February 23, 2010

FancyFace: We met at a karaoke charity event and you were wearing one of your delicious bow ties…what made you want to design and create bow ties?

Marc Clark: I had a dream, and in it I was at my New York fashion show, Lady Gaga was performing at my show and she was wearing a huge bow tie.  At the time of the dream she wasn’t the icon that she is today.  After I woke up.  I immediately saw a canvas bag I had on my door. I cut it up and turned it into a bow tie.  It was my first prototype.

FancyFace: I can’t remember did you sing anything at the karaoke event?

Clark: No I didn’t sing.

FancyFace: Why not?

Clark: I wanted to sing.  I’m a very shy person.  I couldn’t get up and sing in front of all those other people.  Did you perform that night?

FancyFace: I sang “Hey Big Spender”, “The Boy is Mine,”  I think the third song…with your friend was “Never Gonna Get it.”  If you had a meeting with a room full of investors, what song would you sing to them to best describe your brand?

Clark: Um…”Run This Town” by Jay Z, Rihanna, and Kanye West.  It’s the first song that came to my head.  It’s a very powerful song.  It exudes confidence.  I have confidence in my brand and creation and I’m going to run it.  I’d want my investors to know that we can run this together.

FancyFace:  I always admire people who create their own companies and brands.  What was your first step to launch the brand?

Clark: Getting a solid team around me.  It’s very important in a new endeavor to have people around who support and share your passion. My mom is my “momager” [LAUGHS] as I call it.  She’s my mom and my manager.

FanyFace: Fashion week in NYC wrapped up recently, did you go to any shows or events?

Clark: I went to the Perry Ellis, Crème, Christian Serriano, fashions shows.

FancyFace: My favorite is the White Leopard Print Brooch.  Leopard and animal prints always remind me of women wearing big oversized furs in New York.  What are your thoughts on people who wear furs?

Clark: I love animals and want to have a dog.  I don’t have anything against it.  It’s just your individual feeling.  I’ve seen some fur hats and jackets that I’d love to have.  I don’t own any right now.

FancyFace:  Your site is currently under construction, although customers are still able to purchase items, what are you working on for the new site and look?

Clark:  It’s going to be very clean.  An ecommerce website.  Launches on April 1^st.  I have bow tie headbands coming out and new brooch styles. I’ve created Uder for Marc C.  Bana (a Japenese designer) has collaborated with me on a project on several styles and different frames for glasses.  Each frame is handmade out of 100% brass metal.  Currently Will.i.am is the first celebrity to wear the frames and he’s wearing them right now on the Black Eyed Peas tour.

FancyFace: Are you sold in any stores?

Clark: We got to trade shows in March and the frames will be available for sale in April.

FancyFace: I noticed a picture of Rihanna on the site wearing the Gold Leopard Print Brooch.  How did she get to know the brand?

Clark: Through a mutual friend of ours.  The night of her album release party in New York, I was invited out to meet her.  We had a great time and she loved the bow tie.

FancyFace:  I would love to see a man rock one of these out at the upcoming Oscars.  I wish I could see it on Morgan Freeman but out of the nominees for Best Actor I think George Clooney would look great in it.

Clark:  He’s a stylish guy.

FancyFace: I just wish I saw the men venture out a little bit at these red carpet events.

Clark: I think the bow tie brooch is that accessory that you can wear with a two-piece suit.  It’s a conversation piece and it gives you style.  You stand out in the crowd.

FancyFace: If you were putting up a Twitter thing…what’s it called Tweet?

Clark: A tweet yeah…

FancyFace: You can tell I’m not on Twitter.

Clark: [LAUGHS] Yeah I can tell.

FancyFace:  After this interview what’s your tweet going to say?

Clark: I will say that I’m blessed in so many ways.  I just wrapped up an interview.  I love telling my story and my journey.  With me it’s all about progression, to continue to do good stuff and incorporate good art in everything I do.

twitter.com/therealmarcc

http://www.marcclark.com/

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February 10, 2010

Browsing around the shoe brands at Compass (a trade show

in New York) I stumbled upon Warrior Footwear.  I first met Bobby

Touran and his business partner Danny Danesh over the summer when they

were searching for a store, on Broadway in NoHo, that might be

interested in carrying the brand.  Initially I didn’t know what to

think of the brand.  Probably because I’m not one for tennis shoes.

But after a quick inspection of the seemingly simple footwear I

realized the artistry of the warrior.  It was at Compass (months

later) that I learned the history.  Warrior Footwear started in 1935,

originally used as a sporting shoe for Chinese athletes.

Fancy Face: What’s your involvement with Warrior Footwear

Touran:  Danny and I are brand managers.  We deal with

overseas marketing and international brand management and distribution.

Fancy Face: How did you get started with Warrior?

Touran: We went to the Shanghai Warrior factory in

Shanghai, where the shoes have been produced since the 1930’s, we

formed an agreement of partnership with the factory to give new life

TO this iconic brand.  We wanted to stay true to what the brand had

been, which was a lifestyle item.  We started Warrior Footwear LLC.

We wanted to reinvent and build on the heritage of the Warrior brand

and expand the categories into new merchandise, like backpacks and t-shirts.  Our goal is to start introducing our own models OF this

great brand around the world.

Fancy Face:  Why do you think the brand has been around

for so long?

Touran: Warrior is sort of the ultimate lifestyle item in

recent Chinese history.  As far as footwear, it has been a staple in the

culture.  Warriors are extremely durable; the aesthetic is very

classic with simple lines and basic colors.  It’s the kinda thing

that’s not going to come out of style.  Looking at other footwear now

most brands are going back to the basic, with simple silhouettes.  The

brand has been ubiquitous for a long time like a Converse.

Fancy Face: Yeah I notice that brands like Converse and PF

Flyers for example, are the kind of footwear that you can see anyone

rock in the 70’s and again today.

Touran: What’s interesting about footwear is you do have

to have something on your feet every day. And to have something as simple and understanded as a pair of simple sneakers, it is part of the whole

reason that other brands have been able to be around for so long, like

Converse, and Warrior.

Fancy Face: What does the word Warrior mean to you?

Touran:  Endurance it has to do with standing out, being

an exception.  But at the same time it has a quality of openness to

it, in that it could really apply to everyone and it’s going to have

individual meaning for each person.

Fancy Face: The brand has a devoted following with

alternative youth in Beijing and Shanghai, do you see it having the

same following with the American youth?

Touran: Absolutely!  The types of people who like our

shoes are the same sort of alternative youth.  Anybody who’s going to

buy our shoes is kinda an alternative youth because it is a new brand

in parts of the world.  There’s a risk in trying a product that many

people don’t know about.  To me the phrase “alternative youth” is in

reference to people who are into the arts, cutting edge kinds of

design, and modern music.  Alternative youth used to be into Elvis,

and MTV, for example. We’re kinda like a band that’s

trying to find our sound.

Fancy Face: Which is your favorite shoe?

Touran: My favorite silhouette thus far is the White on

White Classic— which will be released this March.  It’s my favorite just because the Classic is kinda the shoe

that started the company.  It’s different and yet very simple.  My

“standby” or “go-to” Warrior is always the Red on White Classic and

I’m excited to have it released in a new colorway.

Fancy Face: How was it selling your brand when I saw you

last summer?

Touran:  Trying to promote a brand that’s from China has

been difficult because people think the quality is bad.  Which is not

at all true.  The shoes are very durable and quality made.  When we

first came with the product when you saw us last summer, we were

fairly new with the product and just testing the waters.  We are

trying to develop the brand with it’s own integrity.

Fancy Face:  You mentioned “band” earlier…what band

would you say best represents Warrior Footwear and why?

Touran: Good question. I think in a way we’re almost

like “The Strokes.” First of all I’m a huge fan of the band, like

my business partners are.  They had a sound that was new but was

familiar.  The music had substance.  our team behind Warrior is trying

to maintain the story and history of the brand.  We’re sort of new on

the scene and trying to do something a little bit more different.  The

Strokes have 5 people, though and we only have 4 on our team so maybe

it’s not like them [LAUGHS].  Nobody’s ever asked me that before.

Fancy Face: Do you watch sports?

Touran: Yes

Fancy Face: Since warrior started as footwear for Chinese

Athletes, what American athletes could you see wearing the shoes?

Touran: We have kinda moved away from the whole athletic

background.  That was much earlier in the brand’s history.  In more

recent times it’s more of a lifestyle brand.

Fancy Face:  If you had to outfit Jay Leno with the brand

which shoes would you send to him?

Touran: Jay Leno…well I’d send him our Classic shoe

with the blue stripe, from our new collection.  I just get the

impression he would like the color blue and there’s something about

it.  I know he likes driving a lot, and it’s very comfortable.  He

strikes me as the kinda person who likes to break in his shoes and

wear them for a while.

Fancy Face: What’s the next season look like for Warrior

footwear?

Touran: In fall we’re going to be introducing a few new

models we designed ourselves.  With new silhouettes and new color ways

in existing styles.  We’re also hoping to offer apparel and accessories.

More recent than next season we’re doing an online sale

at our website all next week (week of February 15) to correspond with Chinese New Year (it’s the year of

the Tiger) and the 75th Anniversary of Warrior.

Fancy Face: If you were a Warrior shoe what would your

first words be?

Touran: I’m pretty damn cool!!!

Warrior Footwear

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I did a phone interview with Amir Yassai, the designer for Yassai 7 an interesting collection of wearable and editorial necklaces. Naturally there’s a twist. Yassai 7 has a social cause for each collection.

February 3, 2010

Fancy Face: So I was reading your mission statement, “Fashionably Change the World” by throwing together roughed up metals and ravaged chains with 7 collections that are represented by 7 colors that support 7 distinct causes developing a unique jewelry line on the foundation of giving to others with every bagged item.  Yassai 7 is not just a style or trend but a lifestyle.”  Why the number 7?

Yassai: Number 7 is usually a magical number in a lot of cultures, like my culture.

Fancy Face: What culture are you from?

Yassai: Middle Eastern from Iran.

Fancy Face: How did you come up with the concept behind Yassai 7?

Yassai: When we first started we didn’t have a specific direction but we wanted to create something that we would wear.  We’d go to stores and couldn’t ever find something we wanted.  We wanted to make sure people bought this amazing product with a charity edge.  Being from the Middle East, violence and war is a big issue and I wanted to combine the duality between war and peace, love and hate.  Like our brass knuckle necklace, you would use a brass knuckle for violence but we shaped it as a peace sign.

Fancy Face: Who is your typical customer?

Yassai: The people who wear our stuff are usually a socially conscious style consumer.  They’re knowledgeable about the cause and yet want to wear something that looks cool.

Fancy Face: Can you talk a little bit about some of the distinct causes that you’ve been involved in?

Yassai: We’re trying to work with a number of charities and organizations right now that deal with “Stop Blood Diamonds” which is our first cause.  We have seven causes and our other six causes are; Home to Homeless, Children, The Art, Darfur, Peace, and Environment.  And they’re all color coordinated.

Fancy Face: What inspires you the most; music, art, movies?

Yassai: As far as designing goes, what inspires me the most is walking around and seeing what people are wearing.  Like in Tokyo in the Harajuku district, seeing the mix and match of things has inspired me to mix and match different chains.  I like to look at French and Japanese fashion because they take a lot more risks that Americans do.

Fancy Face: What three celebrities would you love to accessorize with your collection and why?

Yassai: I don’t know, that’s a great question.  As far as style goes, Dita Von Teese.  With the men someone who could really pull it off is Adam Lambert he has really edgy style.  I’ve given pieces to Rihanna, I love her style I think she’s great.  I would love to make a custom piece for her.

Fancy Face: I think it’s great that you have a cause and that it’s not just about fashion.

Yassai: If one person wears it and under stands the cause like our “stop blood diamonds” then we’ve done our part.

Fancy Face: Anything exciting coming up?

Yassai: Erica Taylor  (from Erica Taylor PR) and I were going to do a launch party this Spring with Cockpit USA in New York.  We’re doing Elle China and Elle Singapore.  They did our “Love” necklace inVogue China.  We might do custom pieces for Eve and Alicia Keys.  Right now you can find Yassai 7 in Kin on Sunset in Los Angeles and H. Lorenzo in Laguna Beach.  We also have a few pieces in Cockpit USA.

Fancy Face: Where do you see Yassai 7, 2 years from now?

Yassai: I’m hoping that our brand will start to warm up in America.  Asian countries love it.  What we’re trying to do for our next collection is try to go for something a little more streamlined.  A lot of our pieces are editorial.  But I want to make our stuff more wearable. We’re going to do a line with Metro Park and Urban Outfitters.  We want to do things that are $30 retail so customers can still be a part of our cause but at a cheaper price.

Fancy Face: If you had to describe your collection as a cocktail, which one would it be?

Yassai: [LAUGHS] It’s like a Mojito with a little bit of jalapeno in it.  The chains are so clean and the metal pieces are so in your face so the Mojito needs a little spice to it.  I’m kinda just making a drink up, I don’t know I don’t drink very much [LAUGHS].

http://www.yassai7.com/

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The Brooklyn native Derrick R. Cruz started a line of “narrative accessories and art objects.”  The inspiration for his brand, labeled Black Sheep and Prodigal Sons, is noticeable in each piece.  From his studies as a painter to his fascination with Native American mythology Cruz makes each piece “emerge as modern moralizing tools and intimate fetishes.”

Walking passed his booth at Capsule (a tradeshow) in SoHo Manhattan, what caught my eye was the leather and vintage piano ebony necklace “Chogan.”  The intricate necklace or “harness” as Cruz describes it was hands down the most beautiful accessory I saw during tradeshow week in New York.  Talking to Cruz about his brand and the particular necklace in question I realized why I appreciated it so much.  Walking around Capsule, viewing shoe brand after shoe brand and the latest bland contemporary clothing line, his ready to wear art pieces struck me as oddly out of place and some how inviting.  It’s as if Cruz was going back to primal days where humans made necklaces and bracelets out of raw earth materials.  A primitive tribe could’ve made the “Chogan” necklace carving wood from a tropical Asian or African tree and making the strap with horsehide.  This archaic touch makes his pieces come to life.

If the ebony necklace stood out like a planet amongst the stars, than the Abandoned Comb Amulet stood out like the sun in a solar system.  Cruz made the Amulet to represent the vanishing appearance of honeybees in North America.  This 18k gold honeycomb necklace is trapped inside a three-inch tall hexagonal sugar-glass pyramid.  The pyramid is filled with honey produced on a rooftop in New York.  Although I didn’t see the piece at his booth in Capsule, part of me wants to buy it just to see what it looks like in person. I can imagine getting that in the mail and keeping it intact until the day when I feel honored enough to smash the pyramid and extract the honeycomb necklace out of it.  25% of the proceeds go towards the New York City area beekeeping efforts by the The Brooklyn Bee.

One of the best things about Cruz’s brand is that the pieces are limited edition.  There are only seven of his ebony (like his Chogan) and ivory (like his Yiska) necklaces, and only thirty of the Abandoned Comb Amulet. What are the chances that you’ll bump into someone who has the same piece that you have?  That kind of exclusivity is priceless in the mass-produced world we live in where everyone shops at H&M and most women carry a Louis Vuitton or Chanel handbag.

BlackSheepandProdigalsons

Over the weekend, the non-profit organization, Soulciety, held their second annual event, Empower 2, in Hayward, CA at Chabot College. This time sharing the stage with local artist was Fanny Pak and Supreme Soul of ABCD. It was two days long and included dances, spoken word and even a meet and greet after the show. Luckily, before this event unfolded, I was apart of creating the story line, but I started getting really busy with school and work, I couldn’t make it to the meetings. The turn out of the show was impressive.

After closing up shop at work, I headed straight to Lower Haters Gallery, on 597 Haight St, to check out the Burlesque of North America show. One thing I knew going to the show, is that I didn’t have a clue what Burlesque of North America was. I didn’t doubt it’s dopeness, I just haven’t discovered it yet. Finally, I get to a brightly lit corner with a sign that read ‘Lower Haters’.