wearing and ready for
almost any weather you can throw at them as well as being easy to wear and
versatile.  

We have found all of the material we need from companies
in Great Britain, this has help to ensure that the product has as low a carbon
footprint as possible before it reaches the customer. Throughout our journey so
far, we have found some incredible people and companies such as Courtney &
Co who have provided the buttons for our Kinnoull Overshirt and our sample
jackets. They make their buttons out of Corozo which is helping to protect
vital rain forests in Ecuador from deforestation.

Some time ago we had seen a preview of a jacket.
Will this be the next product or are you working on something else?

Yes, we currently have two jackets that are almost ready
for production. The one we previewed was the Tay field jacket, there are a
couple of things I’d like to tweak about the design before we release it fully,
but it is 95% finished. The other is the Earn smock, based on British
mountaineering smocks from the 1950s and 60s which is also about 95% finished.
We are hoping to have they ready for release around the end of the summer.

 We also have a few more designs that are really at the
beginning of the process, but we are looking forward to taking these through
and having something to show people in the not too distant future.

Are there any brands you particularly keep an eye
on and why? What brands would you like to collaborate with?

 At the moment I feel like the most exciting brands and
designers are coming out of Japan, in particular you have Hiroshi Nozawa with
Norbit and Daiki Suzuki with Engineered Garments (although he’s based in New
York) as well as Beams Plus. There are also a few brands closer to home that
are really exceptional: Albam, Universal Works and Kestin to name a few. I
really like brands that can push the boundaries of design whilst also
maintaining a wearability to their clothes and that’s really what we’re aiming
for as well!

 I think it’s perhaps a bit early to be thinking of
collaborations, but it would certainly be something that could be very exciting
in the future.

At the beginning of the
interview, you were telling us about this passion of yours for clothing since
you were young. Can you tell us more about it? Do you have any noteworthy
pieces in your closet that you jealously guard?

 My collecting really started with going to the football and seeing what people were wearing there, there was lots of CP Company and Stone Island and so this is where I started. Throughout the years
I’ve been lucky enough to own some exceptional pieces, there are definitely
some that will never leave my collection. At the top of that list I would
include a SS92 Stone Island Marina reflective jacket as well as a SS90 Stone
Island camouflage ice jacket. Even more so than those I have the first
iteration of CP Company’s goggle jacket, this is the explorer prototype from
1987 which was shown in the Ideas From Massimo Osti book.

This fanzine as you might have
guessed besides clothing also talks about bleachers and music. Do you go to the
stadium? What team do you support? Musically what do you listen to?

 Yes, I support my local team home
and away. I support St Johnstone who play in the top flight of Scottish
football. It’s not always easy football to watch but the passion and connection
to the local community is second to none.

I listen to a wide variety of
music but currently the artists I listen to most are, David Bowie, Arctic
Monkeys, The Blossoms and Pet Shop Boys. I love going to see bands live as
well, the best band I have ever seen live would have to be The Specials who
were brilliant.

How would you describe your own style?

 My own style is definitely a mix
of a lot of different influences. I started out with the usual casual look
wearing brands such as CP and Stone Island with Adidas trainers but in recent
years I have focused more on brands from further afield such as Norbit and
Engineered Garments as mentioned above. These days I focus a lot more on
fabrics and well made clothes rather than just buying popular pieces, this is
where I find that a lot of smaller brands really excel with the likes of Albam
and Universal Works making stuff that will last a life time.

I noticed that up north you are very passionate about Italy in terms of culture,
fashion, football, etc. How come there is this interest in us in your
opinion? 

 I think the fascination with Italy comes from the idea that Italians naturally
have an element of style, whether it is in clothes where you have Armani and
Prada or in cars with Lamborghini and Ferrari there is a definite image of
style and class. There is also a perception of the Italian lifestyle being very
desirable with the good food, weather and wine.

The football, for me, started with Serie A being shown on Channel 4 here and so it
was very accessible before watching football online really took over.