Byron Lars started designing under his own label in 1991 with a small collection of sportswear focusing on what Lars refers to as “twisted American classics.” Transfixed with elevating pedestrian staples Byron concocted a distorted version of his Grandfather’s fishing jacket that took on “Dior New Look” proportions, resulting in a “Duchess ofWindsor meets Field and Stream” hybrid kind of aesthetic.
Style "mash-ups"are an integral part of Byron’s design DNA because he sees them as fashion icebreakers. “At the end of the day, my drapey twisty sarong rifts on a men’s button down shirt are just that…button down shirts. Every woman knows and trusts a button down shirt and even when she’s fashion-reluctant, she isn’t intimidated to wear a variation of one… even when that variation evokes a REAL FASHION MOMENT",says Lars.
Beyond the above examples, what distinguishes Byron’s clothes from others is their body enhancing fit, meticulous workmanship and obsessive attention to detail. “I want it to be more about the clothes and less about hype.” says Lars. "That's why there's even tireless focus given to the inside of the garment, because that's what touches her skin and is chiefly responsible for the experience she has when wearing the clothes… AFTER that final mirror check to confirm she looks amazing.
This level of thoughtfulness has rendered Byron’s clothes must-haves among celebrity A-listers, Natalie Portman, Taylor Swift, Felicity Jones, Angela Bassett, Elle Fanning, Katherine Win-nick, Kim Kardashian, Jill Scott, Vanessa Williams, Anika Noni Rose, Gabrielle Union, Regina King and Former FLOTUS Michelle Obama to name a few.
The formation of a new partnership with longtime colleague Sheila Gray has not only yielded a dynamic duo change in management but also the name change of "IN EARNEST" for this newly established iteration of the firmly established clothing brand.
Since by definition the new name means occurring to a greater extent or more intensely than before, IN EARNEST is also the brand's credo!
It also happens that Earnest is the name of Byron's dearly departed father who being an earnest man himself tackled all life's challenges IN EARNEST with the faithfulness of God's help, charging the namesake label on several frequencies.... not the least of which being the fact that Byron Earnest Lars is actually Byron's full name.
A successful Holiday capsule collection for Anthropologie in 2020 served as IN EARNEST's soft launch pad, which was very fitting since the store has been a long supporter of Byron's work and continues to be.
In tandem with the coming US debut of the Spring 2021 collection, IN EARNEST will have also made its transatlantic foray into the Mainland of China with the continuance of Byron's 4 year long design cooperative with E-tail wizard XIAO CHONG.
Byron is also responsible for the first collection of African American Barbie Dolls that authentically represented the complexions, hair textures and fierce style of African American Women, Byron has garnered the affection of thousands of Barbie enthusiasts the world over, many of whom collected the entire 16 glamorous dolls he created for Mattel from 1995 to 2011.
Enthusiasts who continue to have very spirited exchanges about them on social media to this day and are willing to pay $100 and upward per doll, this established audience represents an untapped market for another tier of categories that have yet to be explored.
