Son of BET founders hits new strides with Brett Johnson Collection

His parents, Sheila Johnson and Bob Johnson, may have founded BET, but Brett Johnson isn’t content to live off his parents’ accomplishments. Instead, he is making moves of his own. And, like his parents, he has set out break new ground in a difficult industry. So, instead of television, Johnson has decided to tackle fashion.

As CEO and chief designer of the Brett Johnson Collection (BJC), the aspiring fashion mogul is not just following his passion but aiming to fill a void targeting men like himself, urban sophisticates and creative professionals, men who are casual but still classic and biz-ready.

While BJC isn’t necessarily targeted to the urban market, it does draw inspiration from it. “Growing up in the entertainment industry you get to see so many styles and subcultures, just hip-hop itself really helped focused my vision for the brand and just the traveling that I was able to do and the places I got to see, it really helped shaped who I am today and also what the brand is,” he says during a television interview at the St. Regis Atlanta as he prepares for his Neiman-Marcus trunk show the day before Father’s Day.

The Atlanta trunk show is his second celebrating his newly minted relationship with Neiman Marcus, which will sell BJC in 10 markets, including Atlanta, Chicago and D.C., his hometown and his first Neiman’s trunk show, as well as online beginning July 1.

Johnson traces his love affair with fashion back to his childhood, to his love of sneakers. “When I was about 6 or 7, I first started collecting sneakers, Air Force 1s in particular. They are a popular shoe for my era and for millennials growing up,” explains the 25-year-old businessman. “I used to take all-white air force ones up to a cobbler up in New York City and source fabrics from all the world, leathers from all over the world, from Italy, Japan, Portugal, Spain, you name it, and he would apply them to the shoes. So that was when I first started creating pretty much my own aesthetic and people really gravitated towards it.”

However it wasn’t until around March 2012 that Johnson got really serious with it, launching a footwear line first. That, he discovered, was far from easy. “It’s very tough,” Johnson candidly shares. “Ninety-three percent of sneakers is really controlled by Nike and everybody else is fighting for that 7 percent.” Still, footwear got BJC noticed.

“People wanted to see a little bit more of our aesthetic and who our guy was, who our customer was, and that’s when we developed into outerwear and knitwear,” Johnson explains. So in the fourth quarter of 2014, apparel became BJC’s primary focus. So, instead of concentrating on sneakers, Johnson, a collector who personally owns close to 700 pairs, switched it up. “What we really want to cater to is the rest of his outfit,” Johnson says of his targeted market.

And the way BJC, which roughly ranges in price from $275 for trousers to $2,495 for its highest priced coat or outerwear option, does that, Johnson says, is through excellent quality at a great value. “In terms of price point and where we manufacture, you are paying a quarter of the price of what you would pay for a Saint Laurent jacket or Louis Vuitton, Prada, you name it,” he insists. “Same exact factory, same craftsmanship.”

Although Johnson is extremely grateful to have the support of his parents whom he calls his “number one fans,” he is very clear that his success in fashion is up to him and his product only. “Fashion will tell you where you stand,” he says. “It has nothing to do with who my parents are. It’s ‘if your product sells, is it quality?’”
Given how far Johnson has already come with the Brett Johnson Collection, he has much to celebrate. And for that he is extremely grateful and proud. “It feels good to know that I’m doing this pretty much all by myself and seeing the rewards,” he says.

The Brett Johnson Collection trunk show is from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sat., June 20 at Neiman-Marcus.