Rocket in Your Pocket? Getting to know Sam Steph, the man behind Red Rocket Jeans by Todd J. Ramos Photo by John Conroy

A zipper may seem a small and insignificant thing. But it grants access (sometimes quite sexy access!). That, at any rate, has been the experience of Houstonian Sam Steph, whose Red Rocket Jeans have been garnering fashion adulation, all thanks to one little strategically placed zipper.

Steph already had a career as a highly successful model and entrepreneur, when he came up with the idea for Red Rocket Jeans.

"One day I was people-watching with a friend," Steph says, "and observed a couple where the girl was playing with her hand in his pocket. I thought that it would be really interesting if there were a zipper for access."

Red Rocket Jeans hit the fashion scene in 1999 during the Fall Magic Show in Las Vegas and soon became one of the infatuations-du-jour of the fashion media. "Rocket Jeans are the most comfortable and, I must say, fun jeans I have ever worn. I don’t wear anything else!" gushed Playboy model Laura Ingle. "I have been waiting for this all my life," said the Lionell Internet Television/Talk show. Jane Magazine uttered the calculated assessment: "Cool."

Quite a lot of hoopla for a hometown boy. But then, this is not the first time the openly gay Steph has felt fame’s spotlight.

Steph was born in Clyde, Texas, and graduated from Texas Tech University in architecture. He began his business career in 1981 with two health food stores in Lubbock and San Antonio. Then a friend entered Steph’s photograph in a contest that resulted in his first modeling job as the Calvin Klein Man. For the past 17 years, Steph’s modeling career has taken him through Tokyo, Milan, Paris, and Munich. He has appeared in such catalogues as Land’s End and Neiman Marcus, and even been featured in MTV videos. You can see him now in a national television commercial for TGI Fridays. Locally, Steph has worked with clients from Academy, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue to Foleys.

Although Steph is one of Houston’s top models, he’s managed that rare combo of beauty without attitude. He is the good-looking "guy next door" that you want to take home to mom. "Sam is one of our shining stars," says Page Parkes Eveleth, whose Page 713 model and talent agency represents Steph. "Handsome, humble, kind, and sincere all in one."

I’ve known and admired Sam for years. I took the opportunity to ask a few of the questions I guessed discerning fashion readers might want to know.

OutSmart: With all the places around the world where you could work (and have), why is Houston your home?

Sam Steph: My family and friends live here. The city doesn’t have any airs about it and has a hometown feeling. Houston has everything a big city has but without the rat race. It’s all about the people, nice and warm.

Are you married?

[Grinning shyly] No, I am single.

What is a perfect date to you?

A nice bottle of wine with good conversation.

What’s in the future for Red Rocket Jeans?

To expand internationally.

What advice would you give to a young entrepreneur?

When you have an idea, don’t wait for someone to do it, you do it. Creativity is half the ingredient and the other half is follow-through and drive.

Many stores across the country carry Red Rocket Jeans, from Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Dallas, New Orleans, Phoenix, to South Beach, with Houston being home. Locally, Basic Brothers is where you find these fabulous jeans, for men or women.