What ambition for JPJG?
Someone recently made a comment to me after taking the time to read through the JPJG Journal.
He told me he understood why JPJG had been born.
He had understood its story, the values I was trying to instill in it, the way I see golf, and probably also part of what had brought me here.
Then he pointed out that something was missing.
Ambition.
Where would I like to take JPJG?
The question stayed with me for a while.
Because my ambition is not to see JPJG everywhere.
It is not about becoming the biggest golf brand possible.
Nor is it about making extravagant things so that people notice the person wearing them.
I love beauty.
But I like beauty when it does not need to shout.
So, if I had to describe my ambition for JPJG today, I would probably start with a thread.
Starting from Ardèche and looking out at the world
JPJG was born in Ardèche.
A region I feel deeply attached to, with an extraordinary history surrounding silk in particular.
But my perspective was not shaped solely here.
Over the course of my life, I have been fortunate enough to travel all over the world, work internationally, and discover very different cultures.
These journeys probably taught me more about looking than comparing.
They taught me that there are a thousand ways to create beauty.
That behind a material, a garment, an object, or a gesture we find beautiful, there is often a region, a story, women and men, and sometimes several generations of expertise.
Above all, they taught me how reaching out to others could change the way we see things ourselves.
That is something I would like to find in JPJG.
A house deeply attached to its native Ardèche, yet curious about the world.
A house that does not consider its roots to be borders.
The threads of the world
Ardèche has its own history of silk.
Japan has fascinating textile traditions.
Iran carries centuries of expertise in fibers, colors, and patterns.
Scotland tells another story, particularly through its wool.
And there are so many others.
I dream that one day JPJG will be able to set out to discover these stories.
Not to claim them as our own.
And certainly not to take a craft from somewhere in the world, put a logo on it, and then build a beautiful story around it.
That would be exactly the opposite of what I would want to do.
I would like to meet them.
Understanding.
Listening.
Then, when it makes sense, creating together.
Bringing one tradition into dialogue with another.
One region with another.
People who might never have met otherwise.
And imagining how all of this could find its place in JPJG's world.
This is an ambition that seems immense to me today for a very small house from Ardèche.
But ambitions may not need to be immediately within our reach.
I would like JPJG to one day be able to offer what I already call, in a corner of my mind:
The Threads of the World.
Pieces that would tell the story of an encounter between materials, know-how, regions, and people.
Beautiful pieces, I hope.
But never ostentatious.
Because traveling has also taught me something I would like to preserve in JPJG:
you can be deeply attached to the place you come from while remaining infinitely curious about what comes from elsewhere.
But threads also connect people
I believe my ambition for JPJG goes beyond the materials.
Because as I gradually discover the world of golf, I am also discovering its people.
Those we see.
And especially those we see less often.
A beautiful course does not exist on its own.
Someone got up very early to prepare it.
Someone maintains the greens.
Someone welcomes people.
Someone teaches.
Someone organizes.
Someone volunteers their time.
And behind these people, there are often still others.
I think it is important to look at them.
Not to turn JPJG into a spokesperson for major causes.
Simply because recognition is part of how I would like this House to view the world.
Our motto, “The nobility of commitment”only makes sense if we are able to recognize this commitment when it is not under the spotlight.
Taking time for yourself
And then there is the person who plays.
Because behind the joke that gave this House its name, there may be something a little deeper than I imagined at first.
I Can't, I Have Golf.
It is light.
It is an excuse offered with a smile.
And I care deeply about this lightness.
Golf remains a game.
A little ball that we desperately try to put into a hole that is far too distant.
But “I Can’t, I Have Golf” also says something else:
This time, I am taking time for myself.
And I believe that sometimes we need to give ourselves that permission.
A few hours to walk.
Looking.
Breathing.
Playing.
Laughing.
Missing.
Starting over.
Being elsewhere.
Taking time for yourself does not necessarily mean turning your back on others.
It may simply mean acknowledging that we, too, need moments that belong to us.
Wearing a thank-you
So, what would I like wearing JPJG to express one day?
Certainly not:
“Look at the brand I wear.”
Even less:
“Look at the values I stand for.”
I would like something much more discreet.
A thank-you.
Thank yourself for having allowed yourself to take this time.
Thank you to those around us who sometimes make it possible for these few hours to exist.
Thank you to those we do not see, but whose work, care, or commitment makes the moment we are experiencing possible.
I like the idea that a JPJG cap, polo shirt, or other piece could carry all of this without needing to spell it out.
Simply because the Maison that envisioned it chose to look at things this way.
Obviously, a clothing brand will not change the world.
And neither can JPJG.
But at its level, a Maison can choose what it looks at.
It can choose the stories it tells.
It can choose the people it pays attention to.
It can choose how and with whom it makes things.
And it can try to remind us of certain things we sometimes forget.
Offering another perspective on golf
Nor do I want JPJG to become terribly serious.
That would probably be the best way to betray its name.
I would like it to retain this ability to look at golf with respect, but also with a little distance.
With elegance, but without affectation.
With beautiful things, but without ostentation.
With convictions, but without lecturing.
And above all, with humor.
Because we can admire a sport's traditions without being prisoners of its conventions.
We can deeply respect those who bring it to life while smiling at our own golfers' foibles.
We can love beautiful things without wanting to show off.
We can take things seriously without always taking ourselves too seriously.
It is probably this balance that I would like to find with JPJG.
So, what is my ambition?
In the end, it is much bigger than I had imagined when JPJG was born.
And certainly much bigger than JPJG is today.
I would like to create beautiful pieces without seeking ostentation.
I would like the Maison, one day, to bring together threads, materials, and expertise from different parts of the world.
I would like to honor those who carry them on rather than simply use their stories.
I would like JPJG to remain deeply rooted in the Ardèche while also being deeply open to the world and to others.
I would like to offer a slightly different perspective on golf and on everyone who brings it to life.
I would like to gently remind people that it is important to know how to take time for yourself.
And I would like wearing JPJG to be, in some way, a thank-you.
A thank-you we give ourselves.
And a thank-you to everyone who makes these moments possible.
I don't know whether JPJG will ever become all of that.
Today, we are still taking our first steps.
But I now know which direction I would like to move in.
To bring together threads.
To bring together stories.
To bring together expertise.
And perhaps, on our very small scale, to bring people together a little.
That is no doubt JPJG's ambition.
And to do all this with enough seriousness to respect what deserves to be respected.
But enough lightness to keep saying, from time to time:
I Can't, I Have Golf.