The Checkroom designer, Liz Williams

Hey There!

This is Liz Williams, the designer/ founder of The Checkroom! I started this small business in 2014 after becoming frustrated by the lack of quality garments available on the market. While shopping for a coat for myself and looking at both  "designer brands" and those in the "mass market" I noticed poor garment construction techniques and little to no insight into the company's ethics or supply chain.

I wondered why there wasn't anything better.

As a graduate of Parson's School of Design I've always been interested in clothing as a form of expression.

However, my skills as a pattern maker and seamstress were forged while sitting behind the sewing machine, creating costumes for some of Chicago's most iconic theaters.

It was during my years as a seamstress that I learned, among other things...

Some of the most beautiful and well-made clothes were constructed decades ago when quality was valued.

Modern garment workers are being extremely undervalued and under-paid.

As a result of a broken fashion system, modern customers were ultimately losing out by having to continually purchase poorly made goods season after season.

With all this in mind I set out to create something better...modern women's outerwear that could be cherished for years to come, not only because of its timeless style but also because of its quality craftsmanship. Since day one, I've pledged to have my pieces ethically-made right here in the City of Chicago.

My intuition (and name for this company) was confirmed after receiving a note from a Coat Checkroom attendant that admired one of my hand-made coats. Her compliment of my work, solidified that I was on the right track.

Note

In 2020, after struggling to gain insight into my own fabric supply chain, I embarked on a journey toward bringing you a 100% American made product using American-made wool. Unfortunately I quickly discovered that the US Wool industry was on the brink of extinction after decades of off-shoring.

I started sourcing small amounts of fabric from American Woolen, one of the few remaining wool mills in the United States. 

In 2023, I am proud to continue my partnership with American Woolen using Shaniko Wool, a domestic RWS certified wool fiber that is harvested here in the United States, processed and woven in the United States.

Shaniko Wool

It's no accident that I am drawn to outerwear as a means of expressing my values. My only hope is that others may take notice and share in them too.

designer, Liz Williams