The Rialto Jean Project Pop-Up Shop will be at L.A. Green in downtown Starkville, from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, during unWine Downtown.
The Rialto Jean Project is a brand of hand-painted, vintage jeans founded by Erin Feniger. The pop-up shop at L.A. Green will feature custom maroon and white jeans for Mississippi State University.
Proceeds from the Rialto Jean Project Pop-Up Shop go directly toward innovative art therapy programs for children at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. The project’s charitable platform is “Denim Doing Good”.
According to rialtojeanproject.com, top fashion editors, A-list actors, musicians and supermodels are among its steadily growing customer base.
Jesse Newton, junior fashion design and merchandising major, said the merchandise and promotional strategies class organized this event.
“I’m in a group of six and we’re all in the merchandising and promotion strategies class. Part of the class is to get in groups and pick one event on or off campus this fall semester and promote it,” Newton said.
Madison Pemberton, senior fashion design and merchandising major, is also a member of the class. She said she loves the story behind the jeans and cannot wait to see the outcome of the event.
“We have been working hard these past few weeks to prepare for this event by setting up the window display, promoting the event around Starkville and getting restaurants to help us with little appetizers and drinks,” Pemberton said.
Drinks and refreshments from local businesses will be provided. Wine tasting will also be available with the purchase of an unWine Downtown ticket.
Pemberton said since she heard about the Rialto Jean Project coming to Starkville, she wanted their class group to put on this event at L.A. Green.
Margaret Allison, senior fashion design and merchandising major who helped organize the event, said she is mostly excited to meet the designer behind the Rialto Jean Project, Erin Feniger.
“I get to meet the designer at the event on Friday night. She is actually coming to Starkville for the event,” Allison said. “I’m really looking forward to that because it’s rare for a well-known designer to actually come to an event like this.”
Newton also said he is excited about Feniger coming to Starkville.
“She’s going to the football game against Kentucky and going to visit local businesses. I’m excited for her to see what southern hospitality and Mississippi State is all about,” Newton said.
Newton said he wanted to thank Charles Freeman, the professor of the merchandising and promotion strategies class, for working so hard to put this event together.
“A huge thanks to Charles Freeman for organizing this event and making it happen,” Newton said. “We met with the designer in New York, but he worked extremely hard to get us in the door to make this event possible.”
For more information about the Rialto Jean Project, visit rialtojeanproject.com and follow on Instagram @rialtojeanproject and Twitter @DenimDoingGood.
