Lost Worlds’ founder Stuart interviewed

[Seb Lucas]

Ta tête est coincée dans le cul = Your head is up your arse.

Ok. I thought that was an English expression.

 

[red devil]

The problem with lost worlds is the world of jacket making has moved on but like his dated website he has not.
In all fairness they are well made quality jackets but things are not the same now as back then when most of us wanted the heaviest weight horsehide we could get. I get that some want MC jackets in particular that are heavyweight but I will confine myself to flight jackets.

You can buy a capeskin A-1 from headwind for $ 650
You can buy a Platon Dubow for $532
And you would have spent $43 less the buying the less authentic Lost Worlds Dubow or A-1 both of which are $1225

I don't know much about flight jackets, but nobody builds such sturdy jackets with this level of construction. And that's part of the appeal. I could go on about the other qualities as well.
Also, if it comes to the Buco J31 for an example I looked into, they were built so haphazardly with widely differing details that authenticity is a moot point.

Not sure how strict they were with compliance to military contract though.

Ok. I thought that was an English expression.

Seems, I am not the only one who got confused
It is an english expression literally translated to French... there is no such expression in french

 

[jonbuilder]

The old Man and the Sea is my favourite fishing related book.

Mine also, not a novel but Hemingway at his best writing from experiences.

 

[jonbuilder]

Lions and tigers and bears are pretty scary but nothing on land compares to this insta-death stuff the oceans have.




Mine too. I was obsessed with that book for a good year after I re-read it. They give us all this stuff to read at school when we know nothing about anything or at least I personally was an idiot who didn't know nothing about life, which is what the book is about (don't mean it's an allegory or nothing, just that it's about how things turn out) so of course I didn't get it. Then I read it again later and man, what a beautiful thing it is...

Same as when I couldn't even finish reading Anna Karenina in school because I thought it's freaking boring with all the grownup stuff happening and then later on it became my favorite book in the world. Coincidentally, at the time I decided to read the book again which happened by mere accident, I had my own Anna thing going in life on so the timing couldn't have been any better. Or worse. Either way, it was nice.

Hemingway was a pioneer with his short simple sentence-style he developed writing about his life experiences. Unfortunately, was quite the chad who finally blew his brains out because he could not confront his alcoholism.

 

[jonbuilder]

I hate that shark's attitude.
It triggered me badly
I want them in my soup and in my cat's food.

that shark's attitude is survival just like us humans and like us their meat-eater

 

[Seb Lucas]

Hemingway was a pioneer with his short simple sentence-style he developed writing about his life experiences. Unfortunately, was quite the chad who finally blew his brains out because he could not confront his alcoholism.

That's a bit simplistic, or was that a Hemingway style pared-back explanation? It was more likely depression and mental illness that led to alcohol misuse, as is so often the case. Self-medication like this is common. A lot of great American authors had this issue, from Faulkner to Fitzgerald, Mailer to Capote. I never much liked Hemingway and preferred the real father of the simple pared back sentences, Jack London - who influenced Hemingway and was also a hard drinking man who died of an overdose. Don't be a 20th century writer...

 

[TheOldFashioned]

This popped up on my Google feed today, an interview with Stu:

https://airmail.news/issues/2023-9-30/tougher-than-leather

You have input an email address to read the article, but you can enter jibberish and not have to verify that the email is valid by clicking a link.

Nothing illuminating that probably isn't already known nor been discussed here before. I learned Stu is an anti-dentite. (OK, that's my one cheap shot.) But I also didn't realize he was 73. For all the crap that gets dumped on him, perhaps some of it rightly so, it's hard to deny that the leather jacket world will be worse off whenever Stu decides to hang it up.

 

[jonbuilder]

That's a bit simplistic, or was that a Hemingway style pared-back explanation? It was more likely depression and mental illness that led to alcohol misuse, as is so often the case. Self-medication like this is common. A lot of great American authors had this issue, from Faulkner to Fitzgerald, Mailer to Capote. I never much liked Hemingway and preferred the real father of the simple pared back sentences, Jack London - who influenced Hemingway and was also a hard drinking man who died of an overdose. Don't be a 20th century writer...

After further research, I agree with you. Hemingway suffered from acute pain due and back-to-back plane crashes from a car crash. He most likely suffered from a mental illness inherited from his father who shot himself in the head with a revolver.

 

[Trouser Bark]

This has been an interesting read. I have been in the manufacturing business since deep into the prior century and there is an illustration you'll sometimes hear in that arena that would be applicable here.

It usually surrounds a well known product and for grins let's insert Nike. You recently bought a new pair of Nike sneaks and something went wrong that caused you to call the factory. You call long distance. The factory guy picks up the phone and hollers 'harro'!

You begin to explain the problem and get about two sentences in before he hollers something unintelligible, slams the phone down and the line goes dead.

You may have been talking to the best shoe-maker at Nike.

It only means that he has different social skills than you and perhaps that he shouldn't be answering the phone.

Larger companies have two divisions; production and sales. Those are distinctly different and unrelated professions.

Mid-size companies produce goods and contract out the sales process to a manufacturer's rep firm.

Small companies don't have their own sales force and they don't have representation so you may have to deal w/ our buddy in the Nike illustration to get what you want.

Raise your tolerance level to get what you're looking for and in this thread several have not. Among inappropriate comparisons one poster implies that if a person makes references to masculinity they also likely enjoy aberrant sexual behaviors. Yeah, that's not true. It would be more accurate to say that he's from a generation where every kid read West Side Story as if it was a gem of its time rather than the worthless ranting of a marginally literate and semi-retarded pastor.

If you're going to express an opinion about a niche builder in a small segment of the market at least recognize that that guy arrived on your horizon for doing something really well. That does not mean his personality will mesh well with yours and as one gentleman hinted at earlier, when you put the phone down after that conversation you may have taken umbrage at a remark he made that (you felt) challenged your masculinity.

So you leave the call with the impression that that guy figures you know what dick tastes like. Who cares. That's not what you're calling him for and it's not an important part of the conversation nor the transaction. You allowed that call to stray from your primary interest.

It is a rarity that the proprietor of a tiny niche manufacturer also might have outstanding social skills. The opposite is true as he's probably listened to every time wasting douche and at 69 years old now recognizes that he no longer has an interest in entertaining tire kickers. Keep your conversation focused in order to get what you want while disallowing anyone the chance to scuff up a fragile grasp on masculinity, criticize other manufacturer's products or challenge your views on fitment.

Place your order, ask what you need and let the man get back to his cutting table and sewing machine. You'll both be better for it.

 

[Tom71]

This has been an interesting read. I have been in the manufacturing business since deep into the prior century and there is an illustration you'll sometimes hear in that arena that would be applicable here.

It usually surrounds a well known product and for grins let's insert Nike. You recently bought a new pair of Nike sneaks and something went wrong that caused you to call the factory. You call long distance. The factory guy picks up the phone and hollers 'harro'!

You begin to explain the problem and get about two sentences in before he hollers something unintelligible, slams the phone down and the line goes dead.

You may have been talking to the best shoe-maker at Nike.

It only means that he has different social skills than you and perhaps that he shouldn't be answering the phone.

Larger companies have two divisions; production and sales. Those are distinctly different and unrelated professions.

Mid-size companies produce goods and contract out the sales process to a manufacturer's rep firm.

Small companies don't have their own sales force and they don't have representation so you may have to deal w/ our buddy in the Nike illustration to get what you want.

Raise your tolerance level to get what you're looking for and in this thread several have not. Among inappropriate comparisons one poster implies that if a person makes references to masculinity they also likely enjoy aberrant sexual behaviors. Yeah, that's not true. It would be more accurate to say that he's from a generation where every kid read West Side Story as if it was a gem of its time rather than the worthless ranting of a marginally literate and semi-retarded pastor.

If you're going to express an opinion about a niche builder in a small segment of the market at least recognize that that guy arrived on your horizon for doing something really well. That does not mean his personality will mesh well with yours and as one gentleman hinted at earlier, when you put the phone down after that conversation you may have taken umbrage at a remark he made that (you felt) challenged your masculinity.

So you leave the call with the impression that that guy figures you know what dick tastes like. Who cares. That's not what you're calling him for and it's not an important part of the conversation nor the transaction. You allowed that call to stray from your primary interest.

It is a rarity that the proprietor of a tiny niche manufacturer also might have outstanding social skills. The opposite is true as he's probably listened to every time wasting douche and at 69 years old now recognizes that he no longer has an interest in entertaining tire kickers. Keep your conversation focused in order to get what you want while disallowing anyone the chance to scuff up a fragile grasp on masculinity, criticize other manufacturer's products or challenge your views on fitment.

Place your order, ask what you need and let the man get back to his cutting table and sewing machine. You'll both be better for it.

These are some excellent points.

 

[bigmanbigtruck]

This has been an interesting read. I have been in the manufacturing business since deep into the prior century and there is an illustration you'll sometimes hear in that arena that would be applicable here.

It usually surrounds a well known product and for grins let's insert Nike. You recently bought a new pair of Nike sneaks and something went wrong that caused you to call the factory. You call long distance. The factory guy picks up the phone and hollers 'harro'!

You begin to explain the problem and get about two sentences in before he hollers something unintelligible, slams the phone down and the line goes dead.

You may have been talking to the best shoe-maker at Nike.

It only means that he has different social skills than you and perhaps that he shouldn't be answering the phone.

Larger companies have two divisions; production and sales. Those are distinctly different and unrelated professions.

Mid-size companies produce goods and contract out the sales process to a manufacturer's rep firm.

Small companies don't have their own sales force and they don't have representation so you may have to deal w/ our buddy in the Nike illustration to get what you want.

Raise your tolerance level to get what you're looking for and in this thread several have not. Among inappropriate comparisons one poster implies that if a person makes references to masculinity they also likely enjoy aberrant sexual behaviors. Yeah, that's not true. It would be more accurate to say that he's from a generation where every kid read West Side Story as if it was a gem of its time rather than the worthless ranting of a marginally literate and semi-retarded pastor.

If you're going to express an opinion about a niche builder in a small segment of the market at least recognize that that guy arrived on your horizon for doing something really well. That does not mean his personality will mesh well with yours and as one gentleman hinted at earlier, when you put the phone down after that conversation you may have taken umbrage at a remark he made that (you felt) challenged your masculinity.

So you leave the call with the impression that that guy figures you know what dick tastes like. Who cares. That's not what you're calling him for and it's not an important part of the conversation nor the transaction. You allowed that call to stray from your primary interest.

It is a rarity that the proprietor of a tiny niche manufacturer also might have outstanding social skills. The opposite is true as he's probably listened to every time wasting douche and at 69 years old now recognizes that he no longer has an interest in entertaining tire kickers. Keep your conversation focused in order to get what you want while disallowing anyone the chance to scuff up a fragile grasp on masculinity, criticize other manufacturer's products or challenge your views on fitment.

Place your order, ask what you need and let the man get back to his cutting table and sewing machine. You'll both be better for it.

While the "harro" example is kinda crazy, most of it rings true.

Based on my interactions, I believe Lost Worlds consists of only 2 people - the infamous Stuart & his machinist Fausto. They're the Sales & Production departments, respectively. Stuart definitely has additional responsibilities like sourcing raw materials, equipment, designs, QC, customer service, etc... but the point is he does everything else around the business so his machinist can focus solely on making the product. And having to manage all those things as a one-man team must be exhausting. No wonder his emails are usually short and to the point.

I've spoken to him a few times and never felt like I was disrespected and he's a lot more social over the phone. He's a very easy-going person despite what the website would have you believe. After reading all the posts on here and dreading what my first experience with Lost Worlds was going to be like, I was pleasantly surprised. Maybe Stuart mellowed out over the years...

 

[Bfd70]

I have found him professional and efficient. Neither friendly nor unfriendly, which was fine. I’m not shopping for a friend. I get the impression that some buyers are searching for a complete retail “experience” from smaller makers. That is not on themenu at Lw

 

[Trouser Bark]

While the "harro" example is kinda crazy, most of it rings true.

Your response confirms my point.

I'll make a couple of generalizations here and if they seem to ring true consider that I'm much closer to Stuart's age than yours and to some degree I can see the world through similar eyes at least in a general way. Based on your comments in this and other threads I would guess that you are significantly younger and that carries more than the obvious meaning.

Stuart was an adult long before the concept of politically correct speech became ubiquitous and he hates it. He likely feels that politically correct speech contributes to the p*ssification of the American male. Gone is the ability to say what's on your mind w/out having to be concerned about how the next delicate little flower might interpret your remark.

Conversely, you were raised in an environment where politically correct speech is now and always has been at the core of social congress and someone that speaks their mind w/out being politically correct is crass.

So what's the personality difference?

- You didn't like the reference I inserted into the analogy.

- Stuart would either not have noticed it at all or liked it.

Now stop for a moment.

Consider that he also has a different set of concerns every day than most from the politically correct era. He gets up every morning and hopes to talk to a customer that he likes but knows he'll talk to someone he won't. His hands hurt and he's not sure how long he'll be able to continue doing what he does and wonders what his best move will be at that point (and how far off it is). Winter's on the way and a slip on the ice means something completely different to him than it would to you, etc. There are a ton of concerns that are important to a 70 year old geezer that aren't even fathomable to someone that's significantly younger. Imagine for a moment that he'd have been raised in a school environment where part of math class was the daily use of a slide rule and yet you've never seen one. He's figured out how to make a website that works despite the fact that younger people might not care for the design and he doesn't give a rip.

He also came of age before the youtube influencer's soy boy facial expression BS which in his mind is just another clown unqualified to critique anything but that will be blathering his or her way through the internet all the same.

Every day for him is filled w/ a completely different set of concerns and the least of them is how offensively he might be deemed by an anonymous non-buying monkey spanker calling up to distract him from his income stream. You get along w/ him fine and there's a reason for that; you are respectful of his time and apparently express interest in him, his business and his product.

The insurance industry developed the concept of retirement many decades ago and it was intended to remove older people from the workforce once they become less compliant and more inclined to tell management what's on their mind. There are stalwarts for whom retirement isn't an option or isn't of interest however, that doesn't mean they're also compliant or less opinionated.

 

[Monitor]

Yeah, that would all be cool if Stu wasn't a scamming turd. Sells me the jacket in the wrong size, made during an amateur hour, full of stray stitch holes and then ghosts me when I ask what the f. Slimeball knew I couldn't do anything from Europe to harm his "business" which is just an unregistered rat infested dump in New York.
My fault, though as I should've listened to my gut feeling, instead of ignoring all the red flags, beginning with that website of his because anyone who cares so little about how they represent themselves and their product, sure won't stand behind it. Man has zero respect for himself, for his nylon sacks he calls jackets and least of all, for his customers.

 

[Trouser Bark]

I'm not here to defend anyone and I've never met the man. I can only offer a peek through the eyes of someone similar. Not sure I understand the unregistered rat infested dump reference as all of the city has rats and roaches and this place looks something like what I'd expect a working man's fab shop to be like.

 

[photo2u]

By the way and off topic, I love visiting small artisan workshops like these. I do so every summer when I visit Tuscany (Italy) which is the heart of the European leather production region. View attachment 252434 View attachment 252433 View attachment 252435 View attachment 252436

Very clean. I just did a similar repair on my coach 30-year-old tan travel bag. Like a dummy that sometimes are, I overloaded it and the side sling attachment ripped off. In the states and in Mexico, they tried to charge me an arm and a leg for the repair. I call it rip off because they see name brand, and they want to overcharge. Bottom line. I did the repair clean and much reinforced better than factory. By the way, those facilities look nice and clean, un like the Mexican ones I visited in several different states.

 

[bigmanbigtruck]

Yeah, that would all be cool if Stu wasn't a scamming turd. Sells me the jacket in the wrong size, made during an amateur hour, full of stray stitch holes and then ghosts me when I ask what the f. Slimeball knew I couldn't do anything from Europe to harm his "business" which is just an unregistered rat infested dump in New York.
My fault, though as I should've listened to my gut feeling, instead of ignoring all the red flags, beginning with that website of his because anyone who cares so little about how they represent themselves and their product, sure won't stand behind it. Man has zero respect for himself, for his nylon sacks he calls jackets and least of all, for his customers.

Yup, I saw your experience and it admittedly did make me pause on ordering. Didn't get to see how bad the jacket looked as by the time I joined TFL, the image host doesn't load the pics any longer. Anyway don't mean to imply I don't believe you, you obviously know your shit and I'm barely clinging onto the ropes.

All I'll say to others is that f-ups do happen no matter the maker. So use a credit card if possible, even if you have enough cash to pay it off, as it gives a greater chance for financial recourse when getting the credit card company involved. Maybe think twice if ordering from abroad. I live 20 mins away from the workshop, so at least I can file a report here in the US and get something done. (Which I've done in the past with my previous scummy gym that kept taking my money during covid even though they were locked down and wouldn't let me inside)

RE: the physical location, as pictured above, it is by no means a neat customer store-front. If I didn't know better, from the outside it looks like a meth den - and that seems purposeful to keep people away. And while it looks chaotic inside with zippers, fabric and leather strewn about, there's a cool jacket collection to check out. Can't speak to the rats, but if they are there, they'd have a field day with all that 4oz+ HH around to chew on.

 

[Trouser Bark]

RE: the physical location, it is by no means a neat customer store-front as pictured above.

No kidding. That's a google maps screen cap of the physical address they use. Huh.

 

[bigmanbigtruck]

Your response confirms my point.

I'll make a couple of generalizations here and if they seem to ring true consider that I'm much closer to Stuart's age than yours and to some degree I can see the world through similar eyes at least in a general way. Based on your comments in this and other threads I would guess that you are significantly younger and that carries more than the obvious meaning.

Stuart was an adult long before the concept of politically correct speech became ubiquitous and he hates it. He likely feels that politically correct speech contributes to the p*ssification of the American male. Gone is the ability to say what's on your mind w/out having to be concerned about how the next delicate little flower might interpret your remark.

Conversely, you were raised in an environment where politically correct speech is now and always has been at the core of social congress and someone that speaks their mind w/out being politically correct is crass.

So what's the personality difference?

- You didn't like the reference I inserted into the analogy.

- Stuart would either not have noticed it at all or liked it.

Now stop for a moment.

Consider that he also has a different set of concerns every day than most from the politically correct era. He gets up every morning and hopes to talk to a customer that he likes but knows he'll talk to someone he won't. His hands hurt and he's not sure how long he'll be able to continue doing what he does and wonders what his best move will be at that point (and how far off it is). Winter's on the way and a slip on the ice means something completely different to him than it would to you, etc. There are a ton of concerns that are important to a 70 year old geezer that aren't even fathomable to someone that's significantly younger. Imagine for a moment that he'd have been raised in a school environment where part of math class was the daily use of a slide rule and yet you've never seen one. He's figured out how to make a website that works despite the fact that younger people might not care for the design and he doesn't give a rip.

He also came of age before the youtube influencer's soy boy facial expression BS which in his mind is just another clown unqualified to critique anything but that will be blathering his or her way through the internet all the same.

Every day for him is filled w/ a completely different set of concerns and the least of them is how offensively he might be deemed by an anonymous non-buying monkey spanker calling up to distract him from his income stream. You get along w/ him fine and there's a reason for that; you are respectful of his time and apparently express interest in him, his business and his product.

The insurance industry developed the concept of retirement many decades ago and it was intended to remove older people from the workforce once they become less compliant and more inclined to tell management what's on their mind. There are stalwarts for whom retirement isn't an option or isn't of interest however, that doesn't mean they're also compliant or less opinionated.

When I said that example was kinda crazy... I meant 'crazy' in a humorous way which must have not come across. I've definitely been on the receiving end of an exchange like that and your hypothetical got a chuckle out of me.

In terms of the age gap, you're right. I'm probably in the age bracket where, if I was raised here, I would have been raised in a politically correct environment. But I grew up in a developing country where there were bigger issues than political correctness and we did use a slide rule for math . I've met a lot of people that speak their minds and frankly Stuart's comments don't really get me riled up. All I care about with my exchanges with him is that I get my order in as I want it and try to learn something new from his vast knowledge about leather jackets.

No kidding. That's a google maps screen cap of the physical address they use. Huh.

That is indeed how it looks. Lively area though.

 

[Trouser Bark]

You're the right guy to get along w/ him perfectly. As far as the analogy you're right; I misunderstood your response. The odd bit though is that you'd have viewed it as he likely would have and more delicate folks may have taken the opportunity to feel cranky about it.