A Home

A living room in which customers feel like friends: Dreist is perceived in this manner by many customers.

Dreist/Aachen. Rob Kriescher, who was born in the Netherlands, has made Aachen his home. In the process, he also created a “home” for men and women who enjoy buying fashion in a location that is close to their respective hearts.

Text: Martina Müllner-Seybold. Photos: Dreist

The term “open mic” is a challenge of sorts. Dreist supplies a guitar and amplifier, thereby affording everyone an opportunity to take to the in-store stage. This ensures that the store fills up fairly quickly and the event has caused a ripple effect. Customers who lack musical talent can visit Dreist on a different day and bring along their personal record collection to play in the store. It comes as no surprise that such sessions often lead to an after-hour beer or a dinner. “The citizens of Aachen are getting to know us and are beginning to fall in love with us”, says Rob Kriescher, who fulfilled his dream of owning his own store four years ago. Kriescher decided against opening a store in the Netherlands, mainly because the financial crisis hit his homeland hard. Instead, he decided to venture into the city in which his grandfather was born.

Many Avenues

“We stand for heritage, we are hipsters, and we follow many avenues in terms of style. We don’t want to focus on a specific target group in Aachen. Even bikers feel at home in our store. Our core business is the raw denim segment; that’s what everything’s based on”, Kriescher explains. The store stocks authentic and sustainable brands with rich and impressive background stories. It’s a real paradise for “the lads”. Follow

From 60 to 240 square metres: Dreist recently relocated and is now sufficiently large to adequately showcase its exciting concept.

ing the relocation of the store in its fourth year, Dreist also became attractive for women when it increased its sales area from 60 to 240 square metres. The fact that women are enjoying more attention is also down to the involvement of Rob Kriescher’s sister. She closed down her stores in the Netherlands to focus on her own online store and manage her brother’s women’s department. By adding labels such as MbyM and Minimum to the product range, the store now also stocks brands outside the “heritage dogma”; the more feminine and playful approach has found support swiftly. In Aachen, a student city with a high percentage of male citizens due to the technical nature of most courses on offer, it can happen that the fashion needs of women are overlooked. “We will change that, but we are determined to stay true to our style principles in terms of women’s fashion”, Rob Kriescher explains. When it comes to fashion advice, he always bases it on what he believes is the perfect wardrobe. “We show our customers how to reinvent their look repeatedly with basics; we don’t want to persuade them to follow short-term trends. We want to help them to compile a solid wardrobe.” It is quite a challenge to keep these solid wardrobes fresh and to supply new purchasing impulses. “How many high-quality raw denim items does a man need? He certainly doesn’t need 15!” That’s why Rob Kriescher does a lot of research online in the hope of finding new brands. Occasionally, he even orders a label in the US and imports the items at his own expense. “We want to be ahead of our time. We need to know today what’s going to happen tomorrow. This allows us to be a fashion-related home for our customers.”

Dreist

Wirichsbongardstr. 12 52062 Aachen/Germany www.dreist-ac.de Opening: December 2011 Owner: Robert Kriescher Employees: 2 Sales area: 204 sqm Brands for women: Hannes Roether, Hope, Joah Brown, Lee, MbyM, Minimum, Ruby Tuesday, Schott NYC, Shoto, Red Wing, Wolverine 1000mile, Wrangler, et al… Brands for men: Blaumann Jeans, Blue Blanket Jeans, Blue de Génes, Chippewa, Cruna, Daniele Fiesoli, Denham The Jeanmaker, Deus, Eat Dust, Edwin, Fleurs de Bagne, Fred Perry, Grenson, Hannes Roether, Hope, Indigofera, Lee101, Lightning Bolt, Minimum, Nudie Jeans Co, Penguin, Red Wing, Scarti Lab, Schott NYC, Shoto, Tellason, Thedi Leather, Wolverine 1000mile, Zeha Berlin, et al… Accessories brands: Brooklyn Soap Company, Dettline, Diefenthal und Sohn, Fango Tang, Pig & Hen, Marshall, Ondura, Ottermann, Rough and Loyal, Secrid, Tannergoods, Trico, et al…