Discover Recto’s underground fashion

By NRJ Ramos
Frustrated with the rising cost of designer jeans? How about that
leather motorcycle jacket or those nifty cowboy boots? Well, fret no
more. For those with a yen for fashion but ostensibly lacking the much
needed moolah—consider your prayers answered.

We recently visited the infamous underground fashion haven that is

Recto and we were both amazed and perplexed with the cornucopia of
things we found: jeans, leather jackets, shirts, bracelets, beads,
earrings, leather shoes, leather boots, heck, even school uniforms—all
created by Pinoy hands and at a much, much more affordable price
than their department store counterparts.

Take for example this little store located down the Recto-Quiapo
underpass dubbed, Crazy Horse Jeans Shoppe (736-5232). Not only are
they offering good, sturdy jeans that’s not far removed from those we
buy at the malls, they also let you design your own all for the princely
amount of P300(! )

According to Emerson Rosal, one of three brothers who own the store,
more than the affordable price, this is the kind of advantage one
couldn’t find at their neighborhood mall. “Mura na nga, gagawin pa
namin sarili mong disenyo, kahit ano pa ’to. Wala sa mall nito!”

Emerson and his brothers, Ruben, 54 and Danny, 53, pioneered this
service around the Recto area. They started in 1980 and rightly soon
enough they gained a big following among students in the University-
Belt area. “Dati ang customers naming karamihan talaga estudyante.
’Yung mga kabataan. Ang gusto kasi n’yan ’yung mura at walang
katulad kaya sa ’min ang punta.”

Emerson offers a wide array of jeans both local and imported. Of

course, the imported material fetches a higher price at P450.

“Ang mga denim naming ginagamit hindi din nagkakalayo sa mga

ginagamit ng Levi’s o Lee. S’yempre imported brand sila pero sa tibay
o quality halos pareho lang.”

It’s inevitable that some customers ask them to make styles akin to
those found in department stores. “Oo naman. Pero dinidiscourage
namin ito. Alam din naman namin ang trademark rights at nirerespeto
namin ito. Ang ginagawa namin inaadvise namin sila tungkol dito at
kung gusto pa rin nila magmukhang Levi’s ito e sinasabi namin kayo na
magkabit ng mga etikita o ano pa man dahil hindi namin ginagawa
ito.”

Emerson admits business isn’t as crazy as before. “Dati kami na ang

tumatanggi sa customer. Ang dami talaga. 100 to 200 persons a month
siguro ’yon. Ngayon, marami-rami pa rin pero madalang na. Pumatay
sa ’min ’yung ‘globalization project’ ni Ramos nu’n.”

Rebecca Mustafa, 42, couldn’t agree more. Rebecca’s Smokey’s

Leather Haus (412-2406), just like the Rosal brother’s Crazy Horse
Jeans Shoppe accepts made-to-order packages. As she said, anything
the customer wants done in leather, she would do it. “Oo. Dati maayos
talaga ang business namin. Kaya lang walang laban sa mga foreign
goods na nagmura na rin kasi naging tax-free. Tingnan mo ’yung mga
Intsik sa Divisoria dun sa 168 Mall. Nonetheless, both agree that they
can still subsist as they already have a niche market.

“Ang mga customers namin ngayon yu’ong may specific idea kung ano
ang gusto nila at ’di nila mahanap sa mall o kung san pa man. Meron
din kaming customer na sikat gaya ni Robin Padilla. Sina Miriam
Quiambao at Charlene Gonzales nagpunta na rin dito,” Emerson
proudly enthused.

“Dito sigurado sila na totoo ang leather na ginagamit namin at

presyong masa. Kahit kilatisin pa nila. ’Yung tig-P10,000 sa department
store dito sa ’min P2,500 hanggang P3,500 lang depende sa material
na ginamit; makakapamili ka pa: Puwedeng balat ng kalabaw, ostrich,
baboy, kambing, ahas at syempre baka. Crocodile pwede din pero
bihira kasi ang dating,” detailed Rebecca.

So why limit your choices to the costly products found in malls? With
Recto’s fashion underground not only would you be able to get exactly
what it is that you wanted you’d get a nifty bonus of being able to
wave a stiff middle finger to the corporate mafia dominating the
fashion industry in the process. Now, that’s cool.

http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=goodLife01_aug07_2006