B-Man2
Well-Known Member
I was sitting home today thinking about posting a jacket in the “What Jacket Are You Wearing Today “ section for the umpteenth time and trying to think of what jacket to use for that purpose. As I was going through some old photos of jackets, I came across a photo of a jacket that made me pause, and wonder whatever happened to that company .As I thought about that question, I became interested in why a particular company in this industry and hobby of ours, seems to go through a cycle of rapid and promising develop, only to slowly slip away and become yesterdays news in terms of marketing , sales and interest. So I decided that rather than to try and use my pea brain to analyze why that happens , that it would be more beneficial to utilize the collective intelligence of the members of this forum in a commentary and analysis of two relatively new start up companies and why one is having a fairly successful run and the other has faded by comparison . The two companies I’m referring to are 5 Star Leather vs. AVI Leather. They both came to the attention of this forum at just about the same time, give or take some months , but the business development paths that these companies have taken and the consumer responses they’ve received has been noticeably different . Now before I go any farther ... I get that there are some of you out there who think that both of these companies are low end jacket makers, who turn out shit, which is polluting the industry and taking the focus and sales away from the top tier jacket makers . I also get that some of you are purist and appreciate, admire and respect a company who can put together a stitch for stitch repro and create a work of art in reproducing an original jacket made 80 years ago. (Just for clarification I have jackets from both 5 Star and AVI companies but I consider myself as part of this group .) However, there are a number of members who are of another group and are looking for a jacket that closely approximates an original but don’t want to give up their first born male child or break the families bank account to acquire one . So with that in mind let’s take a look at both companies and post some of our thoughts on the matter .
I’ll start off with the most obvious one Customer Service ( leave it to me to take the easy route ) 5 Star is miles ahead of what AVI offers . I was impressed with my AVI when I first dropped 390 Euros or the equivalent of that in US dollars and received the jacket . However , it was a 1st run jacket and needed a lot of work . The color of the russet was way too orange , the goatskin was nice but was too heavy and thick for anything close to that of a WWII A2 jacket , so I emailed AVI with what I thought were some pretty accurate thoughts for product development...., and waited for their response . I received a reply that much of what I suggested was being addressed in a 2nd generation jacket and I was very happy with that reply . I followed AVIs growth and development and like most here read that they were acquiring original jackets to enhance the patterns of their jackets, but after that nothing . But then 5 Star came on the scene and the focus slowly shifted from AVI to 5 Star with their reduced cost and custom sizing . A feature not available from AVI.
OK...At this point I’ll shut my “Pie Hole” and welcome any commentary that you guys would like to offer on this subject . I always like to read your responses, so please don’t be shy . Also this is basically an opinion forum, so your opinion holds the same value as mine or anyone else’s . If you think I’m mistaken , confused or just plain nuts let it fly . It makes for good discussions .
I’ll start off with the most obvious one Customer Service ( leave it to me to take the easy route ) 5 Star is miles ahead of what AVI offers . I was impressed with my AVI when I first dropped 390 Euros or the equivalent of that in US dollars and received the jacket . However , it was a 1st run jacket and needed a lot of work . The color of the russet was way too orange , the goatskin was nice but was too heavy and thick for anything close to that of a WWII A2 jacket , so I emailed AVI with what I thought were some pretty accurate thoughts for product development...., and waited for their response . I received a reply that much of what I suggested was being addressed in a 2nd generation jacket and I was very happy with that reply . I followed AVIs growth and development and like most here read that they were acquiring original jackets to enhance the patterns of their jackets, but after that nothing . But then 5 Star came on the scene and the focus slowly shifted from AVI to 5 Star with their reduced cost and custom sizing . A feature not available from AVI.
OK...At this point I’ll shut my “Pie Hole” and welcome any commentary that you guys would like to offer on this subject . I always like to read your responses, so please don’t be shy . Also this is basically an opinion forum, so your opinion holds the same value as mine or anyone else’s . If you think I’m mistaken , confused or just plain nuts let it fly . It makes for good discussions .
Last edited: