Southern California doesn’t get a fair shake when it comes to fashion; you can blame the plastic movie stars, the gossip magazines, or the H3s. Either way, when Quinn Thompson decided to start Saint Grace, an LA-based women’s wear company, he was taking a big risk. But Thompson was confident that with the right interpretation, the Southern California styles he had grown to love could, and would, appeal to women everywhere. And now, 7 years later, Saint Grace is adored by women all over the world.

When you talk to Quinn Thompson, you get the impression that his success in fashion is almost incidental—like the guy would have made it big no matter what he decided to do. He caught the entrepreneurial bug at a young age, due in part he says, to both of his parents working for themselves. By the time Thompson was ready to graduate from high school, he was practically a veteran businessman, having run his own successful Hawaiian shaved-ice business for several years from a customized pushcart that he had built with his grandfather. During the warmer months, Thompson says, “people drove from over an hour away to come see the water and buy my shaved ice.” Essentially, his story is very similar to other people who find success at a young age; he is confident, not afraid to take a risk, and works incredibly hard.

The name Saint Grace comes from Thompson’s admiration for the name Grace, and his appreciation for his muse and customer, the female form. The clothes are a wearable combination of vintage casual and contemporary silouhettes, constructed from lush fabrics, such as cotton jersey, modal, pointelle jersey, Supima cotton and a unique wool blend that is exclusive to Saint Grace. The seasonal collections never stray too far from Quinn’s decisive vision of what his brand should look like—laid-back Southern California.

For inspiration Thompson mostly looks at the old versus the new. He admits to keeping tabs on current trends, but in the end, he is more likely to be impressed by “a cool find at a vintage store like the Rose Bowl” than he is by a hip tastemaker. Thompson’s appreciation for high quality and tested designs are as evident in Saint Grace garments as they are in his out-of-the-office life, which involves fast, motorized, wheeled objects and an admiration for early 1900s schooners, one of which he happened to live on in Olympia, Washington as a child.

As for the near future, Thompson plans on keeping Saint Grace on an even keel. Continuing to make basic favorites that are comfortable, impeccable, and simple.