Behind the Brand: S. Harris

From Warsaw to San Francisco to Los Angeles and, now, Tulsa—
The S. Harris journey is one of rich tradition and heritage met with creative resilience and progress. The story of this brand begins with one man: Founder, Sol Harris, and continues today through the ingenuity of one woman: Creative Director, Jodi Finer.

Migrating from Poland at the turn of the century, Sol Harris planted his family firmly on the West Coast, calling San Francisco home.
In 1906, he established his eponymous boutique textile house S. Harris, bursting onto the design scene with exquisitely embellished embroideries, fashion-forward jacquard and spellbinding prints. Sol swiftly garnered a reputation for his ostentatious sensibility and became an arbiter of style in the community as his business began to burgeon.
By the early 1930s, a devastating factory fire forced Sol to relocate his family and business, and he found himself heading south. Landing in Los Angeles, Sol established the S. Harris headquarters on famed Robertson Boulevard next to iconic eatery and celeb haunt, The Ivy. For Sol, fabric has always been a family affair and he made sure to inculcate a love of art and appreciation for beauty into the ethos of his children.
By 1988, another family
owned and operated business
sought to acquire S. Harris,
and gently folded the textile
house into their brimming
portfolio of fabric offerings.
Like-minded synergies between the two brands made for a seamless transition, and residing under the Fabricut supplier and distribution realm, instantly strengthened the S. Harris reach into the global design market.
In 2015, Jodi Finer took up her post
as the Chief Brand Officer of the
boutique textile house. Approaching
her creative position with a deep
connection to the heritage of
S. Harris, her grandfather’s legacy
(founder of Fabricut), her relationship
with her father, and a level of
mindfulness to thoughtful living, Jodi
has turned S. Harris into a social
impact-oriented brand.
Under her creative direction, the brand has aligned with several nonprofit partners locally and globally to not only reshape the conversation around how design impacts wellbeing, but also to look for ways to give more people access to design. And, harking back to the early stylized influences imparted by Sol over a century ago, Jodi also brings her background in fashion to the forefront of her fabric sensibilities. In the same way a wardrobe is built over many years and is ever-evolving, she believes that interiors should be built and collected over time as well—in the end, revealing a narrative of the owner.
As the living legacy of this storied brand continues to develop, it leaves in its wake a trail of timeless, artistic and modern textiles that continue to catch the eye of the industry. It's often said that we will be known forever by the tracks we leave, and for S. Harris, each footprint is a step forward both in style and substance.