Charlie Lapson

Charlie Lapson

Getting Giggy with A Hoodie

Whites accept consistently apathetic off atramentous ability (the beatniks, bedrock 'n' roll, aggregate Quentin Tarantino has anytime done). It gives them that cool, alien angel they so badly need. But over the accomplished few years, atramentous kids accept been demography appearance cues from the whitest of the white: ski gear, Monster Energy Hats polo shirts, hiking boots, N.H.L. jerseys. The gold chains and dangling clocks of the '80s accept been replaced with sweaters in ablaze primary colors with polo abstract on the front. Jeans are in, but the baggier the better. Ski jackets are pumped up to Michelin Man proportions. Things accept got freaky, admitting in a absolutely unfreaky way.

For the accomplished three years this baggy-preppy arena has been bedeviled by giants like Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger, but now added than two dozen tiny African-Americanowned labels are alpha to abduct some of their cool. And even a little bit of air-conditioned can be account it: it may attending like alone billowing jeans and hooded sweatshirts, but the $5 billion macho urban-clothing alcove is growing faster than any added accoutrement class except, perhaps, lingerie. And how continued afore Hilfiger offers low-slung panties with his name on the butt?

Boutique labels like FUBU, Naughty Gear, Phat Farm, Pure Playaz, UB Tuff and Wu-Wear can accurately claim--as they do, over and over--closer affiliation with artery appearance than Hilfiger has, even admitting their clothes attending a lot like his. But that artery cred, forth with their blue logos, is allowance them accretion ground. FUBU, which agency "for us, by us," began in 1992 if Daymond John, at 24, started affairs tie-top hats on the streets of New York City. The hats bent on, so he drew up some account for coats and shirts and asked his mom to advise him to sew. Then she remortgaged their abode for $100,000, gave him the money and let him about-face the abode into a mini-factory. He has a absolutely nice mom.

In 1995 John and his three ally took their articles to a appearance barter appearance in Las Vegas; they awash $300,000 account of accouterment in just a week. Soon after, Samsung America agreed to deliver their $69 shirts and $800 balloon jackets to hip boutiques like Dr. Jay's and Casual Macho on the East Coast. Endure summer Macy's began accustomed the bandage in its 10 East Coast stores. "That was like acid our own anthology and headlining aloft Michael Jackson at Wembley Stadium," says John.

Even added than harder work, luck or an acceptable mom, FUBU's success was due to a action beeline from Phil Knight's playbook: it got the all-over LL Air-conditioned J to assurance an endorsement deal. The ambush to hip-hop-fashion money, even added than alms glossy styles, is somehow to get a rapper--preferably one on abundant circling on MTV--to abrasion your stuff. Dr. Dre is biconcave in Karl Kani, Mase gets giggy in Mecca, and Busta Rhymes is decked in Ecko. "Videos are easily down the best commercial you can have," says Mike Clark, the arch operating administrator of Wu-Wear, the characterization started by the rap accumulation Wu-Tang Clan, all of whose associates abrasion it constantly. "It's the best way to cantankerous over." And those who can't yet allow an official-endorsement accord advanced chargeless apparel to as abounding acclaimed humans as they can acquisition addresses for and achievement they will abrasion the clothes in public. Celebrities who accept beat Wu-Wear cover Icelandic accompanist Bjork, the rap metal bandage Rage Against the Machine and athletes Ricky Watters and Shawn Kemp.

Last year Wu-Wear fabricated $10 actor and opened four stand-alone food abounding with Wasp staples like varsity jackets, pea coats, hooded sweatshirts ("hoodies") and ski caps ("skullies"). Wu- Abrasion is one of the aboriginal burghal styles that in fact attending acceptable on white kids. And, of course, it's white guys who accomplish up a big hunk of the hip-hop accouterment market. FUBU was afraid to apprentice that as fly as it may be, one of its top markets is Washington State. Even those who yield their appearance tips from PBS are abutting on: if LL Air-conditioned J appeared on the Charlie Rose Appearance cutting a FUBU T shirt, the aggregation accustomed buzz calls the next day from admirers allurement area they could buy one. And the best barometers of boilerplate America, Japanese inferior top students, are affairs the attending about exclusively, boring their wide-bottom jeans through the streets of Kyoto and Tokyo. Phat Farm, the cartoonishly rural-themed food affairs the hip-hop characterization started by Russell Simmons, the architect of Def Jam Records, says one-third of its chump abject is in Asia.

Even some of the abate labels--employing amid 10 and 30 workers--have the administration cull to get to Asia, and they're acceptable players on the calm scene. Positano, which is alone two years old and still after a business agents or commercial budget, can be begin in the Beverly Hills Macy's, accurately amid Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren. Ecko, which started affairs clothes in 1995 from a two-story walkup in Manhattan's Washington Heights, had no department-store administration if it grossed $36 actor endure year and was commissioned to architecture a 20-piece accumulating for The Lost World. But added than bisected the new artery labels aren't absolutely ghetto startups. They're vanity labels from music personalities like Wu-Tang, Simmons, Shaquille O'Neal (who aswell has his own almanac company, TWIsM, for The World Is Mine) and Chuck D. It's a Disney-like cross-pollinating action that, if it holds, can alone advance to Wu Cafes and Wu Cola. Mmmm.

Many of these baby designers assert they aren't abased on a accurate fad--that their labels can jump with the trends they aces up from the streets. Positano's Charles Lapson, one of the hippest designers in Los Angeles, is already searching to break advanced of the curve, affective against central logos and some slimmer fits. But analyst Laurence Leeds, managing administrator of the Buckingham Research Group, thinks none of these companies will anytime be as big as Hilfiger. "Fringe appearance is never volume," says Leeds. "What these companies do able-bodied is move appearance forward, but I accept doubts whether the businesses can abound abundant larger." And admitting their braggadocio, the designers may accept doubts themselves. While Nike affairs to bareNew York Yankees Hatsits new slogan--"I Can"--during the Super Bowl, Karl Kani will be blame his basketball sneakers beneath a hardly beneath assured slogan: "Can I?"

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Charlie Lapson