RAFAEL JIMENEZ
by: Deborah Mejia

Rafael Jimenez; young, cute and Dominican, what else can you ask for? He likes nice long walks a long the beach and oh yes he is also founder of Republica Trading Company. At 35 years old, Jimenez is a hit. Starting in NY’s Washington Heights, he sold his Dominican pride shirts out of his backpack. In 1994 he started small, selling a whole of 30doz. of men’s T-shirts at $20.00 a piece. The next summer he added women’s shirts as well. By the end of the summer of 1995 he had sold 30doz. of men’s T-shirts and 30doz. of the women’s T-shirts. The light bulb turned on. He thought that maybe he should think big and after that he thought even bigger.

Now in 2004 he has Republica Trading Company. Adding silk, hats, denim dresses, seersucker suits, and of course the updated guayaberas that his father use to have a tailored collection of. With all of this and more his collection has been a hit. Even though ready to wear is in main sight, that’s not all. Republica has a newsletter called the Republica Newsletter. This newsletter is to update anyone on a lot of interesting and cultural events that are going on across the country. This is mostly targeted to their obvious demographic market.

Whether you like to just chill and dress down or go out a lot and like casual wear, Republica is there for you. Targeted to the urban Latino man and woman that is not afraid of experimenting with colors and trend setting with new styles. Always count of Republica’s T-shirts to make a statement. You can find Republica’s collection in Bloomingdale’s. In Washington Heights in NY you can find it as well or you can always get online.

visit them at: www.republicatrading.com

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