In fashion, there are a lot of loud, hype guys—ones that talk a big game but rarely deliver. Andrew Chen is not one of those guys. He's the real deal with a solid industry reputation to prove it. The founder of 3sixteen, Chen is one of the preeminent names in selvedge denim. Of course, these days, 3sixteen makes plenty more than just jeans. Known as a brand that sweats all the right details, they make outstanding outerwear and design their own custom denim, working with Kuroki Mills in Okayama, Japan. Chen himself is no stranger to hard work either. In addition to 3sixteen, he's also a co-owner of the bicoastal Self Edge stores. In fact, we caught up with him as he had his hands full tackling a few things all at once. “We started throwing around concepts for next spring while trying to close out preorders on the fall season and getting things in order to launch this spring,” he tells me. “It's kind of crazy to have to think about three seasons at once, but it's definitely a fun challenge ... and a good reminder to try and stay in the moment and enjoy the stuff we've already been working on for almost a year before rushing off to the next season.” Here's how the denim master starts his day.

I’m definitely not a morning person.

But I'm usually up at 6:30 am so I can help my wife get the boys ready for school. In quarantine I became a morning person and would wake up at 5:45 to get a super early workout in, but since our routines have normalized again, I'm back to my groggy self.

I know my body.

Getting seven hours of sleep has me feeling pretty good. That means that if I'm in bed and asleep before midnight the evening before, I did well.

I am guilty of hitting the snooze button.

I use my phone as an alarm and it's just to easy to hit it. But not more than twice—I have my standard. On the weekends, I try not to set an alarm.

I do have a bad habit of checking my phone first thing in the morning.

I definitely leave longer email responses for when I get into the office, but will typically answer WhatsApp chat messages that our factories have sent overnight. I do read a few emails in the morning, but those are usually quick-hit news roundups (shout out The Daily Valet.) to start the day.

There’s a lot happening on my nightstand.

I've got my phone, watches and jewelry on there. There are a few books, and a candle from Square Trade Goods Co. Right now, I am particularly into their Stone Moss fragrance.

My wife and I split duties with the kids.

Once we're up, either my wife or I head downstairs to make lunch for the boys and get some coffee brewing, and the other will be dragging them out of bed and making sure they're getting dressed. Breakfast is on the table for the boys around 7:20, but I typically skip it or at least wait a few more hours before I eat. I'm off to drop the boys at school around 7:40, and then my day can begin.