Christopher John Rogers was born and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Encouraged to pursue the arts from a young age, he was enrolled in fine arts classes and obsessed equally over anime and the works of Gaugin. His introduction to design was creating costumes for his comic book characters. He would use random fabric or garbage bags, draping them onto a form, whatever he could do to make his vision come to life. It was this innate sense of experimentation that shaped his design process. Rogers spent many Sundays in the pews of a Baptist church in awe of the attention to detail that went into monochromatically coordinated silk wool ensembles, complete with feathered hats, stockings, and gloves. This led him to the decision to be a fashion designer.
Rogers attended the Savannah College of Art and Design, where the CJR brand was launched with his senior thesis collection. Upon graduation, the collection received major press, including Cardi B wearing  the “Eddie” coat to the BET Hip Hop awards. Since then, the brand has received international placements in Vogue, WWD, T Magazine, and ELLE, along with prominent celebrity placements on Beyonce, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Kamala Harris, Michelle Obama, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Lil Nas X. In 2019, Rogers was the recipient of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund’s top prize, and named one of Forbes 30 Under 30. He was named American Emerging Designer of the Year at the 2020 CFDA Fashion Awards, and in 2021, he became a finalist for the LVMH Prize.
Today the brand is sold with select retail partners including Alara in Lagos, Bergdorf Goodman, Hampden in Charleston, Joyce in Hong Kong, McMullen in Oakland, Net-A-Porter, Saks Fifth Avenue, & T.A. in NYC. The Christopher John Rogers brand exists to create emotional and sensitive clothing with a focus on effortful dressing, directed towards a client with a strong sense of self. The collection emphasizes quality manufacturing and timeless appeal while encouraging its customers to take up space.