All American Khakis

Small Business Spotlight | Thomson, GA | Region 7

Every once in a while, a question pops up in my house: “What are khaki pants?” Is it simply the color or is it the style of pants?

So I did a little research on the web, and here’s the popular history of the origin of khaki pants: Khaki pants began as military uniforms for British soldiers in India in the mid-1800s, and were soon adopted for use across the British military. The US Navy adopted the use of khaki pants in 1917 for naval uniforms, and by the end of World War II saw a rapid rise in the popularity of khaki pants across America.

But back to the question at hand: is khaki simply a color or does it now represent a style of pants? I recently traveled to McDuffie County in search of an answer.

Established In 1983, Chardan, Ltd. and its All American Khakis line is a family-owned business that will celebrate 35 years in 2019. Operating in a 31,000 square-foot facility, Chardan manufactures pants for a variety of companies, including Vanity Fair. They also produce specialty uniform pants for customers such as AT&T, the New York Transit Authority, the US Air Force Academy and the Naval Academy, Cintas and sports uniform pants for Gerry Davis Sports.

But walking through their warehouse, one line of pants definitely stands out: the pants that they produce for Disney World. Pants for cast members working in restaurants, resorts, transportation, and attractions, such as the Pirates of the Caribbean and Indian Jones, all wear pants proudly made at Chardan. Clearly, if it is a pants item, Walt Johnson and the 70 employee strong Chardan team can make it!

Although the uniform business has been very good to the Chardan team, they realized that the company was subject to ebbs and flows of their customers and forces beyond their control. So Charles, Tommy and Walt began looking at new opportunities that they could grow themselves to “keep the machines running.” They wanted to create a product that wasn’t as dependent on the outside forces that impact the uniform market and be able to control their own fate. Thus, All American Khakis was born.

Started in 2010 as an internet-only clothing company making and specializing in high-end men’s pants, All American Khakis can now be found in retail outlets across the nation in a number of styles, including dressier wool products, stylish seersucker and sportier athletic-fit pants. These new lines have been well-received by customers; and today, All American Khakis accounts for 10% of the company’s total sales.

With 97% of our clothing made outside the country, All American Khakis is working to help bring textile production back to the United States and to Georgia.

“The brand was created in part to address the question, ‘How can we do our part to keep manufacturing in America going?’” – Walt Johnson, Co-founder of All American Khakis and CFO of Chardan, Ltd.

Everything from design, manufacturing, shipping and customer service is done at All American’s facilities in Thomson. This allows for total control of the process and superior customer service. The local control also allows the company to keep raw material needs to a minimum. Pants in a variety of styles, colors and waist sizes are made and stored in the warehouse. As pants are ordered, they are hemmed to the customer’s specifications, pressed and shipped. This manufacturing process allows All American Khaki to be more responsive to customer needs and provide a personal touch that is lacking by the big box retailer. Like many companies, this is not the first time that Chardan has had to rely on innovation. Before 9/11, the company primarily made women’s pants for the airline industry. As air travel declined significantly, the need for uniform pants also declined. But Chardan saw an opportunity in uniform pants for men. Although both items are pants, there are a number of differences; and the production required significant design changes and employee training.

“Ten years ago, we were doing things differently,” Walt concluded. Clearly, innovation is alive and well at Chardan and All American Khakis.

So, I’m not sure if I helped solve the khaki debate. But if you want to know more about All American Khakis, you don’t have to plan a road trip. Check them out online, on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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