Black in Business: Featured The Pretty Girls Like Hat Design of Herbin Co.

I thought it was time to do a little interview with a hat designer brand and if you follow me on my Instagram…you know I made a commitment to share more diverse hat brands and milliners, both big and small, so today I’m focusing on Herbin Co.

I came across Herbin Co. on Instagram (no surprise) because I saw the “Pretty Girls Like” hat from their SS ’20 collection. It’s a dreamy rosy pink color and xxx stitching at the crown. The beauty of the hat really captured my interest, but it’s the name “Pretty Girls Like” that made me reach out to Herbert III or Trey Rhedrick.; an Atlanta based milliner who founded Herbin Co. with the vision to celebrate urban stories through some colorful and bold hat designs.

There’s something about “Pretty Girls Like” that makes me feel so deeply connected and it opened up a question to ask myself; what does the phrase “Pretty Girls Like” really mean to me? For me, I’m a firm believer that a pretty girl is not defined by just her face, her body etc…but its her soul that radiates out that counts. External beauty may be an open gate for many opportunities and relationships, but the internal beauty is what make sure that the gate stays open and lasts long. It’s just so incredible how one hat can really make me feel. Not to mention, how remarkably stunning, unique and badass it is.

Read below for a Q+A with Herbin Co. and learn about this Pretty Girls Like hat and more.

Tell me a bit about your background in the hat field and how you came to start Herbin Co.? Where did this all start?

My fiancé and I were looking to start a business together doing something that interested us both and fueled our creative sides. We got engaged October 2019 and started Herbin Co. November 2019. We are both hat people so we started off styling wool fedoras. My fiancé was bartending part-time at Cam Newton’s “Fellaship” lounge and when she would wear a hat to work people started buying them right off of her head. After that happened a few times, I knew we had something special. And I started learning more about the craft of millinery – so we could bring more of our ideas to life.

How did you come up with the name and concept behind your brand “URBAN STORIES? What stories are you telling?

Well Herbin is a phonetic play on words but also my name is Herbert III and because I am the third my nickname that most people call me is Trey. Herbert Jr. & Sr. both wore hats and between us all there’s a collection of over 200 hats.

Our urban stories are what help fuel popular culture and many of OUR favorite stories as black and brown people are being told for us but a lot of times without us. We desire to celebrate all parts of the urban experience that aren’t always broadcast.

What makes Herbin Co. hats compelling and different from the other hat brands?

I’ve always liked hats and I was really drawn to styles that happened to cost $750-$1300 per hat because of the creativity and craftsmanship. BUT not many hatmakers embodied urban stories and certainly not from OUR perspective. So that’s what we sought out to do. We started with stories about Atlanta; the place my fiancé was raised, where we met and where I bought my first home. We play heavily with color and we want to be known for classic but inventive color combinations. We are showing you the world through our urban lens.

What are your goals for your journey as a hat designer?

The ultimate goal is to be as skilled as some of the greats I look up to.
A goal of ours would be to create one of a kind pieces for some of our favorite artists, stylists and designers across the world.

Describe your brand in three words…

Empowering. Distinguished. Authentic.

Bring me through a method and idea how this sassy “Pretty Girls Like” hat from Spring/Summer ’20 has started. Explain the origins of the design. What were your initial inspiration?

The inspiration for this hat was 2Chainz’s ‘Pretty Girls Like Trap Music’ album and the genius marketing strategy used to promote it – The Pink Trap House. It was his way of saying that trap music was for everyone and connected with both men and women. The colors for this hat are modeled after the album art and feature European hare fur felt and a hand-dyed silk band.

How did you go about choosing materials, colors and all little details like band and stitching?

I usually sketch my ideas out before sourcing so I make sure I find exactly what I’m looking for. I get materials from a few different places, some of our hat body merchants are domestic and several silks we use are sourced internationally. The styling portion is a feeling, we ask the question ‘who would wear this hat?’ that usually leads us to specific colors and styling choices once we figure out the story this hat will tell for that person.

Do you have any favorite materials to use and why?

Don’t have any favorites yet, it really depends upon the collection or person we are making the hat for but we are adamant about avoiding synthetic materials.

Is there any material that you haven’t used yet but you are waiting to use for a hat?

Gold, we recently purchased some and are really excited to try it out.

Through the process of custom designing this hat for me, you asked me; “Anything about my style that I might want incorporate into the hat?” and I just babbled about myself about how your hat made me feel. I said I wanted my hat to say freedom and a pretty girl isn’t defined by just her look…but most importantly her soul.” (I didn’t even know what I was talking about…LOL). So how did you interpret the message into fruition?

Well, I could tell by our conversation what the hat meant to you and the importance of being more than physically beautiful. I also saw that you’re originally from Thailand and thought adding “inner beauty” in Thai would give your hat a personal touch.

Can you talk me through the craftsmanship and construction techniques you use to make this hat?

A hatters specific techniques are secret but each hat is hand blocked, burned and sanded to the desired finish – making a hat takes 3 basic things: heat, steam and pressure. We use a blend of traditional and modern techniques, based on trial and error. We hand stitch our designs on the crown and brim as well. When creating your “Pretty Girls Like” we added hand engraving on the underbrim.

What personal touch or signature design do you add to your creations?

The “XXX” has become a signature for us to represent the three generations of ‘Herbs’; and we limited the release for each style to only 3 variations of a design because we want each hat to unique so that our customers won’t have to worry about anyone else wearing the same hat. We brand each Herbin with our signature logo inside the crown

“During this particular time of high exposure into the #BlackLivesMatter movement, what impact does it have on your brand work and creativity?”

What the #blacklivesmatter movement is fighting for is that as black people our lives should be just as important as any other ethnicity and that we receive social justice and equality. One thing we set out to do was to celebrate our culture and community. That’s what we are doing with our urban stories that we use to create our hats. Sharing and celebrating our culture openly with the mission to gain understanding and appreciation. 

What is in store for the future? Hopes/dreams/Goals

A short term goal is to continue expanding to other countries. A definite dream is to be featured at the top fashion week shows across the world. (i.e. Milan, Paris & New York Fashion weeks)

How can people follow you and buy your hats?

All of our products are available for purchase on our website https://herbin.co

Custom orders are by appointment only and you can schedule your free fitting appointment and consultation at https://herbin.co/products/customize-herbin-brim

Follow us on IG @herbin.co and DM us if you have questions

You can find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/herbinco