This year, St. John Knit is celebrating its 45^th anniversary. Kelly Gray, daughter of the founders, former face of the St. John ad campaign (before being replaced by Angelina Jolie), and former CEO of the company, was at Neiman Marcus in Houston greeting the faithful this week. One of the women waiting in line to meet her confessed to owning 200 outfits from various St. John lines. That is a fan. And, potentially, someone with a shopping addiction, but a fan nonetheless. St. John Knit has proven itself as a company that can inspire loyalists. But how do they do it?

Product – Despite the wild meanderings of fashion since its founding in 1962, you can identify a St. John item no matter its age because of its basic silhouettes and completely unique fabric. St John is not just a design house, but a manufacturer who spins, dyes and weaves its own blend of materials to make their signature knit. The advantages of the fabric include the way the garments hold their shape for decades, are completely wrinkle-free, and rarely show signs of wear. Another unique element of the cloth is that a qualified dry cleaner can use a product called “blocking” to redistribute the knit in such a way to size them up or down – thus allowing them to grow or shrink with your figure through the years.

Ownership Experience – While St. John does produce certain more “editorial” pieces with each collection, their bread and butter remains classic silhouettes of their signature fabric, accented with their elegant enamel buttons. Because of the easily recognizable looks, fans can easily spot each other and know they share certain values and taste. I think the recognizability of the garments is a key component in the ownership experience. One doesn’t need to wear logoed items (a la Coach or LV) for others to recognize that they are a part of the St. John brand promise and who wouldn’t want to live the promise of beauty and success promised by Angelina Jolie in this shot?

St. John is also known for its remarkable customer service, but I’ll expound on that when I share why I’m a fan tomorrow.