The Following is a letter sent to Customer Relations at J. Crew after a pair of their jeans split while wearing them.

To any concerned party, and their superiors:

Allow me to first start by saying that I have long been a buyer of your fine products. The J. Crew name is a brand I have come to trust over the years, as makers of fine clothing, keepers of latest fashions without giving in to easily spottable over-hyped trends and an overall satisfactory product that has until recently never let me down.

The price of fashion comes with an unspoken bond that the quality of the product you are buying is stern and meant to last. I could go to a store like Target or Wal Mart and buy clothes from them, but I would do so knowing I would not be purchasing as fine a product as I would from a well known designer label and brand such as J. Crew. I understand that not all processes are perfect, and with that comes the risk of design flaws. This is why I am writing and enclosing to you a pair of jeans that did not last 2 months before splitting just above the inseam on the front side. As I said, I trust the J. Crew name to produce well made products that will certainly last, and with that understanding I purchased these jeans at a fairly high price. What I was paying for was not jut a sharp looking pair of dark denim, but the assurance that they were going to last longer than 2 months. Once I tried them on in the store they immediately became my favorite pair of jeans. Like the Green Power Ranger, they were thrown into the line up with the others, and required no transitional period of rope showing. They got right to work kicking ass, and impressing ladies.

I was however severely shocked and displeased when the pants had split. There’s a certain pride obliterating gust of shame that comes when you split your pants, and especially in the company of others who hear the sound that seems to somehow be louder than the stereo blasting music from the other room. It’s a howl wrapped in a whimper that alerts the entire room, ‘this is a man who is no longer adequate and has damaged his own clothing as a result of his inability to maintain any sense of decorum’. Losing a button, or wearing a belt in so that it no longer functions is one thing; even splitting a pair of thin wool trousers can be overlooked, and eventually forgotten. But, the idea that a perfect fitting, pair of straight legged blue jeans after only 2 moths of routine wearing, and proper care, could simply ruin, and vitiate is beyond rational or acceptable. Rugged, quality made blue jeans are a staple of American life and (it is of my belief) are not to be built or taken lightly. Regardless of originating in France, good denim is now as much of an American tradition as apple pie and fireworks, and a poorly made pair of jeans is not a piece of clothing worth noticing.

I don’t take this recent unpleasantness as a stain on the entire line up of clothes produced by J. Crew, and will continue to shop in your stores and online (I’m really hoping the Nigel tartan neck tie stays up after Christmas). There will however, be an asterisk that will demand further contemplation when it comes to purchasing jeans in the future. I hope this letter brings attention to the quality of your products and can be a helpful reminder during the self assessment. Take care and have a lovely Holiday season.

Much Sincerity

Fil Madzin

The letter resulted in a free $50 gift card good at any J. Crew location. Who says customer service is dead?