Nature of a City | Interview with Timberland co-President Gene McCarthy

On February 13, Timberland opened their newest storefront at 474 Broadway, New York City. The shop is designed to promote the Timberland experience, and in that venture they partnered with powerHouse for an exhibition of photographs curated by Sara Rosen.

The exhibit, entitled Nature of a City, features images from the powerHouse archives that capture the energy and vitality of a city that – like Timberland – is constantly evolving, creating and defying trends.  For the exhibit, powerHouse and Timberland selected photos from New York-based photographers Janette Beckman, Vivian Cherry, Martha Cooper, Arlene Gottfried, Lisa Kahane, Maripol, Ricky Powell and Jamel Shabazz.

Nature of a City opened on March 27 and runs to April 29, 2009. I spoke with Gene McCarthy, co-President of Timberland, about the exhibition, the heritage of the brand, and Timberland’s special connection to New York City. Born in the Bronx, McCarthy achieved All-American status as a cross country runner while at Fordham University. He has been with Timberland since 2006.

Read the interview and view select images from Nature of a City after the jump.

Curated: Tell me a little about how powerHouse’s installation fits into the look and feel of the store?

Gene: For the store I wanted old world New York, meets contemporary New York City. And that was the thing about powerHouse, they had this grouping of photographers and artists that definitely covered the spectrum of what is contemporary about New York without losing sight of the origins of where it all came from.

Curated: I think that leads to a question about what has developed organically in New York around Timberland, which is hip-hop culture’s adoption of the 6-inch boot and the Field Boot. Looking forward, how do you incorporate that into you corporate heritage?

Gene: I’ve had a long career in this industry. I was at Nike for 21 years. I had a short stint at Reebok. My philosophy has always been about the kid, or the consumer. In one of my former lives, back when I was at the Jordan Brand, we used to say, “We don’t own the brand. The kids own the brand, we just manage it for them.” There is no doubt that Timberland has a wonderful relationship with lots of kids, particular with the onset of hip-hop, not just as a musical genre but as a culture. Timberland was a part of that. That was the consumer’s choice, and we were proud to be part of that. Now that the consumer continues to move fast and move onward, we like to stay abreast of that. You will see the store and our brand connect with where kids are today, but on their terms, not necessarily ours.

Curated: I’m always interested in how companies understand their history, and use their history to commercial advantage. Most of my interaction with Timberland has been through hip-hop, I have almost no understanding of the heritage of the company.

Gene: The interesting part of those boots is, the history prior to that, you’re talking about a rags to riches family story. My boss, the CEO [Jeffrey Swartz], his grandfather started the company by buying an old shoe factory when he immigrated to America. The whole idea was to make sure they made something sturdy and dependable for people that worked with their hands. Not just of the outdoors, but of the world. Because of the reputation of being sturdy, protective and warm, and having an industrial strength about it, it gained a legend through all types of consumers. When kids noticed this, particularly after the advent of the 6-inch boot, it came during two harsh winters in the Northeast. They adopted the boot when they found in an Army Navy store in New York. From there things took off, and they became legend. The history of the brand was really about making something wonderful with great craftsmanship, but at the same time something that was protective and reliable. When you look at what is going on in the world today, you’ll see consumers going back to what they know and what they trust. That’s the essence of the brand. Boots and shoes always come and go, but the essence stays the same.

Photo by Arlene Gottfried, Sometimes Overwhelming, powerHouse Books

Curated: What are some of the pieces in the exhibition that speak to you and tell, perhaps, your story of New York?

Gene: Happy to, I told you earlier that I’m a native New Yorker. I grew up in the Bronx. I grew up in a tough time in the city. Everyone was looking for a way to make it out. Mine was in Van Cortland Park, I found Cross Country [running]. I eventually gained an athletic scholarship to college and became an All-American. It actually helped me get my first job at Nike. Running basically gave me my life, and I am quite proud of that. Van Cortland Park is like Central Park, an oasis in the middle of concrete and cement. I think that is the beauty of New York. If you look at the way a tree grows in the very few places in the neighborhoods in Brooklyn (or the Bronx and Queens), when a tree grows it does two things – 1. It shades the buildings in the summertime, and you know how hot it can get. And, 2. it shades the building in the winter and insulates it. Timberland has always been about the outdoors. I’m all about how do we take the outdoors and meld these two wonderful environments together. The beat of the street with the nature that we’ve been given.

There are two pieces I’ll point to as being great examples of New York City to me: one is an Arlene Gottfried shot, from her book Sometimes Overwhelming. [See photo: woman with tree/plant shadow on her face]. The other one is from Janette Beckman’s The Breaks. [See photo: picture of street scene in front of corner deli.] They are two pieces in the store right now that I am really proud of. The Janette Beckman photo reminds me of the multi-cultural way I grew up in New York City. I think New York will always be that melting pot. It’s the beauty of the city. The other is Arlene’s wonderful way of capturing how trees interact with people. I also want to add, in Bloomberg’s legacy he wants the City to be noted for its “Greenspaces” and how it has similar benefits to the country. We feel as if we are in the same place, but like the heritage of our boots you never want to lose sight of the hard work and craftsmanship, it’s the same with the city, you always want to remember the history of it.

Photo by Janette Beckman, The Breaks, powerHouse Books

Curated: What else have you got planned for the store in terms of art exhibitions, or in terms of events that help promote the goals of the space and keep a flow of traffic through the door?

Gene: Our goal for this store, and any others that we will open in North America, is first of all it’s an experience about Timberland. A transaction is nice, it pays the bills, but the goal is to create an experience. So that whether you are just browsing, you get the feel of Timberland. It may affect you in a variety of ways. It may affect you when you go into one of your favorite stores in your neighborhood, and you’ll buy a product because you were inspired by Timberland. It may affect you that you realize when you see our “GreeNYC” wall in the store, you see our commitment to and responsibility to the environment. Lastly, if you come in there and you forget about life for a while, we’ve accomplished our goals. We also want it to be a laboratory, we want to try different things. We want to keep it moving, and change it up so people stay stimulated. We are also proud of ourselves and this is a way to showcase that.

Curated: Can you talk a bit about how you chose the location for the store? Why Soho? How does that lend itself to the combined goals of the space?

Gene: That is a very interesting question, and it sounds like you are aware of how difficult a decision it is. In the old days, companies would just get a good real-estate deal and open the doors, then people would flock in. I don’t believe in being a realtor, I believe in being a retailer. The first thing I wanted to know was where traffic was going to be in the next couple of years, meaning foot traffic. I didn’t want to go into an established space. I have a rule for the team here – see it once, it’s an idea. See it twice, it’s a trend. See it three times, and it’s over. We were looking at other places on Broadway and I shot them down for that reason. When we moved down Broadway there was very little retail, but we knew some was coming in. The next thing we knew, as we were having conversations, there goes Top Shop, Nike is around the corner. All of a sudden it became a new destination, which is important for us. We also looked at Meat Packing, a couple things fell through there. The main thing was we wanted to go somewhere people would feel most stimulated with everything around them, not just one store. The company we keep on the street is very important to us.