Good Good Good was founded in 2016 by Daniel Sher in Cape Town, South Africa. From the towering mountains, scarlet-hued sunsets, and the fragrant scent of orange blossom in spring, Cape Town is known and appreciated for its incredible landscapes and its multigenerational fashion influence.
As visionaries, fully immersed and endorsing the sustainable fashion movement, Daniel Sher and his wife, Paige, initiated the production and planning of their clothing label, which they then christened Good Good Good. They wanted their garments to elevate modern streetwear using ethically sourced fabrics, the finest quality, and classic tailoring. The couple also benefited from a two-and-a-half decade-old heirloom factory that belongs to Paige’s mum, providing them with space and atelier-style equipment. The factory has allowed Daniel and Paige to experiment with different manufacturing practices and craft designs, through which they have introduced a narrative that is still being told.
Good Good Good’s chief priority is sourcing textiles from eco-conscious suppliers and thereby minimising their carbon footprint. Advocating ecological equilibrium, their manufacturing processes are at the forefront of their fashion label. You can feel the passion and devotion their craft exudes in their yarn, the stitching, and carefully hand-crafted garments. From trousers and jackets to airy blouses, these garments are a successful culmination of art in the form of modern streetwear with intricately woven patterns. The garments ardently reflect the intimate union between the team and their passion for producing ethical designs that individuals can forever enjoy.
Their recent SS21 collection titled Home honours their collective input. From 7:15 AM to 4:30 PM, this factory symbolises their home away from home. Inspired by and dedicated to family- biological and chosen-, and to the bond they have formed.
Good Good Good’s chief priority is sourcing textiles from eco-conscious suppliers and thereby minimising their carbon footprint. Advocating ecological equilibrium, their manufacturing processes are at the forefront of their fashion label. You can feel the passion and devotion their craft exudes in their yarn, the stitching, and carefully hand-crafted garments. From trousers and jackets to airy blouses, these garments are a successful culmination of art in the form of modern streetwear with intricately woven patterns. The garments ardently reflect the intimate union between the team and their passion for producing ethical designs that individuals can forever enjoy.
Their recent SS21 collection titled Home honours their collective input. From 7:15 AM to 4:30 PM, this factory symbolises their home away from home. Inspired by and dedicated to family- biological and chosen-, and to the bond they have formed.
Could you tell us a little bit about whom Good Good Good consists of and how this unique brand become reality?
Good Good Good was founded by myself, Daniel Sher, and my wife Paige in 2016. We manufacture and design all of our products in our 25-year-old heirloom factory which was started by Paige’s mum Jacqui. Up until December 2020, it was us and our team of 5 garment workers; Bridgette, Lilian, Ntombi, Soraya, Bernadette and Henry. Good Good Good started out as a functional basics brand for men of all sizes - this concept has slightly changed but it’s still core to the Good Good Good brand offering. Through my travels and growing interest in textile design, we started to experiment more with garment design and the different fabrics we use.
In December of 2020, we hired Masego Morgan as a sales assistant for our flagship store Duck Duck Goose. Masego’s enthusiasm for the work we were doing led us to create a role for her as our Creative Strategist. In 2021 we interviewed Erin Hooper for the store manager job at Duck Duck Goose. While we were interviewing her we realised she’d be better suited for a job as a production and design assistant. Both Masego and Erin have plugged in holes and added value to what we call “our winning team.”
In December of 2020, we hired Masego Morgan as a sales assistant for our flagship store Duck Duck Goose. Masego’s enthusiasm for the work we were doing led us to create a role for her as our Creative Strategist. In 2021 we interviewed Erin Hooper for the store manager job at Duck Duck Goose. While we were interviewing her we realised she’d be better suited for a job as a production and design assistant. Both Masego and Erin have plugged in holes and added value to what we call “our winning team.”
For your SS21 line, you collaborated with the Cape Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. The musicians wore the Good Good Good garments in a video directed by Jared Figgins. How was this experience of seeing your attire as a sort of backdrop to the sound of the music?
It was surreal in many ways. Since my university days of watching Carlo Mombelli play live at the Wits Great Hall, I’ve always dreamed of dressing jazz musicians in this way. We went on to collaborate with and dress Carlo and his guitarist Keenan Ahrends for a performance at the Nirox Sculpture Park in late 2019. So when director Jarred Figgins pitched this idea to me I immediately gravitated towards the prospect of dressing the musicians. The combinations of our clothing on young orchestral musicians against the natural backdrops of the Western Cape felt like the coming together of so many personal passions.
Part of your new collection titled Home is launching this month for Milan Fashion Week. As a South African brand, how is it to witness your garments receiving international
appreciation?
Simply put, it feels like more than a decade of persistence and hard work is slowly starting to pay off.
From the 25-year-old weaving mill, Mungo Mill. Who sources their rayons from Italy which is then combined with South African cotton. To Australian sheep shearers and spinners fused
with Benjamin's Indian produced Merino Wool. Together with the Bhuticco weaving society in the Himalayans. Your garments represent a birth of a global and local alliance. How do you make sure all these channels are in cohesion?
For us, it’s the connection we have to these textile manufacturers and their stories. We’re inspired by Mungo mill’s (founded in 1998) textile design and use of colours. They’re one of the last South African fabric mills and we love how open they are with their process. The same can be said for Benjamin Nivison, who is South African born - he showed us his tartans and we fell in love with them and the story about the weavers who created them.
Combing the traditional weaving elements in conjunction with the essence of workwear is quite intrinsic to who you are as a brand. Another paradox that takes shape, is loungewear versus formal evening wear. How did your interest in these analogies arise?
I’ve always tried to find ways to feel comfortable and look good no matter what the occasion may be. So creating garments that allow me to transition from my couch to dinner at my local spots happened naturally.
In 2020 another partnership with Mungo Mill took form at Gallery Glen Carlou. It’s beautiful to identify the various shapes your garments sculpt when presenting as part of an art installation. What does the parallel of clothing as an art piece mean to you?
I’ve always viewed my work as wearable art, and so to see them exhibited at Glen Carlo’s textile exhibition was another dream come true. In some ways clothing, from the making to the final piece is an art form and maybe if people invested and appreciated clothes the way we do art, the fashion industry wouldn’t be one of the biggest polluters - from both pre and post-consumer waste and more.
Good Good Good designed a unique collection manufactured from pillowcases. Could you tell us a little about the origins of these fabrics and how they ended up as wearable pieces?
Mungo mainly creates textiles for homeware. The cushion covers we used from them were made from a once-off job lot yarn, which means that these textiles were made from left-over yarn from other weaving jobs. I take an annual trip to the Mungo Mill, and on my last visit (pre-pandemic), they showed me the cushion covers in their never-to-be-repeated colour ways. I fell in love with the texture and colours and I decided to buy everything that was left. The 100% cotton texture gives it a sturdy and durable quality, while the colour ways stay within the vibrancy of the Good Good Good. The fact that these textiles were intended for cushion covers further enhances the loungewear-meets-utility wear-meets-evening wear we discussed.
As a brand that is growing not only behind the scenes but also publicly. The importance of companies, old and new, to admit their mistakes and take a leap for (social and political) growth should be central to the developments of a company. What have you as a team, and individually, learnt from the implications of these systematic changes?
As a public-facing business, we need to hold ourselves accountable for the consequences of our words and actions, whether intended or unintended. We’ve learnt that with statement-making content and campaigns, our blind spots can be revealed to us. Thankfully, we have a community of people who are willing to point out these blind spots when we don’t notice them ourselves. Right now, we try our best where we can to respect other people while maintaining our goal of making people look and feel good in our garments.
Your first brick and mortar store in Cape Town titled DuckDuckGoose officially opened this year. It houses numerous South African based brands. Could you tell us a little more about how this was conceptualised and the aims for this store?
The dream of having a flagship store for Good Good Good existed before I even had the first product for Good Good Good. In 2014, I moved from Johannesburg to Cape Town. I was working as an auditor at Ernst & Young. During my hour lunch breaks, I would walk 13 blocks up to Bree Street specifically to eat at Max Bagels, while my colleagues would eat at the office canteen. I became excited about Max Bagels’ food, firstly, and I then fell in love with their authentic and unpretentious culture of love, safety and good conversations. I had found the first inner-city spot that felt like home for me in a new city.
In mid-2020, the space next door to Max Bagels became available for rental. On one hand, Duck Duck Goose was a way to create a home for Good Good Good, and the decision to make it a multi-brand store was in-large because I deeply admire and respect all the designers behind the brands. They are the carriers of the ambitious South African dream for commercial success in fashion and other design, despite the major lack of access to resources and government support for our talent. So the store has come to represent that through sharing one local retail space, we all come up together.
In mid-2020, the space next door to Max Bagels became available for rental. On one hand, Duck Duck Goose was a way to create a home for Good Good Good, and the decision to make it a multi-brand store was in-large because I deeply admire and respect all the designers behind the brands. They are the carriers of the ambitious South African dream for commercial success in fashion and other design, despite the major lack of access to resources and government support for our talent. So the store has come to represent that through sharing one local retail space, we all come up together.
