“It’s almost an affliction, it’s got to be quality,” Brad Pitt told WWD of his approach to God’s True Cashmere, the feel-good luxury label he cofounded along with his friend and holistic healer, Sat Hari.

The brand’s gender-neutral, two-pocket cashmere work shirts in solids and tartans, with handcrafted snap buttons constructed from healing stones like emeralds for health and wealth; lapis lazuli for wisdom and truth, and labradorite for balance and protection are the most recent cult casual-luxe item to return out of Los Angeles.

Soft like a hug (a hug from Brad Pitt, no less), the $2,000-plus shirts are being snapped up by in-the-know shoppers in stores from Serenella in Boston to Boon the Shop in Seoul.

4 years in, God’s True Cashmere is in growth mode, with a latest e-commerce site, plans to launch more styles and a push to expand wholesale, with a showroom in Paris through the women’s ready-to-wear season March 3 to six.

“We wish the shirts to be the face of the brand,” Pitt said, explaining his aim to remain within the background in his business ventures, which include Le Domaine skincare and the Miraval wine label.

“We soft launched in 2019, no one knew he was affiliated and it kept selling out,” said God’s True Cashmere cofounder Sat Hari, who also has her own jewelry line, Amrit. “There’s an attraction to the actual product, the standard of the product.”

Buyers agree.

“We actually felt that the history and spirit of the brand were so wealthy, we desired to share that story with our customers,” said Jeannine Lee, head of womenswear buying at Selfridges in London, which had a God’s True Cashmere pop-up for 2 months over the vacations, and continues to stock the road. “The pop-up performed extremely well for us; the standard, craftsmanship and design of the gathering really resonates with our clients — a timeless luxury product with a touch of effortless cool.”

The gathering also sells at Blake, Just One Eye, Performance Ski Aspen and Hirschleifers within the U.S., Apropos in Germany, Trois Palm in Switzerland and at Goop online.

“The expansion has been organic, up until 2022 that had been our strategy,” said Sadh Khalsa, the brand’s chief financial officer. “Finding retailers who’re excited and see where we’re going to be in five years, that’s how we’ve been capable of do six times the amount in sales from where we began.”

“Whenever you take a look at the sell-through with the value positioning, it’s considered one of a sort,” said Gilles Assor, a brand consultant with experience at Martin Margiela, Marc Jacobs and other big labels, who sought out and joined GTC after buying the shirts off the rack at Just One Eye in L.A. “One among the large problems we had is we’re sold out of stock,” he added, noting that retailers will have the ability to preorder the gathering for the primary time in March.

As often happens in L.A., the brand’s cofounders first bonded over health and wellness.

“Someone needed healing and someone provided healing,” Pitt said, describing his relationship with Sat Hari, who grew up in northern India, as sibling-like. “One among the various things I really like is she’s been a human guinea pig for anything on the health, spiritual or psychology front.”

The thought for making shirts got here to her in a dream, which coincided with Pitt mentioning that he wanted more green and softness in his life.

Sat Hari decided to make him a green cashmere shirt for a Christmas gift, just like the flannels that were his day by day go-to. When she couldn’t find anyone who could do it, she resolved to figure it out on her own. After being introduced through a friend to a factory owner in Italy, she produced a small run.

“The shirt was just so rattling cozy, it was like let’s make some more,” Pitt said of how the brand got off the bottom.

They went through a load of names, including CashPitt (“horrible,” he laughed) and hit on God’s True Cashmere because Sat Hari in Sanskrit loosely translates to God’s Truth.

“I actually have all the time been drawn to the healing properties of stones, so I assumed why not put gemstone snaps on the shirt on the seven chakras up the front of your body almost like a talisman that protects you, like this energetic force field around you?” she said of the hand-cut gems.

“I’m also really into numerology and the number 11 is the variety of mastery,” she explained of the importance of getting 11 buttons on the shirts with two flap pockets.

“I don’t claim to have any of the knowledge Sat does about numerology or chakras, but when she tells me to do it, I do it,” Pitt said. “I feel higher since I met her.”

Feeling higher is an element of the brand ethos, reflected in online descriptions resembling “Each of our shirts are Made in Italy with 100% cashmere worthy of the God in you,” and “We made this shirt for you since you should be loved.”

The 2 work together on picking colours and yarns and coming up with tartans, often on the kitchen table, using reference photos from nature, interiors and travel for inspiration.

“I’m considered one of those individuals who desires to be always making,” said Pitt, who has also designed furniture. “I feel like I get stagnant, I feel crusty and dumpy. If I’m not making something I feel slightly worthless, so it’s one other fun corner to dabble in. I prefer to use my hands and I’m a top quality junkie.”

It’s true Pitt never thought he’d be in the style business. “But when something’s very nice, I do take notice, I’m not oblivious to it. I’m pondering of Loro Piana, which has quality in and out. I pick up loads of things which can be sold out and it seems to be The Row. I actually have immense respect for what the [Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen] have done.”

He’s careful to indicate Sat Hari does the heavy lifting, but he’s also guiding the evolution. For instance, the brand recently introduced its first track suit, in a tonal brown plaid, after Pitt asked for one. It sold out immediately. Needing holiday gifts for friends, they added blankets, pillows, hats and socks, all the time bringing in precious stone snap button details as a signature.

“I need a jumpsuit, they’re the last word in laziness, you simply hop in and zip them up. I believe of ‘A Clockwork Orange’ or something,” Pitt said. “A skirt would work rather well,” mused the actor, who wore a linen skirt to a Berlin screening of the film “Bullet Train” last summer.

The partners are committed to constructing the brand on responsible luxury.

Cashmere is sourced from suppliers who’re Responsible Wool and Global Recycle Standard certified and the shirts are produced in a small artisan workshop in Italy, with stones sourced in India. Product is shipped in organic, brushed cotton bags, and plastics aren’t utilized in displays or storage.

“There’s an appetite for what we’re doing, we’re seeing that in our repeat customers.…We connect on experience, uniqueness and touch,” said Khalsa, who projects the brand could grow six times again this yr.

“We’re targeting key retail players in major markets. We launched our website. We’re doing direct-to-consumer in a distinct segment way, so at once you possibly can access our icon collection, which is a possibility for patrons to return back and get styles they might have missed,” she said.

Latest shirt silhouettes are on the horizon, together with a light-weight summer capsule collection. Also they are taking a look at using more reclaimed cashmere, Khalsa said. “One among our favourite quotes is, ‘If it’s done in love, it’s going to work.’”