What It Takes To Create a Successful Fashion Brand
If you ever thought about starting a clothing brand, New York might be the right place to do that. Production cost is phenomenal, the cost of labor is very high, the majority of materials are imported, and it’s impossible to find good quality items for cheap. So how do young designers run their clothing business successfully? In this article we will introduce you to a couple of brands who’s worries are, surprisingly, not financial. Finding recourses is not the hardest thing to do in the industry—it’s not a secret almost every garment is sewn outside of the United States. Young designers shared their stories with us for next generations of creatives as a guide through the industry.
While majority of people don’t have the time or curiosity to find local brands and designers, people in New York are more considerate about what they wear and who they give their money to. The name Ghetto Friends floats around the city among streetwear fans. There are a few designers who are focused on garment deconstruction, specifically denim deconstruction. Ghetto Friends’ denims stand out, it’s an ‘if you know, you know’ thing.
Ghetto Friends
Ghetto Friends has existed as a brand since 2018, and continues to gain popularity among young people in New York City.
Ghetto Friends’ studio is located in Jackson Heights, Queens. Two blocks away from the seventh train stop you will find an electronic store; walk through it, open the door, go downstairs into the basement, and there you find where Ghetto Friends creates their pieces. It reminds you of a speakeasy, but in the fashion world. Today their team consists of six people; two sewers, one pattern maker, one cutter, one production manager, and one social media manager.
Noe and Elias Zepeda, brothers from Queens, are the founders of Ghetto Friends. Elias was reworking clothes back in 2018, while Noe was reselling clothes for hypebeasts. That same year, the brothers decided to unite and make something out of their hobbies. Elias designed and Noe helped his brother bring ideas to life.
“We were sitting at the sewing machine, just looking at the garment, trying to sew it how we wanted. Half inch off and it wouldn’t work. We sat down until we figured it out. It took a lot of time and dedication, but look at us now,” says Noe, who sews each piece himself.
The brand creates clothes and moments that dull the hard edges of convention around age, size, gender, and race; as a Mexican-owned brand, their designs are molded around Aztec roots. The bold silhouette, volume, imagery, and color palette is translated throughout each collection they drop.
Ghetto Friends team works six days a week as they are still establishing the system for their production and drops. “Consistency is what we are looking for right now,” says Noe while sewing another pair of reworked denim. “We have people around, our friends, who had an opportunity to help us and grow at the same time. Fortunately, or unfortunately some of them fell off after some time.” Noe continues, “We are still friends, and they still come around, however this made me realize how important the team is.”
Ghetto Friends production is unique for a small New York brand. “We only put a few things on the outsource like accessories, everything else we make in the house,” explains Noe. They are one of a few brands who are not sourcing their products, but make it in the studio.
Ghetto Friends is a full time job for Eli and Noe, besides individual projects that they do for their friends. Though the brothers started about five years ago, they are still looking for their perfect business model.
In the beginning of their journey, the brothers used to intern for local designers where they learned more skills. In fact, they overgrew people who they used to intern for and are now confident in their skills and ability to create a quality product. Truly, Ghetto Friends’ quality is one of the best in the city.
Noe has just turned 22 and Eli is 21 years old. Both of them recently welcomed new members into the family. Noe had a daughter and Eli had a son—born just a year apart. The brothers are not just building a brand, but a legacy. Their goal is to pass it on to the next generation in their family. That is their motivation in everything they do.
“Omnia Paratus,” translates as, “Ready For Everything”. Omnia means everything. Mateo Furia was born and raised in Washington Heights, New York. He grew up with his two older sisters and his mom. Furia got into fashion when he was 16 years old. While hanging around friends who were into fashion, he met his mentor Emichell Noyola. Furia picked up sewing and pattern making; he learned how to work with different types of fabrics: leather, silk, and wool. While working for Noyola, Furia was designing his own clothing, making sketches for his future collections and even creating concepts for fashion shows.
Mateo Furia looks at fashion like it’s art, “Everything that goes into the process of creating a fashion show matters; the music, the lighting, the decorations, what models look like, how fabrics look in the movement,” he says.
Furia spent more than four years working under other people’s brands. Noyola introduced him to multiple people in the industry which allowed Furia to expand his fashion circle and find new clients. Besides designing pieces, Furia worked as a stylist, digital creative, set designer, studio assistant, and everything else that was possible for him to do in the fashion scene.
“I like fashion, but unfortunately majority of fashion companies don’t pay enough for a comfortable living. This time I have to take control over that,” says the young designer. He decided to not only take control of his lifestyle and elevate it, but also build himself within his brand. Omnia2000, means ready since 2000—the year Furia was born. His clothing brand style is raw, wearable, minimalistic, and deconstructed. With every piece Furia releases, he’s referencing New York—the city where he was born and raised, his Dominican roots, and the grunge style that he relates to.
“The biggest challenge, as I’m only starting my brand is to find my identity. Being better then I was yesterday. Creatively, I’ve learned a lot about myself trying to build this brand,” says Furia while working on his website.
When we asked Furia what the easiest part of creating a brand is he smiled, “It’s going to sound ridiculous if I say it, but also the creative side of it. I can design a whole collection in a day if I really put my mind into it. However, why would people choose me out of everybody else. The more thought you put in your product, the better it will be.” It’s true, every piece that Furia demonstrated contained unnoticeable details that had a great meanings behind it.
His inspirations are Maison Martin Margiela and Rei Kawakubo, who transformed the fashion world by introducing new ideas during the 80s’ and 90s’. While everybody was going in one direction, Rei and Margiela were doing the opposite. They were the pioneers of avant-garde, moreover, they were anti-fashion. Today however, you can only indorse the idea of creating new things, but in reality everything has already been made before. “It makes me think more concept heavy. If I am not going to bring a new silhouette into this world, I am going to introduce revolutionary concepts,” Furia says.
To start a fashion brand you need: a business plan, design inspiration, manufacturing resources, marketing, legal permits, a budget, a passion, and perseverance. Talking to the designers of both brands allowed us to see where they stand. They have a reason to put pieces out in the world. They translate a message that influences people around. Designers are pursuing their own path, observing the world, and not falling under anyone’s influence—that is the key element that brings a brand success.
Do you aspire to create your own fashion brand? Leave a comment below.