A Selvedge Denim Pioneer Weighs in on His 5 Most-Worn Jeans

Kiya Babzani was one of the first guys at the Japanese denim party on this side of the Pacific. When Babzani and his wife, Demitra, opened Self Edge, their specialist denim shop in San Francisco in 2006, it was one of the only places in the country selling jeans from brands like Sugar Cane, Iron Heart, The Flat Head, and Mister Freedom.

Back in those days, before r/rawdenim and the proliferation of e-commerce, the only way to learn about Japanese jeans was on forums like Superfuture, and the…