Q&A: AARON HOFFMAN
Hoffman Fabrics

 

Within the industry, longtime textile manufacturer Hoffman Fabrics is best known for its screenprinted and hand-dyed fabrics. As quilting’s “Original Bali Batik Company,” their name is practically synonymous with batik.

 

Last year, the company launched a new division, their Me + You brand, aimed at attraction a new demographic of quilters to Hoffman’s fabric offerings. While the new brand still utilizes the batik process to produce its prints, they are quite the departure from the traditional batik in terms of design.

 

For this edition of eInsider, we spoke with Aaron Hoffman—the man behind Me + You —about the new brand, its aesthetic, and their first designer collection from Modern Quilt Guild co-founder Latifah Saafir.

 

 

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eINSIDER: First please tell our readers a bit about your background. I understand that you are a fourth-generation Hoffman. Was there always an expectation that you would become involved in the company, or is that something that just evolved?

 

HOFFMAN: I've worked with my family on and off since I was a teenager. I always liked photography, art, and design, and ended up doing some freelance work for other companies.

 

There was never an expectation that I would join the family business, but I found myself wanting to come back and explore the creative process of fabric and textile design. My family and this business have given me the opportunity to work as creatively as I can while trying new things.

 

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eINSIDER: Hoffman recently launched the Me + You brand. What is the focus of the new brand?

 

HOFFMAN: Me + You is Hoffman Fabrics' Modern division. Me + You was developed to inspire creative people—a customer who loves improv projects, minimalist designs, sustainability efforts, and quality.

 

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eINSIDER: Hoffman is probably best known for its gorgeous batiks. Is the new brand a departure from that, or are we going to see the batik reinvented?

 

HOFFMAN: Me + You batiks are totally different from Hoffman batiks. Traditional Hoffman batik fabrics often have a marbled look, but that’s not what makes it a batik. The art of batiking is the process of using copper stamps dipped in wax that act as a resist to the dye. This resist is then boiled off the fabric to reveal its beautiful print.

 

I noticed Modern quilters were not using batiks in their works. I knew there was an opportunity for Hoffman to introduce batiks with no marbling to better fit the Modern industry's use of color and fabrics. Me + You’s batiks use solid grounds and feature minimalist designs to create subtle depth and dimension in sewing projects. Me + You also offers solids that are hand-dyed, have no wrong side, no white edge, are opaque, and have a tight weave.

 

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eINSIDER: And you'll be introducing a new collection (under the Me + You brand) from Latifah Saafir. What can we expect from Latifah's collection? Is it safe to assume that bold color will play a large role in the collection, given her background in Modern Quilting?

 

HOFFMAN: Latifah's line is bold in color and attitude. Grafic is her first fabric line, and I think it’s perfect for the Me + You brand.

 

Grafic pays homage to her lifelong love of graffiti and street art. The line is not reflective of the street art itself, but is instead about celebrating the environments where it is found and the graphic elements that inspire it. It captures a look and feel that is both urban and sophisticated. It's really been great working with her—on top of creating a cool line, she's even helped with some of the colorations used in the Me + You batik and solid lines.

 

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eINSIDER: Finally, Aaron, as a member of a company that has been an important part of the quilting industry for decades (and nearly a century in the textile business), what would you like to see for the industry as we move into the future?

 

HOFFMAN: You're right. Hoffman has been a huge part of the textile, garment, and quilting world.

 

Businesses and brands have to be more specialized due to competition and the internet—this can make expanding a business or growing an industry difficult.

 

I hope that our industries grow more inclusive and curious about new things. We have Hoffman Fabrics for the traditional quilter, Me + You for the Modern sewists, and even a interior decorating brand, Hoffman Home for the DIY/home-dec crowd. I want our creative industry to keep creating, inspiring, and appreciating art.

 

 

 

 

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