Yes, you can wear the same pants as your tall friend.
It’s a tale as old as time plaguing anyone shorter or taller than the “average,” dissuading them from wearing and purchasing trousers (or, depending on your vocabulary, pants). When shall we ever find a pair of pants whose hemline actually hits at the perfect spot for each individual?
Leading the march to revolutionise the hyper-functionality of our garments are Josh and Shanelle — the ingenious minds behind Neil Vernon, an Australian brand launched last year. Named in memory of Josh’s late father, the pair took time to plan and build their brand by diligently researching the industry, honing tactile skills, and discovering the house’s message. “When we started out we didn’t quite know what we wanted the business to be, but naturally it evolved into an amalgamation of both of our personal styles,” Josh told HALOSCOPE. Eventually, the “what” revealed itself with stark clarity, presenting essential items derived from typical tailoring.
However, it is in its atypicality that Neil Vernon has formulated a unique approach to fit and form, designing pieces where wearability doesn’t come at the expense of style. “We always knew we wanted to release a capsule of essential tailoring pieces as these types of garments — pleated pants and button downs — exist heavily in our own personal wardrobes,” the pair explained, adding that their design process begins with one simple question, “What do we already wear in our wardrobes that we can improve on?”
Much like all of a shorter stature, 5’2” Shanelle has grown accustomed to manually re-hemming pants. While certainly a useful skill to possess, Shanelle questioned why this was the norm. “When we started asking these questions is when we began to wonder whether a pant that is entirely adjustable is even possible.”
Enter: The Signature Adjustable Pant. Featuring hidden clasps around the ankle to adjust the height of the hem and a modifiable elastic waistband, Neil Vernon’s unique fastener technology can temporarily shorten the inseam by up to 5 inches. “We came across some old marching band uniforms which used hand-sewn-on buttons to adjust the hems,” said the duo, who took inspiration from the solutions of days gone by, replacing the hand-sewn element with machine-pressed snaps for durability. “Then we decided to go further and re-use the adjustable waistbands we all had in our pants as kids, giving us our first entirely adjustable pant.”
“Given they’re intended to be your forever wardrobe items, we hope that it means you can buy it once, and buy well,” they said of their ethos, manufacturing items that grow with the wearer, “rather than exist as pieces that serve as a momentary marker of your style at one point in time.” Retailing for $190 AUD (£98 or $127 USD), the pants intentionally sit around the average cost of such products for the consumer, although, “this has definitely meant we’re taking a large cut on the cost of the pants given its complexity to produce.” The two don’t mind, though. “It’s important to us that our base products, like the Signature Pants are something everyone can access.”
It has been on TikTok where support for the young brand has swelled — one video showcasing their signature pants’ height settings has a hearty 2.8 million views. “We’ve had such a positive response online to these pants which has been incredible to see,” they said. It’s clear, therefore, that demand for such a garment exists. “As small business owners, we’re planning designs 6+ months ahead which means we truly have to back ourselves the entire way with the design,” Josh and Shanelle said, adding that, “When we see designs like the Signature Pant and Daily Shirt receive such positive sentiment online — it’s the biggest motivator to continue.”
As for the future, their goal is to pursue further adjustable designs. “We’re currently playing around with some capsule denim jeans to be released next year, which we foresee to be a really strong product to shake up the denim industry!” 🌀
The Signature Pant is available here ($131).
Molly Elizabeth is a freelance fashion writer and commentator based in London.