Momotaro makes some of the most beautiful jeans on the planet
By Maurice Malone Published April 12, 2025
Momotaro makes some of the most beautiful jeans on the planet. That’s not marketing fluff—it’s a conclusion drawn from decades of hands-on experience with jeans from every corner of the denim world. As someone who’s made a living designing, producing, and altering jeans for over 40 years, I don’t get swayed by branding or influencer hype. I’m a design nerd, especially when it comes to construction. I look at the guts of the garment—the seam finishes, the stitching, the way a piece is put together. These are the details that separate well-made jeans from the ones just trying to look the part.
At Williamsburg Garment Company, we don’t just sell jeans—we handle them every day. We make jeans as well as alter them. We inspect their build quality, seeing what’s under the hood once you start turning them inside out. We get everything from $50 mall brands to $1,000-plus designer jeans coming through our alterations studio. And what we know is that price and brand name have very little to do with quality.
We've seen $80 jeans made better than $1500 jeans. We've witnessed people spend $300 to repair or perfect subpar $100 jeans they love. We’ve also seen expensive jeans come in with poor construction and amateurish design flaws. Designer labels are often the worst culprits when they attempt to incorporate tailored clothing elements into jeans, such as bound seams sewn with basic lockstitch machines, sharp inside corners, or unnecessary linings. It might look extra fancy to someone unfamiliar with denim design, but in practice, these details make the jeans less durable, less comfortable, and more prone to failure. I know because I used to think the same way early in my career—and I learned the hard truth: jeans aren’t dress pants.
That’s part of why I respect Japanese denim so much, and Momotaro in particular. They’re not outsourcing the hard part. They own the process—from spinning their own yarns to weaving their denim to sewing it in-house. Most brands source their fabric from mills and then pass it to contractors for assembly. That’s standard. Momotaro is one of the few doing it all under their roof, which gives them unmatched control over quality. It shows. Their finishes are clean. The insides of the jeans are just as impressive as the outsides. When their jeans pass through our hands for hemming or tapering, they put our machines to the test. You won't find any sloppy sewing or misaligned seams. Usually, everything is in perfect harmony.
Momotaro’s story began during Japan’s first vintage denim boom, driven by a clear goal: to craft jeans on par with the best high-end international brands—using Japanese skill, precision, and pride. To recreate the texture and character of true vintage denim, they invested in old TOYODA shuttle looms. These machines, rare even in Japan, are still in operation today. Over time, Momotaro has expanded and meticulously maintained its fleet of looms to produce fabrics with unmistakable character and individuality. From there, each pair of jeans is constructed through more than 30 steps, using vintage sewing machines. This process preserves a traditional, hands-on approach to denim making—resulting in jeans that stand out not only for their craftsmanship but also for the integrity behind every stitch.
They also manage to produce some of the best, richly textured selvedge denim. Their 15.7-ounce Zimbabwe cotton fabric has this smooth, luxurious surface and feels rich and refined in its raw, unwashed state. That’s a testament to their yarns and how they’re woven. And yes, the fades are beautiful too—deep contrast, slow evolution, and character that doesn’t feel forced.
We’ve been quietly building our retail program, starting with TCB Jeans in 2024. We chose TCB because they offered incredible quality and value, with construction that lives up to our standards. Now, adding Momotaro—without question one of the best-made jeans we’ve ever handled—feels like another step forward in the right direction.
When we choose brands, it's based on several factors, including what's popular with our well-educated customer base. From there, it's based on what we see and feel in our hands every day. That’s why Momotaro is one of only a few brands we carry. They passed the test.
We’ll keep aiming high and building slowly our way to be one of the nation’s go-to retailers of jeans. Iron Heart, if you're reading this, you’re also high on our list. Hopefully, we’ll get to work together when the timing’s right. But for now, we’re proud to offer what we believe are some of the best jeans for men, made by one of the best denim brands in the world.