The movie starts. The audience is entertained as it watches Paul Newman on the screen, but, unlike most audience members, Todd Snyder is collecting ideas for future designs. Snyder, vice president of men’s design for J. Crew, says he is inspired by many things, including several classic movie stars such as Paul Newman and Steve McQueen.

“They weren’t cutting-edge fashion, but they were real,” Snyder says. “They were guys that had a rugged sensibility. They also had a cleaned-up way about them.”

Many times, movies, music and young people help contribute to Snyder’s ideas. He says he is always collecting ideas from pop culture and, sometimes, from things as simple as seeing somebody on the subway. His designs comprise many of these elements.

“In design, you kind of pull from all those things,” Snyder says. “Things that are unique can come from music or come from architecture. They can come from books, magazines or traveling the world. Just simple things like seeing people at the bar. It all of a sudden gets your creative juices flowing. It’s all about finding a different point of view.”

Snyder is from the Midwest and offers a different viewpoint in the world of fashion, he said. Graduating with a class of 80 people at Huxley, attending Iowa State was a big deal, he said. He originally majored in business finance until his junior year, when he realized he wanted to pursue clothing design. He says he is grateful for the quality learning experiences and opportunities he encountered while attending Iowa State. Snyder says he believes his Midwestern roots have helped him in his career.

“It makes me more sensible when I’m designing, and it gives me a good mix,” Snyder says.

“New York is an amazing place with so much energy. It’s a very cool place, but not everybody should dress how they dress there. Being from here, I come back all the time; a lot of my best friends are here or live elsewhere. It makes me a lot more sensible when I’m designing. It gives me a good mix. It gives me a kind of edge because I’m not just designing for people who live in New York.”

Snyder’s fashion sense is constantly being updated with the seasons the world of fashion goes through, and he says the younger generation helps him keep up with the times. He says he hopes to inspire that generation the way it inspires him.

He says a good eye for trendiness also helps.

“I am able to get a pulse of what can make it here and know when something’s really cool,” Snyder says. “You start seeing kids around here wearing it, and that’s when you know you’ve done something big.”

When looking at the trends of the younger generation, Snyder has noticed the quality has gone downhill. He says he is sick of people complaining about how the United States doesn’t have any good clothing. When people want things cheaper, clothing industries are going to use lower-quality goods, Snyder says. Snyder has worked hard at J. Crew trying to increase the quality of the clothing industry.

“We want people to feel like they can buy something and wear it this year, but also two or three years from now,” Snyder says. “It’s really an investment.”