At a towering 6-foot-10, John Reynolds has always had problems finding clothes that fit.
This is probably because men’s standard sizes were originally developed as a way to efficiently produce uniforms for soldiers during WWII.
These sizes were based on chest measurements, with other body measurements assumed as either proportional or easily altered. These linear sizes, which have remained commonplace in fashion up until now, don’t tend to appropriately accommodate men six feet and above.
While earning his MBA from Harvard Business School (HBS) in 2014, Reynolds set out with his future cofounder, Kevin Flammia (who stands at 6-foot-2), to solve this problem.
The result was
, one of the first companies to launch a menswear line using non-linear sizing.
Reynolds and Flammia began their journey by asking thousands of men to step inside a body scanner, which they had procured in order to examine the actual body measurements of men above 5 feet 11 inches.
The body scanner uses data technology to convert a person’s body measurements into 400 data points (such as chest, arm length, etc.) which Reynolds and Flammia used to overlay measurements for men of the same height.
“The further we dug, we realized that the fitting system is not just broken for guys that are taller, it's broken across the industry,” said Reynolds, CEO and cofounder at RFM.
RFM decided to disrupt clothing sizes.
Implementing the data the company had gathered using the 3D scanning technology, RFM’s inaugural line of smart casual men’s clothing has revamped clothing sizes according to a man’s height.
Customers can use the company’s online platform or visit RFM’s showroom in the heart of Soho to purchase blazers, pants and ties. RFM has seen an insane demand thus far from the tall and ill-fitted, proving the company's fairly expensive costs are a small price to pay for clothes that finally fit.
The company has already received requests from professional athletes who want to test out RFM’s innovative sizing solution, including players from the NFL and NBA.
While RFM is currently only outfitting men above six feet tall, the brand plans to eventually expand toward shorter markets.
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