By the numbers: Toronto denim institution Over The Rainbow turns 35
It’s not a bad gig to spend the afternoon getting a behind the scenes tour of one of Toronto’s top denim destinations, Over The Rainbow (101 Yorkville Ave., rainbowjeans.com) lead by the owner himself, Joel Carman. Carman’s jean shop celebrates its 35th anniversary this weekend and is throwing a big party tomorrow and Saturday with a DJ, photo booth, pizza and BBQ, samples from DaLish cosmetics and Dermalogica’s Clean Start, and denim giveaways, naturally.
Here’s a by-the-numbers peak at jeans institution:
1975 The year Joel Carman was driving a cab and met his future Over the Rainbow business partner, one of his passengers. (The two parted ways after the first year.)
$300 The monthly rent for Over The Rainbow’s first location on Bloor Street. If the shop didn’t work out, recalls Carman, “I’ll put a bed in there and I’ll have an apartment on Bloor Street.”
4,800 The number of square feet of the store’s current location at 101 Yorkville Ave. (That doesn’t include the storage room, or the 1,800 square feet of office space)
45 The number of full and part-time staff “We tend to overstaff our store. When someone needs a pair of jeans, they need individual attention.”
4 The number of Carman family members working for the company: Joel, wife Jinni, son Daniel and daughter Amy.
3 The number of generations some families have been shopping at Over The Rainbow. “I get personal calls from people who have problems,” says Carman.
30 The number of boxes of fall merch, on average, that the store receives every day.
$17 The average price for a pair of jeans in 1975.
$190 The average price in 2010.
70 The percentage of Over The Rainbow’s denim brands that come from California. Canadian jean brands in stock are Fidelity, 1921 and Naked & Famous.
20oz The heaviest denim weight carried in store, made by two brands: Japan’s Triple Works and Naked & Famous from Montreal.
1,000 The number of Canada Goose jackets currently in the store, store room and even the office.
20 The number of minutes it takes Over The Rainbow’s alterationist Tatiana to shorten a pair of jeans with an abraded hem. (She removes it, and the reattaches after shortening the jeans.). A regular hem takes 10.
8,000 The approximate number of jeans currently in stock.
50 The number of pairs of jean the store sells every day, on average.
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