Pistola Jeans
A conversation with founder Grace Na about being a designer, a parent, and a person with a calm nervous system.
Grace Na, the founder and creative director of Pistola, is a mom friend at my kids’ school. Her son Liam is in my daughter Georgia’s class, and though we’ve been on the Yearbook Committee and had plenty of time together both on campus and off, we’ve never seriously sat down and talked about the other thing we have in common: Jeans. Why? Because – and tell me if you feel the same – it’s weird to talk about work at school. Drop-off, Friday assembly, Winter Sing? Not a good time to huddle in a corner and gab about fabric content and runway trends. As much as I so want to do that with Grace sometimes.
If you’ve never heard of Grace it’s because she’s been hiding behind the scenes at Pistola since its launch in 2013. A former merchandiser and planner for big-name brands (Mervyn’s, BCBG), she started Pistola to dress women who love fashion and affordability, both. Good jeans with something extra for $100-$200? No one was doing it a decade ago, and few do it as successfully as Pistola now.
Grace’s journey – from timid design newbie to confident creative director – really struck a chord with me. I love that she is (finally!) putting herself out there as the face of her company after all these years. I love her work ethic, her humility, her style. I wear the Lexi jean she designed. And I’m taking the advice she shares here about how to communicate work stuff with your kids to heart. Have I mentioned Grace has three? Kids. What a pleasure it was getting off campus to hear her story and get her perspective on how to balance-slash-manage her family’s dreams and expectations. Thank you, Grace.
Jane: Let’s start at the beginning. How long have you been designing Pistola?
Grace: It's been 11 years since we launched Pistola. It's crazy. In 2013 we shipped our first order and I found out I was pregnant. And then the month before I was supposed to give birth, we got our first major order from Bloomingdale's. During those times it was just ingrained in us that we had to make the product work no matter what, personal life aside. I think it's safe to say that I didn't really have a personal life for the first five years of the business. Work was the priority. We even moved to Orange County to be closer to my parents so that we could give our all to the business and my parents could help raise our kids.
Jane: Are you still in Orange County?
Grace: No, we moved moved back to L.A. in 2021 when our daughters [Taylor and Olivia] started Kindergarten and First Grade, respectively.
Jane: OK, so let’s back up. In 2013, when you started, what were you thinking? What did you feel you had to offer that wasn’t already out there?
Grace: I'll tell you the honest truth. I don't come from a denim background. My whole career prior had been in women's clothing, so I bought denim, I merchandised it, I planned around it, but I was really more of a fashion girl. I loved ready-to-wear and lifestyle, and I actually loved pants and hard wovens more than I loved denim. [My husband] Kevin’s family had been in denim for 30 years and they had their own business, but I was really more into merchandising.
Jane: So what changed?
Grace: It was his mom’s idea. It took her a year to convince me to join the family business because think about it, your mother-in-law is like, ‘Oh, you should join the family business,’ and I was like, ‘Oh, no, I'm okay.’ I had my own thing. I liked being in my own lane.
But eventually they convinced me to join. In the beginning I worked with them a couple hours a week, just to kind of dip my toes in. I didn't really understand the manufacturing side of things. As a buyer and as a planner, you're never really thinking with a manufacturing cap on – how to develop, how to ship, how to do X, Y and Z.
We ended up launching Pistola because I saw a whitespace in the market. Denim brands were either really cheap or really expensive, and I saw an opportunity for an opening price point that was still fashionable. Cool. I love fashion so much and the types of pants that I loved – Nili Lotan, and Seven [for All Mankind] – were all really good. But I saw a space in the market for something that felt a little bit more modern, a little less boho, less basic, but in that opening price point between $100 and $200.
Jane: So you taught yourself how to be a designer? I did that. Tell me how you did that.
Grace: For me, it’s always about, ‘How do you design smart?’ And that means knowing how to develop [styles] with a couple of fabrications. In the beginning, I made all the mistakes. I probably started with 10 fabrics. What I love about my in-laws is that they stayed quiet and they let me do it all. And then later, after some very expensive mistakes and sleepless nights, I started to get better at it, season after season. I wasn't very confident in myself in the beginning. There was a part of me that was confident, but there was another part of me that was still seeking approval. For the first five years I really looked outward for design inspiration. What are other brands doing? What’s on the runways? What’s happening in street style?
Jane: And then…
Grace: And then, I think in the last three or four years I’ve just become a little bit more confident in my own taste. I’m looking inwards more. I look at what's missing in my own closet. I actually want to wear more mid rises these days because I'm loving belts and I'm loving a half tuck, for example.
Jane: Maybe putting yourself out there as the face of the brand goes hand-in-hand with feeling like the designs are really coming from you, too?
Grace: Listen, starting Pistola, I had so much self-doubt. I never had manufacturing experience, I never had design experience. Buyers, merchandisers, and planners are not designers. I felt like, ‘Am I even allowed to make jeans?’ I didn't start off loving denim like you do. But in hindsight, I think Pistola’s strength came from the fact that I wasn't a denim head and I wasn't tied to the five pocket straight leg classic American heritage fit. The rule-breaking fashion styles I do are what’s worked for us.
Jane: I felt that way when I made my first jumpsuit. I wasn’t attached to a method or school of thought. I didn’t have any formal training. I didn’t know the right way to do it, but I also didn’t know the wrong way. I thought, ‘I’m just going to sit with the pattern maker and ask a million questions. I’ll learn along the way.’ I actually came up with some things that were really successful because I wasn't hamstrung by rules.
Grace: I think for me, because my mother-in-law had been fitting denim for 35 years, and we also have pattern makers who have been doing it for 30 years, a large part of me was just listening to the experts. Okay, well, if the experts say so, then I guess that's the way it has to be. But it's interesting because in the last 3 to 4 years, it's like, hold on. No, let's just try it this way, please. I know you guys said that, but I still want to pick it up on the outside and I'm sorry, I know you said that, but I still want the rise to be a half an inch longer. I know you want a contoured waistband, but no, I want a straight waistband on this style. You have to kind of lean it. You have to trust your gut.
Pistola’s best-sellers. Clockwise from top left (desktop)/top to bottom (mobile): Lana High-Rise Ultra Wide ($178), Wes High-Rise Barrel ($178), Lexi Mid-Rise Bowed Straight ($168), Cassie Super High-Rise Straight ($168).
Jane: So what are you feeling for right now? What's your favorite fit? What's on your mind?
Grace: I really love the barrel shape. But for next fall/holiday, I think things are going back to basics. I see straights coming back and boot cuts coming back, with a twist. Barrel, barrel, barrel is crazy pulsing right now, but I think things will go back to more basic shapes next fall, but updated.
Jane: I was thinking that the barrel is like the new boyfriend. Remember when Current/Elliot came out with that boyfriend in 2007 or 2008, it was like, ‘Oh my god.’ That pegged leg. It's slouchy, it's super loose. That original boyfriend was this fit that worked on so many body types. And that's true of the barrel, right? It's so comfortable. It looks great on everybody.
Grace: Jane, I love that. You hit it on the dot. I feel like so many women have a fear around barrels, but they’re actually great for women who don’t even wear denim.
Jane: Tell me, how do you make your life work? You have three kids. I know you get help from your in-laws. I see them at school. For you, personally, what's the first thing that comes to mind when I ask you about balancing mom life and work life?
Grace: Definitely mom guilt. And actually, I think there's different types of mom guilt that I’ve felt when my kids were at different ages. Now that I have a fourth grader and a third grader, and they're girls, they have different needs than my youngest, Liam. Different needs create different guilt. I think girls need their moms a little bit more when they get a little bit older. As a mom, you have to look out for your girls. When they get to sixth grade, seventh grade, eighth grade, I know I really need to be there. I would love to pick them up [from school] twice a week. Right now I don't pick them up at all. It’s mom guilt. My son Liam (6), he’s always like, ‘Everybody's moms pick them up from school, but you never pick me up from school.’
Jane: I don't do pickup, if it makes you feel better.
Grace: Thank you. It does make me feel better. But I think it’s about finding the time to pick them up once every two or three weeks. And sometimes it’s once a month. But it’s about getting them to understand that I'm a working mom and I do what I can do. For the past couple of weeks it's been crazy because I've been traveling – San Francisco, Las Vegas, New York – and I think it's about not crying with them. It’s not, ‘I'm so sorry, mommy's working.’ But, ‘Hey guys, this is why I'm going to work. It's a huge trade show. There's going to be a lot of people there. I'm really excited to show the collection. This is a really important time, and you know what? Mommy needs to be there because this is my job and I love to do it.’ I think that narrative has really helped me and the kids.
Jane: I love that. I am going to remember that.
Grace: I mean, it's hard to say no to them when they're asking me to do something because they want to see me, and that's so wonderful. But I don't really feel sorry. I love what I do and I need to do it. I’m trying to take pride in it and ‘Hey, guys, this is what it is, and listen, mommy has to do it. However, on Saturday, I'm going to pick-up your friends and we're going to do what you want to do.’ It's this give and take, for all of us. And I think that that confidence helps all of us deal with my work a little bit better.
Jane: Confidence is so important with kids. The more confidence I have in the boundaries I set, the better. When I'm wishy-washy about my feelings or about what's going to happen in a day, my kids kind of fall apart. I mean, my kids are a bit younger. I still have a 3-year-old, so we are still learning how to regulate and hold our sh*t together. But if I come in like a fun drill sergeant at bedtime, they’re calmer about it. They get with the program. Firm, but kind, right?
Grace: One hundred percent. And listen, that's something that I'm learning. I think it's also about front loading, too. I found that my oldest, she has a little bit of anxiety, so I think the more I'm able to prepare her for what's coming, and even, ‘Hey, at the end of this month, mommy has to travel, but on this weekend we're going to do this,’ it helps. In fourth grade, she wants to know what her schedule is.
Jane: For me, one of the things I struggle with most as mom, partner, designer, writer, is switching gears from one thing to the next. I can't just jump back into one or the other. If I am deep in kid mode and I've really committed to it, and I'm with my kids and I'm not looking at my phone and I'm not trying to work, and nothing is coming at me from the business, it is so wonderful. I can really be in it. But, if I'm feeling like there's something else that I need to do back in my studio, being with my children can be torturous. And the reverse is true, too, of course. If I'm at work, but I'm worried about something with the kids, I can't do the work. It’s hard to even care about it. Those are the moments where I'm just like, ‘Why do I even try to do both?’
Grace: For me, I always want to start a new brand. I just have that itch. Now though, I think I'm really starting to realize that I have to pick and choose, and I can't do it all. Maybe it’s part of my upbringing, but I think I’ve always put my value and my worth on how much I do and how much I yield. And now I'm starting to really have to reckon with the fact that there is something beautiful in just not doing anything. I haven't figured it out, but I think that requires us to simplify a little bit and not start a gazillion different projects. To take care of ourselves. In fact, I really didn't know what it meant to take care of myself until about a year ago.
Jane: What happened a year ago?
Grace: I went to Mii Amo. It a 21-room wellness retreat in Sedona, Arizona. It was just supposed to be a quick girls trip but it has a minimum 3-night stay. Now, I would never go to a 3-night minimum place [too much time away from work!], but I was like, ‘Okay, I guess I have to.’ And that’s when I learned what taking care of myself means. It’s having a calm nervous system. It’s figuring out how you can get your nervous system to be calm. That was life-changing. With a calm nervous system I can think better, I can make decisions better. Part of being an owner or even being an entrepreneur is always having to deal with some level of pain. With a calm nervous system, you can deal with pain. You react to it better. My weakness is that I can be reactive. I think it's great that I'm emotional and I'm very passionate, but there's an ugly side of that, too. Have you ever tried hypnotherapy?
Jane: I’ve never tried it.
Grace: Oh my gosh, Jane.
Jane: Was it scary?
Grace: No. I highly recommend it. Highly, highly, highly. I told [my husband] Kevin I'm going to go back to Mii Amo for hypnotherapy at least once a year. The person that came back from Mii Amo was just so much calmer. My husband was like, ‘What happened to you? Your calm self is so different. The way you talk to the kids is so different.’ It was kind of almost lifesaving for me in a way.
Jane: I've always thought of hypnosis as sort of just putting you to sleep.
Grace: I think what it does is show you a different perspective on things. We don't always have the luxury of seeing things from a new perspective, we’re so busy. The narrative I saw during hypnotherapy really shifted how I think about myself, and it’s made me better at work. Better with my kids. A calm nervous system. Reiki, meditation, hypnotherapy. It works.
Jane: I love that. When can we go?
That’s all for today, my fellow jeaniuses. Let’s show Grace some love – it’s brave to be so open! – by liking this post. Thank you for reading and being here with me. As always, Denim Forever.
Jane
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The Lexi jeans are some of my favorites!!
I’ve been curious about Pistola and its backstory! loved this interview, now I definitely need to try a pair ;)