Checking in with...Jason Bleick:

Jason Bleick’s clothing line is inspired by the ways cities age and how little people have. He travels the world, watching how people interact and watching them create and innovate. Bleick, the founder of EVER, doesn’t look for inspiration in luxurious settings. Inspiration for his clothing line comes from what he sees on the streets, in the flea markets and in the small villages in Third World countries. He then turns what he sees into comfortable, luxury clothing. For example, a T-shirt at EVER can sell for $65 and a pair of jeans can fetch $198 to $285, Bleick said. His third store opened at Fashion Island last week. Bleick, 39, who grew up in Los Angeles and Huntington Beach, has two other stores in Los Angeles and Santa Barbara. In December, he traveled to Russia for this fall’s clothing line, and in March he traveled to Egypt. In Egypt, he took 2,000 photos and said his Summer 2010 line will have a lot of color and a lot of layers — just like the layers of clothing he saw on Egyptian women. Bleick left his job as vice president of design at Quicksilver to start up his own company.

What is EVER?

EVER is a luxurious, higher-end product that is inspired by travel. We have earplugs attached to all of our products, so that when you’re on a trip, you can use your earplugs to relax and unwind.

Why did you choose EVER as the name of your clothing line?

It actually means any time, any place and anywhere. I thought this was the perfect name for the line, for both men and women. I wanted to choose something not so feminine and not so masculine, and it ties back to the travel theme.

Why does travel inspire you?

We get all of our inspirations through traveling to other countries and seeing color and art work. I’m interested in how fabric ages and in how cities are built and how they fall apart.

How does something so poor inspire something so luxurious?

It’s in the way we transform it for the consumer. We make it so comfortable. Comfort is very important for our brand. If you are traveling, you need to wear comfortable clothes. You can just throw your clothes in the bags, get it out and shake it, and it will still look good when you wear it.

Where have you been in your search for inspiration?

I went to many countries — China, India, Vietnam, all over Europe — while working for Quicksilver. And through that, I became very interested in how creative people are with having nothing.

Where do you manufacture your clothing line?

We do about 75% in Los Angeles and the rest in China, India and Italy.

Where do you plan on going next?

To Tibet for the Flag Festival. Stockholm would be a good place to visit, too.

You said you get your inspiration from countries around the world, so how are you inspiring others?

I’m looking to team up with nonprofit organizations that do work in the countries that inspire us. It’s important to have a deeper purpose in what we’re doing. I want a greater purpose behind the brand.