In this powerful episode of Culture Raises Us, host Astor Chambers sits down with fashion icon and Union LA owner Chris Gibbs to explore the intersection of streetwear, authenticity, and cultural leadership. From folding tees in New York to curating one of the most influential boutiques in the world, Chris shares the journey that shaped his philosophy—and the culture.
Together, they break down the evolution of streetwear, the global influence of Japanese fashion, and how brands like Union continue to center creativity, community, and intention in every decision. Chris opens up about the value of self-expression, the business of fashion, and why working for the job you want—not the job you have—is a game-changer.
Whether you're a creative, entrepreneur, or just a fan of culture done right, this episode is a masterclass in how to show up, do the work, and build something that matters.
🎧 Tap in to hear about:
- The origins of Union LA and its cultural impact
- Chris Gibbs' philosophy on intention, identity, and work ethic
- The rise (and co-opting) of streetwear
- How brands can authentically support community
📢 Don’t forget to download and share this episode with someone building their own lane. Culture isn’t created in isolation—so bring someone into the conversation.
#CultureRaisesUs #ChrisGibbs #UnionLA #StreetwearCulture #AstorChambers #FashionPodcast #Hypebeast #BlackEntrepreneurs #DesignYourLife #CreativeLeadership #CommunityFirst #CultureCurator #DoTheWork
📲 Share this episode with a creative who needs a reminder that culture starts from within.
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Culture Raises US. It isn’t just something we’re impacted by, it’s also something we can impact. As empowered stewards of Culture, it’s time to get smart on how we can continue influencing society while breaking new grounds. On Culture Raises US, Astor Chambers invites you to join for honest, insightful, and challenging conversations with pioneering cultivators across music, fashion, tech, sports, art, and entertainment.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
To who much is given, much is required. Part of
that requirement is sharing. Culture is the heartbeat within our
lives and it's at the core of so many things.
While we live in a time when we are starving
for wisdom, I welcome you to your wisdom retreat at
Culture Raises Us.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
People can smell bullshit and they can smell earnest and
honest intentions.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Chris Gibbs the owner of Union in LA, which is
probably one of the most prominent and influential.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
Retail doors in the fashion space.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
It really does an amazing job of curating selections of
upcoming designers mixed with off the beaten path.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
I n brands from all over flowing work for the
job you want, not the job you have. If you're here,
you can be on your phone six hours a day
and you give me two hours of work. You just
wasted six hours where you didn't build experience, work ethic
your career. You think you got over on me, You
got over on you.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Was there a particular moment where you realize how influential
this culture was to overall culture as we know it?
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Another great question, damn uh.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
Today's guest, Chris Gibbs is the owner of Union in LA,
which is probably one of the most prominent and influential
retail doors in the fashion space that really does an
amazing job of curating selections of upcoming designers mixed with
off the beaten path high end brands from all over
the globe. Chris has definitely played a major major role
(01:31):
in shaping our youth culture of today, and before we
have him share some of his insights, I want to
start with our main question.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
When you hear culture, what does that mean to you?
Speaker 2 (01:40):
I think it's one of those words that's unfortunately become
kind of overused. Culture and community kind of go hand
in hand these days. It's also been kind of co opted,
I guess, you know, but outside of the fact that
it's been co opted, it's still means something very important
to me. And I guess it's kind of like the
(02:01):
fabric of how of your kind of intentions. I'm big
on intentions. I'm big on the why, not necessarily the what,
and I feel like culture, to me is the answer
to them.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
I'm so glad you said the why and not the what,
And because there's been a richness in the things that
you've obviously done and now it makes sense that you
will correlate a why with culture, and I would hope
that many more would take on that approach in general,
because I think we've lost the substance in so many
things and people are just doing to just do, but
(02:35):
there's no real rich why behind it. And I think
a lot of people who know you know about the richness,
and I'm hoping we get to expose a little bit
more of that. And you know, even in the space
of like footwear in a power which obviously you've a
significant part of shaping that culture. As the destination that
you've built and the visionary that you are, I would
(02:57):
love to get a sense from you, was there particular
moment where you realized how influential this footwear and apparel
culture was to overall culture as we know it.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
I think it has, it's evolved, it's continuous, it's still living,
you know what I mean, Like it's still I'm.
Speaker 4 (03:17):
Still every day learning more and more.
Speaker 2 (03:20):
At some point I think a brother I was, I
was in New York, maybe I had moved to LA already,
so this has to be mid aughts is when. So
it took a while, you know what I mean for
me to acknowledge how important and how connected this all is.
But a brother comes up to me and he's got
(03:40):
like a really like fashion forward kid on right, And
this is in the mid aughts, and he's like and
he's like, yo, Chris Gibbs. I'm like, yeah, he's like, yo,
I just you know, it's an honor to me too.
Blah blah blah. He was like, yeah, I just got
to tell you, man, Like I'm from the b X.
I grew up kind of like typical, you know, street
kid from the BX, where like how I dress myself now,
(04:04):
I wouldn't have been I would it wouldn't have been
allowed to. My community would have stopped me, you know
what I mean. And you allowed like in seeing how
you have kind of attacked that space, You've allowed me
to be able to like express myself in a way
that I otherwise wouldn't be And I just want to
thank you and and and so it made me stop
(04:25):
and appreciate him, you know what I mean, And then
zoom out a little bit and see like, yeah, there's
a couple of things that like that have been really
important to me. I want to be able to express myself.
And the number one one of the easiest ways is
through how I dress, how I carry myself, from my
hairstyle to you know what I and that's important to me,
(04:46):
you know, and that's been something that's allowed me to
travel the world in a weird way, you know what
I mean. And I want that same agency for everyone,
and unfortunately, I've found out over the years that not
everyone has that, not everyone has the knowledge it self,
which ties back into your first question, you know, the
(05:06):
culture the freedom to do that. And so when he
approached me and kind of made me kind of step
back and zoom out and see just how important these
stories are. This communication is to just being yourself and
being able to have the agency to kind of roam
this earth and be curious and live and learn.
Speaker 3 (05:29):
So, yeah, yeah, you talked about now is that? It
was funny.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
I was just talking to somebody on set today about
you know, every one of us is sent here with
a gift, and unfortunately a lot of these gifts don't
ever get to be shared, yeah, for different circumstances, And
I think even one of those gifts is part of
the knowledge of self and embracing the knowledge off and
(05:53):
being your unapologetic self in certain spaces and I look back,
like I remember, like you were going to Japan, Like
I feel like way before that was a thing. Yeah, Like,
and I think that taps into this notlge stuff and
being okay with like stepping out and back then this
is a stepping out and doing somebody like what you're
going to Japan for, bro.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Yeah, but also what one of the things, one of
the first gifts Japan gave me was the way they
appreciated our culture. So I went there and I saw
like when I first started going to Japan probably ninety nine, right,
and so streetwear still isn't called streetwear, and it's still
like kind of nobody really knows what it is, right,
(06:35):
And you would basically go shopping and all year this
is like a T shirt printed on Haynes blank, you know,
like that kind of thing. And I went to Japan
and they got that thing, that T shirt that costs
twenty dollars, you know what I mean. You would go
buy like folded on Marble, like you know, they're treating
it like it's luxury. They're treating this our culture in
(06:57):
this they're really upholding it in this beautiful way. And
I guess it's kind of almost coming back to your
second question. That's also a time when I was like, oh,
this is different. They really to see how they're appreciating
our culture. We don't even appreciate it that.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
In that same way. But even their culture I find
was so rich. Yeah, it is like they are true
to their roots, unapologetically true to the disciplines, the character,
the commitment to certain things, and then the cleanliness and
the christineness of everything. You know, I have so many stories,
even when working with Pharrell and Nego, and I mean
(07:33):
you do Japan with Nego, I'm sure one day you're
in a phantom going down the smallest streets you've ever
seen in the world, and he's in this huge car
and it's this amazing juxtaposition of the culture that he's
very much respected in and he respects, but the adaptation
of some of these other cultures of the world, like phantoms,
(07:54):
like you never saw anybody else in one, and I'd
be worried, like, yo, is he gonna scratch this.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Car going down these streets?
Speaker 1 (08:01):
But it is no never never. You know, I look
back at you know, those who might not know your journey,
like you literally started working at Union in New York.
And I'm sure you never thought that one day you
would then be the owner of the Union, right, So
what was that flip in your mind of literally and
(08:24):
figurely now taking the keys in an ownership, because that's
a whole different mindset, and you were working the floor
in New York that might have been one of the
early year days when I met you.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Well, I got to give a lot of respect to
James Jebby and Marian Fusco because one of the things
they did from day one was that word. I like,
they gave me a lot of agency to be my
true self.
Speaker 4 (08:44):
I was used.
Speaker 2 (08:45):
I used to working at jobs where like you had
to kind of assimilate to what the company wanted you
to be and kind of fit in. And the first day,
the first I got hired, the first day, Marian was like,
here's the keys, here's how the lock up.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
I'm out, I'm out.
Speaker 4 (09:03):
Page me if you need me.
Speaker 2 (09:04):
By the way, just to date it, you know what
I mean, and play whatever music you want. And you know,
they champion, which which now is like of course every
you know, but back.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
Then, nah, it was you came in for yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
And so I got to from day one I got
to make that space my own, which was incredible, uh
for me, and I basically like learned on the job
and grew as I learned. Uh, you know, a world
I had no idea about, not one clue. I kind
of like I tell people, like I got that job.
(09:41):
It could have been at the Gap. I just needed
a job to put me through college. And that's the job,
you know, blessed and highly favored. That's the job I got.
But I could have been at the gap and life
would have been very different. So I really appreciate starting there.
And yeah, I'm I'm I guess I'm proud to say
like I'm like that.
Speaker 4 (10:01):
I'm like that.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
Started in the mail room and now he's on the company,
like I started at the bottom, the bottom, you know
what I mean, like T shirt folder.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
But there has to be something has to click at
some point, Yeah, for you to be prepared to step
into that, right because we know nothing is ever given,
nothing's ever given, everything is earned, and there has to
be a mindset shift that you had to adopt to
also be ready to step into. Now I'm taking the
keys again.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Yeah for the no, we were talking about it before
we started, but you know, I had a really strict
father and so work at West Indian father so work
ethic was really and you know, burned into me. And
so I think what really helped me early on it
still helps me to this day, was like just a
really strong work ethic. I knew I was doing this
(10:46):
with intention, but before I knew I was doing this,
I was working as if I owned the place.
Speaker 4 (10:51):
From day one.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
They gave me that agency that allowed me to make
it mine. And then I met that with like and
I'm gonna I'm gonna work on I'm going to work
at this place if it's mine, and you know, like
and so later on, like maybe ten years later, when
I moved to LA and started working at the LA Store,
(11:13):
I started to like realize, like, oh, this is now
my career. At first, it was a job to get
me through college, and then once I graduated college, I
was like, well, I don't know what I want to
do with my life, and I like, I like traveling
the world, so I'm gonna stick with this for a
little while. It was kind of like that. By year ten,
when I moved to LA, I was like, oh, I
guess this is my career. This is not what I
went to school for it wasn't what I had dreamed of.
(11:34):
But by now I'm you know, this is my career.
And that's when I started intentionally like I'm going to learn.
Speaker 4 (11:40):
I'm going to be.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Buddy buddy with the bookkeeper so I can learn how
to how to keep books, because it's the same chunge, yeah,
I'm going to do. I'm going to learn. I'm gonna,
you know, before it was mine, I built our e com.
I'm going to learn e com and figure it out.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
I taught.
Speaker 3 (11:56):
I was earlier on.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
I was self taught on illustrator because I want to
be able to do some designs here and there. And
so I started with more intention learning everything I could,
knowing that one day I might not be working for
them and I might need to do this on my
own and how I'm I gonna be able to do it?
And and that day came like almost as if it
(12:18):
was by design, because I basically was like gonna. I
felt like I hit a glass ceiling and I was
gonna leave. And I told Eddie Cruz, you know, hey,
I think I'm leaving gonna kind of do my own thing,
and he was like, well, if you're gonna do your
own thing, you know, at this point, maybe like you
basically run.
Speaker 4 (12:39):
You run it already.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
If you leave, I don't know, why don't you just
take it over, you know? And it was a perfect
situation because he was already by then he had undefeated.
All his energy was going into undefeated, and deservedly so
and so and Union back then, before that, back then
(13:00):
to this day, Union is the tough one out of
that little family of like Street where Mafia Supreme, Stucy Undefeated,
Union is the tough one. It's always a tough one.
Speaker 1 (13:11):
But when you say tough, I'd love to get your
thoughts on what you mean by that, because when I
look at it, it was it was always a very
unique staple, and it too represented an unapologetic nature to it,
Like you do such a great job of the curating
of brands and items that Yeah, I could walk in
there one day and see a fifteen hundred dollars T
shirt and I'd be like who, But I'd be like, no,
(13:34):
it makes sense though for here right like and anywhere
else might not. But I can also see a dope
thirty dollars T shirt or a thirty dollar pairs whatever,
like it was an amazing experience that I got to
tell you. Every time I used to come to La
sometimes I just walk it just to get a feel
for the experience, right, to see things that I might
not have seen anywhere else, but to see it in
(13:55):
an environment together, it is so compelling. And you know,
as I think about that, I think about you've seen
this industry evolve and change and shift, I mean drastically
because you've been at the epicenter of helping the shape it.
And again, another conversation just having with one of the
young'ins on on set today where I was talking about
how I.
Speaker 3 (14:15):
Was an echon and you remember.
Speaker 1 (14:16):
Ecan's with Nike, where we'd educate the retailers on, hey,
why do you why are we paying so much money
for this shoe? Well, here's the air, here's the mesh,
here's the rubber, the rubber outsole, here's you know, the
file on mid soul that gives a cushion to da
da And this kid looked at me like, what do
you mean you had to do that? People weren't just
buying the shoes because they we fresh one hundred fifty dollars.
Speaker 3 (14:35):
I said, oh no, I'm sorry.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
There was a time where people were like, yo, I'm
not spending one hundred dollars for a pair of shoes,
and we have to provide them with all the tools
to validate and justify the why. I'd love to get
from you. What are the things you've seen in the
evolution of this industry, good and bad over the years,
and kind of is it something that you're excited to
see hopefully it go too.
Speaker 4 (14:59):
Yeah, it's a good question.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
I think what There's a term I used called streetwear
straight no chaser, which is like your basic graphic T shirt, printed,
baseball hat printed, you know, sweatshirt printed like that, and
at the let's entry level price points. So when I
first started, that was the lion's share of what we
(15:24):
were making, what we were selling, and that was kind
of what everybody and that was new. That was like
before that, you would get a T shirt and it
would be like a corporate logo of the brand you like,
you know, or the team you're following. I was a
Hoyas by Hoyas tailor you know, Timberland if you're you
know whatever, the brand is, Nike logo, whatever, And so
(15:45):
for me, what streetwear represented early on was like, no,
there's a message, there's a community that is, there's a lifestyle,
and so it wouldn't it wasn't about logo. So early
on streetwear straight No Chaser wasn't about the logo at all.
It was about like something unique that you would otherwise
not find on a T shirt. It was counterculture, so
(16:05):
it was kind of an inside joke amongst a very
tight knit community of people, and it was fun. It's like, oh,
I get that T shirt. My favorite T shirt we
sold at Union back in the day, was like that.
I was like, oh, this is everything. And like when
I saw it again, for someone listening to this now
who's younger, you've been raised on this is normal for you.
(16:29):
But back this wasn't normal. It was a pervert. This
brand out of Miami actually pervert T shirt, one of
the early streetwear brands, and it was just a picture
of like two like kids sitting on a stoop like
kind of ice grilling the camera and then on the
back of the T shirt it says suckers be swearing
that they stare and it is going to scare me,
(16:50):
you know. And I was just like, this is everything,
And I don't know if someone listening to this that
might not mean anything.
Speaker 4 (16:55):
Maybe you had to be there, but to get.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
A shirt like that, you know, I was, you know
that represented that was my favorite teacher.
Speaker 4 (17:03):
I have it somewhere.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
But so that street where it's straight no chaser, then
Japan early on is the main supporter of that. We actually,
by we, I mean Americans and that community was so
small here that we actually had to live off of
the Japanese coming and buying it. They kind of like
I don't know this because I didn't, but from what
(17:25):
I believe, like early jazz had to be supported by
like they had to come to France to get appreciated
and to need money, right, Like that's why Billy Hollidays,
you know it's whatever.
Speaker 4 (17:36):
You know.
Speaker 2 (17:36):
So same thing with street where early on it was
Japanese supporting. I might sit in that store and three
people walk in one day, you know, two people buy
two sheets or two T shirts. The third guy's Japanese guy.
He's buying thirty and he's taking them all back to Japan,
you know. So and is then you start getting Japan's
take on our thing and their attention to details a
(17:58):
little higher, so they're gonna on like a loop wheeled hoodie,
and it's going to be instead of being eighty bucks,
it's one hundred and eighty bucks, right, but it's like
you touch it, you feel it, you know, this is
a better thing, you know. And so for a long
time there's this back and forth, there's this play between
like American traditional streetwear and then Japan's adaptation of that,
(18:22):
which is a higher end version. It's still a hoodie,
a T shirt, a baseball hat, a pair of jeans,
but made it a higher level, right, with more attention
to detail, at a better quality.
Speaker 4 (18:32):
And so now there's.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
A luck streetwear. But it wasn't even you know, wasn't
even titled that and that price point. Then the next
evolution is, well, if you're spending five hundred dollars on
a hoodie now, right, you're now at like you know,
Madison af price. So now you've got this kid who
started maybe his journey his or her journey in streetwear
(18:57):
straight no chaser a twenty four dollars T shirt and
a you know, a sixty dollars hoodie. And then they
saw the Japanese adaptation in our store and it's double
triple the price, and maybe they saved up because and
they got it like oh the quality, like you said,
the provenance of this can't be denied, right, all right,
(19:17):
So now they're used to spending and maybe they saved up,
they got a littleap however they're gonna get it, you know,
I mean funny sidebar. But like early on, we basically
paid our rent from drug dealers. Those are the only
ones that can afford. But so now you saved up,
and now you're getting the Japanese version, and now you've
been You might not have known of like high fashion
(19:40):
of luxury goods because that wouldn't you know, But now
you're buying something at a similar price point, and now
you understand quality and what to look for in stitching
and washes in the fabric and so now and the
Japanese stuff we were bringing in was super limited. We
couldn't get a lot, right, and so it was a
business this capitalism America. We needed to find something to
(20:04):
have in the store.
Speaker 4 (20:05):
On a Monday and Friday.
Speaker 2 (20:07):
So now we start buying importing high fashion because that
the attention to details there, right, the qualities there. And
so now because we've cultivated this customer that likes a
better thing, and so now we're bringing in high fashion
and I'm buying high fashion with a streetwear lens. So
I'm going and being like, oh, actually, I don't know
(20:30):
Tom Brown come to our song. They make a flannel shirt,
they make a hoodie. We would the consumer, my consumer
wouldn't have known it. So we start buying it like
it's a streetwear brand. Right, I'm not buying your per se.
I'm not which they make. I'm not buying their flowy
architectural slacks. I'm buying their fleece, their brutton down shirts.
(20:54):
They're denim, you know what I mean. And so now
my customer is learning about high fashion next evolution, and
then high fashion is learning about this new customer. So
to me, we've we've talked about the good. You said, well,
talk about something bad. Uh, I don't know it's bad,
(21:14):
it's just a adversity. Let's say, Hi, the big powered
fashion brands from Europe now know we exist and now
know how to make product for us. Right, and they've
got like, you know, million dollars you know, talk to
Pharrell what's the budget he has for a fashion show?
(21:36):
And so today or yes, today, right, the small streetwear
brand is competing for the.
Speaker 3 (21:44):
Same market share, and.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
That's hard, that's really hard, And so that's a negative
in that, like it's just hard for a small streetwear
brand to come up. They've got it, they're they're they're
now competing. So before we were the option outside of
or opposition to. Now it's just one to one competing
and they've got huge budgets and marketing and consumers. Exactly
(22:09):
you said it. You've got to support some of the
smaller brands, and it's nothing against the bigger brands, but
I'm just saying, like or else, they're not going to exist.
So that's one of the things that's like more adversity.
The other thing I'll say is just going back to
my early representation of streetwear. Streetwear, to me, the genesis
of it is this this open and creative communication that's
(22:30):
directly juxtaposed against what it's coming out against, which is
like the logo of brand X on your shirt. And
the upside of this is all those streetwear brands made
such a great name for themselves that eventually people wanted
their logo. Nowadays, you're going to buy the logo of
(22:52):
the streetwear brand and you're largely the consumers not into
and not supporting a more creative just oh, this is
just an interesting political stance or cultural stance or whatever.
You just find the logo of the brand. Now, so
streetwear kind of grew and evolved as an opposition against
just the logo, but they've now grown so much that
(23:14):
they are now the logo. The last thing I'll say,
just to answer your question and totality, is what am
I looking forward to? I think right now, I think
let's call it gen Z. I think I believe gen
Z is similar in what their appetite for what they're
(23:35):
looking for as we were, as gen X was when
streetwear started. And I'm looking forward to seeing like kind
of a renaissance of the sensibilities of early streetwear, if
that makes sense. And I'll say we're in it now.
There's a good part and a bad part. I think
(23:56):
the creativity, the freedom is unparalleled. You walk around and
see how these kids dress. We couldn't have dressed like that.
We were being clown by our best friends. Like yo,
you wearing open toel sandals or square tol' shoes or whatever.
The freedom is incredible and I love it. If you're
a kid now, my kids have painted all that shit
and it's all good, and I love that for them,
(24:18):
right So I love that freedom, and that's what I'm
looking forward to is how that freedom evolves.
Speaker 4 (24:24):
I think that.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
The unfortunate part is as a businessman, it's hard to
put that in a box. So and I've never wanted
my whole like you. I've never wanted to be put
in a box personally. But I have made my business
and you know, made money and made my living on
(24:45):
finding a box to kind of put things in, you
know what I mean. When we talked about union being
the difficult one, the problem with to me with union
is as I've run, it's this. It's this bitter sweet
relationship of where I don't want to put things in
a box. I want it to be free, but they
have to be boxed a little bit in order for
(25:07):
us to like make money pay rent, you know. Like,
So that's my tug of war. That's my struggle a
lot of times is finding the balance there. And it's
every day. It's an everyday challenge.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
You said something a lot of amazing right there, But
you said the early sensibility, the sensibility of streetwear, the
early mindset and I immediately ran to that because I
think about I'm often talking about transferable skill sets, because
you know, a lot of us come up with some innate,
you know, abilities given our backgrounds that add so much
(25:42):
value to so much of this world. And you know
where I'm speaking there, and I think a lot of
that is transferable into a number of different what do
you want to call it? Industries or cultures? And when
you said that sensibility of early streetwear, it led me
to a question I really wanted to ask, And I
think this leans into you know, given the state of things,
(26:06):
you know, what are you doing specifically to ensure that
the cultures and the spaces that we frequent and are
being nurtured? How are they being nurtured properly?
Speaker 3 (26:16):
Right?
Speaker 1 (26:16):
Because again we've put a lot in, we've helped create Yeah,
and so I would ask, you know, what do you
also recommend for other creatives and other consumers to do
on their end? And when you said that sensibility of
early street where that was such a rich statement, that
is very transferable into today's world, which is a lot
(26:39):
going on. So like, how do you see that.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
A lot of our corporate partners have come to us
and the niche we serve is we're going to give
them better access to community. We're gonna give them better
access to because right and a lot of times they'll
come in with with like kind of a structured plan
around how we're going to do that, and we have
to donate to this organization we have to do like
(27:06):
it's very like, for lack of a better term, it's
very performative, and I have to I find myself often
having to fight and being like, no, you don't understand
our existence by itself serves the community. By the type
of brands we're bringing in, right, from smaller designers and
mixing it with bigger ones to give that relationship is important. Right,
(27:29):
If we were just small brands, then we would just
be this kind of like mom and pop boutique. We
now match them and juxtapose them against bigger brands so
that they're kind of playing on the same playground and
now there's visibility and sharing going on, and it allows
these brands to grow.
Speaker 4 (27:46):
And so I think.
Speaker 2 (27:48):
We you know, knowing that like people like us, right
didn't have these opportunities and making sure we continue to
give those opportunities, give them their agency to communicate by
who we're buying, making sure that we're always I try
to always consider the consumer. I'll give you an example.
(28:12):
You know, well, every time we do like one of
our big kind of collaborative sneaker drops with with Nike
or Jordan, they're very hard to get, you know, and
we do a local raffle here in Los Angeles where
we try to make it a lot easier.
Speaker 4 (28:30):
And I would argue, like.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
If you your chances of being able to purchase these
really hard to get shoes globally, that hey, I can't
solve the global part, but like if you live in
LA and you show up on that day, you're most
likely getting a pair of shoes. And people really appreciate that,
you know what I mean. And that's like just simple,
Like you know, I've my career and how I've what
(28:53):
I feel is like my superpower. And I've talked to
other people who also share this same superpower enough where like, yo,
it's not like a secret, it's actually foundational.
Speaker 3 (29:03):
Sure that this is your superpower.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
Then they also have the super power from the same experience,
which is like so if I talk to Jerry Lorenzo,
Jeryl will be like, yo, I worked at Diesel and
I was shop staff at Diesel, and that is like
face to face with the customer, and you're seeing daily
what they're looking for, what they're not, what makes them
change their mind, what catches their eye. I did that
(29:27):
for twenty fucking years at this store. And so I
really feel like I know what the consumer wants, and
so I'm designing, I'm marketing. I'm activating through the lens
of like what does the consumer want? So much so
that so when I'm in Portland having meetings and I'm
and we're deciding what our offense is going to be
(29:49):
on the next shoe or the next release, a lot
of times there's maybe a really good idea, but it's like,
but the consumer doesn't want that. That's not feeding.
Speaker 3 (30:00):
Them because there's no consumers in that room, right.
Speaker 2 (30:03):
But I'm That's what I think. That's superpower. I'm representing
the consumer. So one of the things that's allowed me
to be successful is I feel like I go into
these rooms, I go into these meetings and I'm representing
the consumer and guess what the consumers me and my
community that has been underserved and under you know what
I mean, And so and maybe someone hearing this, I.
Speaker 4 (30:25):
Hope I'm communicating it. Well.
Speaker 2 (30:28):
That might sound very I don't know, conceded.
Speaker 3 (30:31):
No, it's not at all.
Speaker 2 (30:32):
I'm trying to represent.
Speaker 1 (30:36):
You're not the voice for every black human being on
the BIT because you know, we get in the rooms
and they the voice of all. No, but you are
a prominent voice that should be heard in those spaces
because guess what, I've been on the other side of
that table where you know, the brand of trying to
say this is what the consumer wants in your absolutely rights.
Speaker 2 (30:52):
Like really creative Harvard MIT grads up in there with
some really cool ideas. But I'm like sometimes and sometimes
it hits, But I'm like, sometimes I gotta be like, yo,
Like we just had to have a huddle on a
future project, and I'm like, because I'm are.
Speaker 4 (31:06):
We really doing?
Speaker 2 (31:08):
We had there was an idea at the genesis of
this that was that was interesting, let's call it that.
And then as the development of this product has come,
I think the the product is different than the idea.
It's just how organically right and we're about and and
(31:29):
so we're about to like and now we're about to
launch the product, and there's kind of a narrative around
it that's like not true to the genesis because the
product developed in a different way. Hey, guys, stop time out,
let's have a huddle, let's reframe this. And thankfully people
agreed and we're able to pivot. And I think that
pivot is going to make a world of difference.
Speaker 1 (31:51):
So the thankful, though, is not just for the people agreeing.
The thankful is that you utilize your voice.
Speaker 4 (31:57):
Yes, And I feel.
Speaker 1 (31:59):
If I didn't, these things would have gone all the
way left.
Speaker 2 (32:03):
And that comes with experience. There are times when I
haven't and now I have, and now I have, like
and here's the here's the proof, here's the receipt. I
didn't I didn't speak up here. We went with this
and it didn't work. What happened, you know what I mean.
And so when I called the huddle, I was like,
look where there's a partnership here, and you guys are
(32:23):
a big part of it. So I'm not trying to
I just want to make sure we're having the conversation.
So I know when people talk about, hey, is there
someone in the room, is there someone at that table.
I don't always need to have it go my way,
but I always want that conversation to be had, and
as long as I feel like I've been listened to,
(32:44):
I can walk away with whatever the end result is
and whatever the decisions made that a lot of times
isn't what I wanted.
Speaker 4 (32:51):
But all right, y'all listen to me.
Speaker 1 (32:54):
Right, Well, you know what you mentioned community in a
lot of that and you being a reflection of the community,
and I think your boutique serves as a hub for
the local community. How do you believe having this connected
and engaged community, both locally and online kind of contributes
to the success and sustainability of the business.
Speaker 2 (33:13):
Yeah, I mean it's everything. It's who we are. We're
not successful without it, full stop. I really believe that
there's this and I don't know, maybe there's a term
for that I'm unaware of, but there's this energy right that.
Speaker 4 (33:30):
Brand.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
I'm the retailer and I have a relationship with the consumer,
but it could be flipped, right, It's more universal, this energy,
and people just can smell bullshit, yep, and they can
smell earnest and honest intentions. And I think how I've
tried to run our company is in making sure there's
just an earnest idea, an honest representation of that idea.
(33:54):
We've never been like if I don't most people say,
even from day one, never been a store that tried to, oh, yeah,
that looks dope on you because we need to sell.
Doesn't look dope. Now that don't look dope, man, look
for something else. I've sent people to stores up the block.
We don't have something that's going to work for you today,
but you know that might but they do. But I remember, yo, dude,
(34:17):
suld I should have been getting royalties early on. So Union,
New York, we sold PRPs denim from day one, and
it was like a favorite great denim. And then when
I moved out to La it was sold at the
denim bar American Rag. And people would come in and
you know, for example, when I first moved here, most
of the denim that we carried was Japanese denim. Yes,
(34:40):
and there's certain body types it just doesn't fit right.
And so people come in and they try and wouldn't
and I'd be like, dude, it just ain't working for you,
but I know what you want. Go to American Rag.
They have denim. You're good, hey man. And that person
might may or may not get a T shirt or
a hat or a sneaker from us at the time,
(35:01):
but they appreciate, like, I got your back, I'm looking
out for you, want to I just want you to
be Our purpose is to make sure we used to
have a little I used to do a blog post
on our which I stopped. But the ship I do
to make you look fly, and it would be kind
of like the whole premise behind it was like, I'm
traveling to Paris. You know, I'm traveling to Japan, Tokyo, London,
(35:26):
I'm Italy, I'm traveling all over the world, and I'm suffering,
Like it's such a hard work to get on the
plane and go to Japan, and I'm saving away, I'm
working hard so you could be fly, but then showing
you amazing pictures of like Tokyo and Paris, but kind
of like, but this is just hard work for me,
That's all I'm doing.
Speaker 1 (35:45):
You know, you have put a definition on a community
that was so rich that I hope people captured because
you reflected in so many ways on the surface level
that everybody knows and we know what union means and
we know what you mean.
Speaker 3 (35:59):
To the culture. But what you just shared about.
Speaker 1 (36:03):
We don't have what you want, what you need, or
what you're looking for. However, here's where you can find it.
That's a real community. Yeah, because people just be like,
now we don't have it, but here, let me get
you something else.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
Yeah, you know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (36:19):
That's the richness and I hope that was truly grasped
by people of what community really entails. How are you
really helping the collective regardless if you benefit.
Speaker 2 (36:29):
From yeah or not. To sound like a I don't know,
grumpy old man, but I think our core customers from
this from a particular era really got it and helped
us grow. And I'm really thankful because we don't grow
without the support of our core customers. We're having a
tough time translating that to this newer generation, and I
(36:53):
take full responsibility for it. I'm not like, oh fuck,
you know, for those kids, they don't know what's up.
We're just having a tough time. That's our That's something
we're gonna have to figure out is how to communicate
that same thing because they've been brought up in a
different space.
Speaker 4 (37:09):
A lot of them have been brought up kind of.
Speaker 2 (37:11):
Almost spoon fed you know, I remember like back in
the day, you know, Supreme did like a they did
a like a black Panther T shirt, right, and you know,
fuck like this is early early aughts, maybe late nineties,
maybe late nineties. Actually, I was like, I have to
have that T shirt. But yeah, no doubt no black
(37:34):
Panther like the Panther, not the comic book. Sorry, thank
you for that correction. And I was like, ya, I
have this is the hardest T shirt. I need to
have this T shirt. But for me, I knew I
couldn't rocket if I didn't do the math first, and
so I went and read seized the time so I
could wear that T shirt. And I don't think that's
(37:56):
happening today, right, the kids rocking a band T shirt
because it's the cool T shirt to where the band
that they don't even know the band is. They don't
even know the music, you know, or whatever, you know.
So I'd like for them to do their own math.
But we're in a time where it's hard for people
to commit to that, to that, to that homework.
Speaker 1 (38:16):
You've shared so much, but you know, we always kind
of end with sharing what are the three seeds you
would leave with the stewarts of culture moving for because
you and I both know we're at a critical point,
and culture, I mean for me obviously, is a huge
through line and of all things I think, and if
(38:36):
we do this right, we can change a lot of
what's going on worldly. But I'd love to hear from
you if there are three things that you could leave
this next generation or these stewarts of culture move for.
Speaker 3 (38:47):
What would it be?
Speaker 2 (38:48):
One of the things I try to tell people when
they ask me, I hope this answers the question. Is
this is probably the most important thing for me, and
I should I should have this like down to science
on how I communicate it, but I never do and
I was fumblow over my words, so forgive me.
Speaker 4 (39:05):
But like.
Speaker 2 (39:08):
Early on in my career, I'm a mixed kid from Canada,
from no like not even the city you never heard of, Canada.
I don't think I had any special relationship with like
culture or fashion or music or anything. I was just
a regular kid coming up like we all are. Like
(39:28):
Lebron has I'm a kid from Akron right, right, and
that messaging really resonated to me. I'm not from Akron
right obviously, but like I knew what he was trying
to say, I'm just like you, and even though I've
got the best to ever do it on the court
or arguably top three whatever. I'm not trying to start
that debate today, but I'm just saying, like, you know,
(39:49):
even though I've got these skills that you might not have,
Like I have a story to tell. It's mine. It's
unique to me, and people want to hear it, you know.
And so what I try to tell people is like, yo,
when I'm designing, when I'm I'm just trying to tell
my stories. And I try to tell young people coming up,
(40:12):
you have a story to tell. I don't care where
you're from, rich, poor, black, white, anything. You've got a
story to tell your life experience that's interesting, you know
what I mean. And so tell your story. Feel have
your agency to be you. That's a big thing for me,
you know. I used to like the big thing.
Speaker 3 (40:32):
Do you know?
Speaker 2 (40:33):
That could be boiled down into do you right? But
the zoomed out verse is having agency and to be
able to tell your stories. That's hard. It's hard for
people to be Like, people care what I have to say,
People care about where I come from Ottawa, Like who
the fuck cares, you know what I mean.
Speaker 4 (40:52):
But being raised in Ottawa.
Speaker 2 (40:55):
Kind of far away from where the action was allowed
me to look at it in a different way, and
you know, and come with a new perspective and an
understanding and appreciation for it. So that's a big thing
to me. That's one damn.
Speaker 4 (41:13):
So do you.
Speaker 2 (41:16):
I think I mentioned it earlier on work ethic is
really important. You know, I worked they. I think there's
an adage like dress for the job you want, not
the job you have. Right, mine's a little different. Work
for the job you want, not the job you have.
I tell that to my staff. It's hard because I'm
(41:37):
the man, right we always think about the man. I've
got to be the man at work. But I try
to tell that to my staff. Like, Yo, if you're
here and you've worked it so that you can be
on your phone watching social media for six hours a
day and you give me two hours of work and
you can get over where I'm where I'm right, Hey,
(41:58):
more power to you. I'm not a time clock watcher.
That's not what I'm into. And you might think you're
getting over on me, like you're getting over you just
wasted six hours where you didn't build experience, work ethic
your career. You think you got over on me, you
got over on you. I'm sitting here today because I
(42:20):
gave ten hours when I needed eight, when the when
the when the my boss required eight, I gave twelve,
you know what I mean, and that that gave me experience,
understanding a work ethic that now I could build my
own career off of. So if you're in your goofing
off cool and you can get over on me if
(42:41):
that's what you want to call it, whatever, right, And
maybe you are, maybe you're not, but you're actually doing
yourself a diservice.
Speaker 4 (42:46):
You're not learning what you need to do.
Speaker 3 (42:48):
Listen.
Speaker 1 (42:49):
You know you obviously dropped the mic on that one,
and you know you're obviously such a great reflection of
that because you look at your story when you started
with New York and thank you for sharing that, and
more importantly, I thank you for sharing that knowledge with
that next generation. And I ask that you continue to
(43:09):
be who you are in this space, keep your why
at the forefront of all things, and just thank you
for what you've done and will continue to do for
the culture.
Speaker 4 (43:17):
Bro. Thank you, appreciate you, thank you.
Speaker 3 (43:19):
Thank you Chris good to see.
Speaker 1 (43:21):
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To who much is given, much is required. Part of
that requirement is sharing. Culture is the heartbeat within our
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While we live in a time when we are starving
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Culture Raises Us.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
People can smell bullshit and they can smell earnest and
honest intentions.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Chris Gibbs the owner of Union in LA, which is
probably one of the most prominent and influential.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
Retail doors in the fashion space.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
It really does an amazing job of curating selections of
upcoming designers mixed with off the beaten path.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
I n brands from all over flowing work for the
job you want, not the job you have. If you're here,
you can be on your phone six hours a day
and you give me two hours of work. You just
wasted six hours where you didn't build experience, work ethic
your career. You think you got over on me, You
got over on you.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Was there a particular moment where you realize how influential
this culture was to overall culture as we know it?
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Another great question, damn uh.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
Today's guest, Chris Gibbs is the owner of Union in LA,
which is probably one of the most prominent and influential
retail doors in the fashion space that really does an
amazing job of curating selections of upcoming designers mixed with
off the beaten path high end brands from all over
the globe. Chris has definitely played a major major role
(01:31):
in shaping our youth culture of today, and before we
have him share some of his insights, I want to
start with our main question.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
When you hear culture, what does that mean to you?
Speaker 2 (01:40):
I think it's one of those words that's unfortunately become
kind of overused. Culture and community kind of go hand
in hand these days. It's also been kind of co opted,
I guess, you know, but outside of the fact that
it's been co opted, it's still means something very important
to me. And I guess it's kind of like the
(02:01):
fabric of how of your kind of intentions. I'm big
on intentions. I'm big on the why, not necessarily the what,
and I feel like culture, to me is the answer
to them.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
I'm so glad you said the why and not the what,
And because there's been a richness in the things that
you've obviously done and now it makes sense that you
will correlate a why with culture, and I would hope
that many more would take on that approach in general,
because I think we've lost the substance in so many
things and people are just doing to just do, but
(02:35):
there's no real rich why behind it. And I think
a lot of people who know you know about the richness,
and I'm hoping we get to expose a little bit
more of that. And you know, even in the space
of like footwear in a power which obviously you've a
significant part of shaping that culture. As the destination that
you've built and the visionary that you are, I would
(02:57):
love to get a sense from you, was there particular
moment where you realized how influential this footwear and apparel
culture was to overall culture as we know it.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
I think it has, it's evolved, it's continuous, it's still living,
you know what I mean, Like it's still I'm.
Speaker 4 (03:17):
Still every day learning more and more.
Speaker 2 (03:20):
At some point I think a brother I was, I
was in New York, maybe I had moved to LA already,
so this has to be mid aughts is when. So
it took a while, you know what I mean for
me to acknowledge how important and how connected this all is.
But a brother comes up to me and he's got
(03:40):
like a really like fashion forward kid on right, And
this is in the mid aughts, and he's like and
he's like, yo, Chris Gibbs. I'm like, yeah, he's like, yo,
I just you know, it's an honor to me too.
Blah blah blah. He was like, yeah, I just got
to tell you, man, Like I'm from the b X.
I grew up kind of like typical, you know, street
kid from the BX, where like how I dress myself now,
(04:04):
I wouldn't have been I would it wouldn't have been
allowed to. My community would have stopped me, you know
what I mean. And you allowed like in seeing how
you have kind of attacked that space, You've allowed me
to be able to like express myself in a way
that I otherwise wouldn't be And I just want to
thank you and and and so it made me stop
(04:25):
and appreciate him, you know what I mean, And then
zoom out a little bit and see like, yeah, there's
a couple of things that like that have been really
important to me. I want to be able to express myself.
And the number one one of the easiest ways is
through how I dress, how I carry myself, from my
hairstyle to you know what I and that's important to me,
(04:46):
you know, and that's been something that's allowed me to
travel the world in a weird way, you know what
I mean. And I want that same agency for everyone,
and unfortunately, I've found out over the years that not
everyone has that, not everyone has the knowledge it self,
which ties back into your first question, you know, the
(05:06):
culture the freedom to do that. And so when he
approached me and kind of made me kind of step
back and zoom out and see just how important these
stories are. This communication is to just being yourself and
being able to have the agency to kind of roam
this earth and be curious and live and learn.
Speaker 3 (05:29):
So, yeah, yeah, you talked about now is that? It
was funny.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
I was just talking to somebody on set today about
you know, every one of us is sent here with
a gift, and unfortunately a lot of these gifts don't
ever get to be shared, yeah, for different circumstances, And
I think even one of those gifts is part of
the knowledge of self and embracing the knowledge off and
(05:53):
being your unapologetic self in certain spaces and I look back,
like I remember, like you were going to Japan, Like
I feel like way before that was a thing. Yeah, Like,
and I think that taps into this notlge stuff and
being okay with like stepping out and back then this
is a stepping out and doing somebody like what you're
going to Japan for, bro.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
Yeah, but also what one of the things, one of
the first gifts Japan gave me was the way they
appreciated our culture. So I went there and I saw
like when I first started going to Japan probably ninety nine, right,
and so streetwear still isn't called streetwear, and it's still
like kind of nobody really knows what it is, right,
(06:35):
And you would basically go shopping and all year this
is like a T shirt printed on Haynes blank, you know,
like that kind of thing. And I went to Japan
and they got that thing, that T shirt that costs
twenty dollars, you know what I mean. You would go
buy like folded on Marble, like you know, they're treating
it like it's luxury. They're treating this our culture in
(06:57):
this they're really upholding it in this beautiful way. And
I guess it's kind of almost coming back to your
second question. That's also a time when I was like, oh,
this is different. They really to see how they're appreciating
our culture. We don't even appreciate it that.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
In that same way. But even their culture I find
was so rich. Yeah, it is like they are true
to their roots, unapologetically true to the disciplines, the character,
the commitment to certain things, and then the cleanliness and
the christineness of everything. You know, I have so many stories,
even when working with Pharrell and Nego, and I mean
(07:33):
you do Japan with Nego, I'm sure one day you're
in a phantom going down the smallest streets you've ever
seen in the world, and he's in this huge car
and it's this amazing juxtaposition of the culture that he's
very much respected in and he respects, but the adaptation
of some of these other cultures of the world, like phantoms,
(07:54):
like you never saw anybody else in one, and I'd
be worried, like, yo, is he gonna scratch this.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Car going down these streets?
Speaker 1 (08:01):
But it is no never never. You know, I look
back at you know, those who might not know your journey,
like you literally started working at Union in New York.
And I'm sure you never thought that one day you
would then be the owner of the Union, right, So
what was that flip in your mind of literally and
(08:24):
figurely now taking the keys in an ownership, because that's
a whole different mindset, and you were working the floor
in New York that might have been one of the
early year days when I met you.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Well, I got to give a lot of respect to
James Jebby and Marian Fusco because one of the things
they did from day one was that word. I like,
they gave me a lot of agency to be my
true self.
Speaker 4 (08:44):
I was used.
Speaker 2 (08:45):
I used to working at jobs where like you had
to kind of assimilate to what the company wanted you
to be and kind of fit in. And the first day,
the first I got hired, the first day, Marian was like,
here's the keys, here's how the lock up.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
I'm out, I'm out.
Speaker 4 (09:03):
Page me if you need me.
Speaker 2 (09:04):
By the way, just to date it, you know what
I mean, and play whatever music you want. And you know,
they champion, which which now is like of course every
you know, but back.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
Then, nah, it was you came in for yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
And so I got to from day one I got
to make that space my own, which was incredible, uh
for me, and I basically like learned on the job
and grew as I learned. Uh, you know, a world
I had no idea about, not one clue. I kind
of like I tell people, like I got that job.
(09:41):
It could have been at the Gap. I just needed
a job to put me through college. And that's the job,
you know, blessed and highly favored. That's the job I got.
But I could have been at the gap and life
would have been very different. So I really appreciate starting there.
And yeah, I'm I'm I guess I'm proud to say
like I'm like that.
Speaker 4 (10:01):
I'm like that.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
Started in the mail room and now he's on the company,
like I started at the bottom, the bottom, you know
what I mean, like T shirt folder.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
But there has to be something has to click at
some point, Yeah, for you to be prepared to step
into that, right because we know nothing is ever given,
nothing's ever given, everything is earned, and there has to
be a mindset shift that you had to adopt to
also be ready to step into. Now I'm taking the
keys again.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Yeah for the no, we were talking about it before
we started, but you know, I had a really strict
father and so work at West Indian father so work
ethic was really and you know, burned into me. And
so I think what really helped me early on it
still helps me to this day, was like just a
really strong work ethic. I knew I was doing this
(10:46):
with intention, but before I knew I was doing this,
I was working as if I owned the place.
Speaker 4 (10:51):
From day one.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
They gave me that agency that allowed me to make
it mine. And then I met that with like and
I'm gonna I'm gonna work on I'm going to work
at this place if it's mine, and you know, like
and so later on, like maybe ten years later, when
I moved to LA and started working at the LA Store,
(11:13):
I started to like realize, like, oh, this is now
my career. At first, it was a job to get
me through college, and then once I graduated college, I
was like, well, I don't know what I want to
do with my life, and I like, I like traveling
the world, so I'm gonna stick with this for a
little while. It was kind of like that. By year ten,
when I moved to LA, I was like, oh, I
guess this is my career. This is not what I
went to school for it wasn't what I had dreamed of.
(11:34):
But by now I'm you know, this is my career.
And that's when I started intentionally like I'm going to learn.
Speaker 4 (11:40):
I'm going to be.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Buddy buddy with the bookkeeper so I can learn how
to how to keep books, because it's the same chunge, yeah,
I'm going to do. I'm going to learn. I'm gonna,
you know, before it was mine, I built our e com.
I'm going to learn e com and figure it out.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
I taught.
Speaker 3 (11:56):
I was earlier on.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
I was self taught on illustrator because I want to
be able to do some designs here and there. And
so I started with more intention learning everything I could,
knowing that one day I might not be working for
them and I might need to do this on my
own and how I'm I gonna be able to do it?
And and that day came like almost as if it
(12:18):
was by design, because I basically was like gonna. I
felt like I hit a glass ceiling and I was
gonna leave. And I told Eddie Cruz, you know, hey,
I think I'm leaving gonna kind of do my own thing,
and he was like, well, if you're gonna do your
own thing, you know, at this point, maybe like you
basically run.
Speaker 4 (12:39):
You run it already.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
If you leave, I don't know, why don't you just
take it over, you know? And it was a perfect
situation because he was already by then he had undefeated.
All his energy was going into undefeated, and deservedly so
and so and Union back then, before that, back then
(13:00):
to this day, Union is the tough one out of
that little family of like Street where Mafia Supreme, Stucy Undefeated,
Union is the tough one. It's always a tough one.
Speaker 1 (13:11):
But when you say tough, I'd love to get your
thoughts on what you mean by that, because when I
look at it, it was it was always a very
unique staple, and it too represented an unapologetic nature to it,
Like you do such a great job of the curating
of brands and items that Yeah, I could walk in
there one day and see a fifteen hundred dollars T
shirt and I'd be like who, But I'd be like, no,
(13:34):
it makes sense though for here right like and anywhere
else might not. But I can also see a dope
thirty dollars T shirt or a thirty dollar pairs whatever,
like it was an amazing experience that I got to
tell you. Every time I used to come to La
sometimes I just walk it just to get a feel
for the experience, right, to see things that I might
not have seen anywhere else, but to see it in
(13:55):
an environment together, it is so compelling. And you know,
as I think about that, I think about you've seen
this industry evolve and change and shift, I mean drastically
because you've been at the epicenter of helping the shape it.
And again, another conversation just having with one of the
young'ins on on set today where I was talking about
how I.
Speaker 3 (14:15):
Was an echon and you remember.
Speaker 1 (14:16):
Ecan's with Nike, where we'd educate the retailers on, hey,
why do you why are we paying so much money
for this shoe? Well, here's the air, here's the mesh,
here's the rubber, the rubber outsole, here's you know, the
file on mid soul that gives a cushion to da
da And this kid looked at me like, what do
you mean you had to do that? People weren't just
buying the shoes because they we fresh one hundred fifty dollars.
Speaker 3 (14:35):
I said, oh no, I'm sorry.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
There was a time where people were like, yo, I'm
not spending one hundred dollars for a pair of shoes,
and we have to provide them with all the tools
to validate and justify the why. I'd love to get
from you. What are the things you've seen in the
evolution of this industry, good and bad over the years,
and kind of is it something that you're excited to
see hopefully it go too.
Speaker 4 (14:59):
Yeah, it's a good question.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
I think what There's a term I used called streetwear
straight no chaser, which is like your basic graphic T shirt, printed,
baseball hat printed, you know, sweatshirt printed like that, and
at the let's entry level price points. So when I
first started, that was the lion's share of what we
(15:24):
were making, what we were selling, and that was kind
of what everybody and that was new. That was like
before that, you would get a T shirt and it
would be like a corporate logo of the brand you like,
you know, or the team you're following. I was a
Hoyas by Hoyas tailor you know, Timberland if you're you
know whatever, the brand is, Nike logo, whatever, And so
(15:45):
for me, what streetwear represented early on was like, no,
there's a message, there's a community that is, there's a lifestyle,
and so it wouldn't it wasn't about logo. So early
on streetwear straight No Chaser wasn't about the logo at all.
It was about like something unique that you would otherwise
not find on a T shirt. It was counterculture, so
(16:05):
it was kind of an inside joke amongst a very
tight knit community of people, and it was fun. It's like, oh,
I get that T shirt. My favorite T shirt we
sold at Union back in the day, was like that.
I was like, oh, this is everything. And like when
I saw it again, for someone listening to this now
who's younger, you've been raised on this is normal for you.
(16:29):
But back this wasn't normal. It was a pervert. This
brand out of Miami actually pervert T shirt, one of
the early streetwear brands, and it was just a picture
of like two like kids sitting on a stoop like
kind of ice grilling the camera and then on the
back of the T shirt it says suckers be swearing
that they stare and it is going to scare me,
(16:50):
you know. And I was just like, this is everything,
And I don't know if someone listening to this that
might not mean anything.
Speaker 4 (16:55):
Maybe you had to be there, but to get.
Speaker 2 (16:57):
A shirt like that, you know, I was, you know
that represented that was my favorite teacher.
Speaker 4 (17:03):
I have it somewhere.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
But so that street where it's straight no chaser, then
Japan early on is the main supporter of that. We actually,
by we, I mean Americans and that community was so
small here that we actually had to live off of
the Japanese coming and buying it. They kind of like
I don't know this because I didn't, but from what
(17:25):
I believe, like early jazz had to be supported by
like they had to come to France to get appreciated
and to need money, right, Like that's why Billy Hollidays,
you know it's whatever.
Speaker 4 (17:36):
You know.
Speaker 2 (17:36):
So same thing with street where early on it was
Japanese supporting. I might sit in that store and three
people walk in one day, you know, two people buy
two sheets or two T shirts. The third guy's Japanese guy.
He's buying thirty and he's taking them all back to Japan,
you know. So and is then you start getting Japan's
take on our thing and their attention to details a
(17:58):
little higher, so they're gonna on like a loop wheeled hoodie,
and it's going to be instead of being eighty bucks,
it's one hundred and eighty bucks, right, but it's like
you touch it, you feel it, you know, this is
a better thing, you know. And so for a long
time there's this back and forth, there's this play between
like American traditional streetwear and then Japan's adaptation of that,
(18:22):
which is a higher end version. It's still a hoodie,
a T shirt, a baseball hat, a pair of jeans,
but made it a higher level, right, with more attention
to detail, at a better quality.
Speaker 4 (18:32):
And so now there's.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
A luck streetwear. But it wasn't even you know, wasn't
even titled that and that price point. Then the next
evolution is, well, if you're spending five hundred dollars on
a hoodie now, right, you're now at like you know,
Madison af price. So now you've got this kid who
started maybe his journey his or her journey in streetwear
(18:57):
straight no chaser a twenty four dollars T shirt and
a you know, a sixty dollars hoodie. And then they
saw the Japanese adaptation in our store and it's double
triple the price, and maybe they saved up because and
they got it like oh the quality, like you said,
the provenance of this can't be denied, right, all right,
(19:17):
So now they're used to spending and maybe they saved up,
they got a littleap however they're gonna get it, you know,
I mean funny sidebar. But like early on, we basically
paid our rent from drug dealers. Those are the only
ones that can afford. But so now you saved up,
and now you're getting the Japanese version, and now you've
been You might not have known of like high fashion
(19:40):
of luxury goods because that wouldn't you know, But now
you're buying something at a similar price point, and now
you understand quality and what to look for in stitching
and washes in the fabric and so now and the
Japanese stuff we were bringing in was super limited. We
couldn't get a lot, right, and so it was a
business this capitalism America. We needed to find something to
(20:04):
have in the store.
Speaker 4 (20:05):
On a Monday and Friday.
Speaker 2 (20:07):
So now we start buying importing high fashion because that
the attention to details there, right, the qualities there. And
so now because we've cultivated this customer that likes a
better thing, and so now we're bringing in high fashion
and I'm buying high fashion with a streetwear lens. So
I'm going and being like, oh, actually, I don't know
(20:30):
Tom Brown come to our song. They make a flannel shirt,
they make a hoodie. We would the consumer, my consumer
wouldn't have known it. So we start buying it like
it's a streetwear brand. Right, I'm not buying your per se.
I'm not which they make. I'm not buying their flowy
architectural slacks. I'm buying their fleece, their brutton down shirts.
(20:54):
They're denim, you know what I mean. And so now
my customer is learning about high fashion next evolution, and
then high fashion is learning about this new customer. So
to me, we've we've talked about the good. You said, well,
talk about something bad. Uh, I don't know it's bad,
(21:14):
it's just a adversity. Let's say, Hi, the big powered
fashion brands from Europe now know we exist and now
know how to make product for us. Right, and they've
got like, you know, million dollars you know, talk to
Pharrell what's the budget he has for a fashion show?
(21:36):
And so today or yes, today, right, the small streetwear
brand is competing for the.
Speaker 3 (21:44):
Same market share, and.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
That's hard, that's really hard, And so that's a negative
in that, like it's just hard for a small streetwear
brand to come up. They've got it, they're they're they're
now competing. So before we were the option outside of
or opposition to. Now it's just one to one competing
and they've got huge budgets and marketing and consumers. Exactly
(22:09):
you said it. You've got to support some of the
smaller brands, and it's nothing against the bigger brands, but
I'm just saying, like or else, they're not going to exist.
So that's one of the things that's like more adversity.
The other thing I'll say is just going back to
my early representation of streetwear. Streetwear, to me, the genesis
of it is this this open and creative communication that's
(22:30):
directly juxtaposed against what it's coming out against, which is
like the logo of brand X on your shirt. And
the upside of this is all those streetwear brands made
such a great name for themselves that eventually people wanted
their logo. Nowadays, you're going to buy the logo of
(22:52):
the streetwear brand and you're largely the consumers not into
and not supporting a more creative just oh, this is
just an interesting political stance or cultural stance or whatever.
You just find the logo of the brand. Now, so
streetwear kind of grew and evolved as an opposition against
just the logo, but they've now grown so much that
(23:14):
they are now the logo. The last thing I'll say,
just to answer your question and totality, is what am
I looking forward to? I think right now, I think
let's call it gen Z. I think I believe gen
Z is similar in what their appetite for what they're
(23:35):
looking for as we were, as gen X was when
streetwear started. And I'm looking forward to seeing like kind
of a renaissance of the sensibilities of early streetwear, if
that makes sense. And I'll say we're in it now.
There's a good part and a bad part. I think
(23:56):
the creativity, the freedom is unparalleled. You walk around and
see how these kids dress. We couldn't have dressed like that.
We were being clown by our best friends. Like yo,
you wearing open toel sandals or square tol' shoes or whatever.
The freedom is incredible and I love it. If you're
a kid now, my kids have painted all that shit
and it's all good, and I love that for them,
(24:18):
right So I love that freedom, and that's what I'm
looking forward to is how that freedom evolves.
Speaker 4 (24:24):
I think that.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
The unfortunate part is as a businessman, it's hard to
put that in a box. So and I've never wanted
my whole like you. I've never wanted to be put
in a box personally. But I have made my business
and you know, made money and made my living on
(24:45):
finding a box to kind of put things in, you
know what I mean. When we talked about union being
the difficult one, the problem with to me with union
is as I've run, it's this. It's this bitter sweet
relationship of where I don't want to put things in
a box. I want it to be free, but they
have to be boxed a little bit in order for
(25:07):
us to like make money pay rent, you know. Like,
So that's my tug of war. That's my struggle a
lot of times is finding the balance there. And it's
every day. It's an everyday challenge.
Speaker 1 (25:18):
You said something a lot of amazing right there, But
you said the early sensibility, the sensibility of streetwear, the
early mindset and I immediately ran to that because I
think about I'm often talking about transferable skill sets, because
you know, a lot of us come up with some innate,
you know, abilities given our backgrounds that add so much
(25:42):
value to so much of this world. And you know
where I'm speaking there, and I think a lot of
that is transferable into a number of different what do
you want to call it? Industries or cultures? And when
you said that sensibility of early streetwear, it led me
to a question I really wanted to ask, And I
think this leans into you know, given the state of things,
(26:06):
you know, what are you doing specifically to ensure that
the cultures and the spaces that we frequent and are
being nurtured? How are they being nurtured properly?
Speaker 3 (26:16):
Right?
Speaker 1 (26:16):
Because again we've put a lot in, we've helped create Yeah,
and so I would ask, you know, what do you
also recommend for other creatives and other consumers to do
on their end? And when you said that sensibility of
early street where that was such a rich statement, that
is very transferable into today's world, which is a lot
(26:39):
going on. So like, how do you see that.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
A lot of our corporate partners have come to us
and the niche we serve is we're going to give
them better access to community. We're gonna give them better
access to because right and a lot of times they'll
come in with with like kind of a structured plan
around how we're going to do that, and we have
to donate to this organization we have to do like
(27:06):
it's very like, for lack of a better term, it's
very performative, and I have to I find myself often
having to fight and being like, no, you don't understand
our existence by itself serves the community. By the type
of brands we're bringing in, right, from smaller designers and
mixing it with bigger ones to give that relationship is important. Right,
(27:29):
If we were just small brands, then we would just
be this kind of like mom and pop boutique. We
now match them and juxtapose them against bigger brands so
that they're kind of playing on the same playground and
now there's visibility and sharing going on, and it allows
these brands to grow.
Speaker 4 (27:46):
And so I think.
Speaker 2 (27:48):
We you know, knowing that like people like us, right
didn't have these opportunities and making sure we continue to
give those opportunities, give them their agency to communicate by
who we're buying, making sure that we're always I try
to always consider the consumer. I'll give you an example.
(28:12):
You know, well, every time we do like one of
our big kind of collaborative sneaker drops with with Nike
or Jordan, they're very hard to get, you know, and
we do a local raffle here in Los Angeles where
we try to make it a lot easier.
Speaker 4 (28:30):
And I would argue, like.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
If you your chances of being able to purchase these
really hard to get shoes globally, that hey, I can't
solve the global part, but like if you live in
LA and you show up on that day, you're most
likely getting a pair of shoes. And people really appreciate that,
you know what I mean. And that's like just simple,
Like you know, I've my career and how I've what
(28:53):
I feel is like my superpower. And I've talked to
other people who also share this same superpower enough where like, yo,
it's not like a secret, it's actually foundational.
Speaker 3 (29:03):
Sure that this is your superpower.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
Then they also have the super power from the same experience,
which is like so if I talk to Jerry Lorenzo,
Jeryl will be like, yo, I worked at Diesel and
I was shop staff at Diesel, and that is like
face to face with the customer, and you're seeing daily
what they're looking for, what they're not, what makes them
change their mind, what catches their eye. I did that
(29:27):
for twenty fucking years at this store. And so I
really feel like I know what the consumer wants, and
so I'm designing, I'm marketing. I'm activating through the lens
of like what does the consumer want? So much so
that so when I'm in Portland having meetings and I'm
and we're deciding what our offense is going to be
(29:49):
on the next shoe or the next release, a lot
of times there's maybe a really good idea, but it's like,
but the consumer doesn't want that. That's not feeding.
Speaker 3 (30:00):
Them because there's no consumers in that room, right.
Speaker 2 (30:03):
But I'm That's what I think. That's superpower. I'm representing
the consumer. So one of the things that's allowed me
to be successful is I feel like I go into
these rooms, I go into these meetings and I'm representing
the consumer and guess what the consumers me and my
community that has been underserved and under you know what
I mean, And so and maybe someone hearing this, I.
Speaker 4 (30:25):
Hope I'm communicating it. Well.
Speaker 2 (30:28):
That might sound very I don't know, conceded.
Speaker 3 (30:31):
No, it's not at all.
Speaker 2 (30:32):
I'm trying to represent.
Speaker 1 (30:36):
You're not the voice for every black human being on
the BIT because you know, we get in the rooms
and they the voice of all. No, but you are
a prominent voice that should be heard in those spaces
because guess what, I've been on the other side of
that table where you know, the brand of trying to
say this is what the consumer wants in your absolutely rights.
Speaker 2 (30:52):
Like really creative Harvard MIT grads up in there with
some really cool ideas. But I'm like sometimes and sometimes
it hits, But I'm like, sometimes I gotta be like, yo,
Like we just had to have a huddle on a
future project, and I'm like, because I'm are.
Speaker 4 (31:06):
We really doing?
Speaker 2 (31:08):
We had there was an idea at the genesis of
this that was that was interesting, let's call it that.
And then as the development of this product has come,
I think the the product is different than the idea.
It's just how organically right and we're about and and
(31:29):
so we're about to like and now we're about to
launch the product, and there's kind of a narrative around
it that's like not true to the genesis because the
product developed in a different way. Hey, guys, stop time out,
let's have a huddle, let's reframe this. And thankfully people
agreed and we're able to pivot. And I think that
pivot is going to make a world of difference.
Speaker 1 (31:51):
So the thankful, though, is not just for the people agreeing.
The thankful is that you utilize your voice.
Speaker 4 (31:57):
Yes, And I feel.
Speaker 1 (31:59):
If I didn't, these things would have gone all the
way left.
Speaker 2 (32:03):
And that comes with experience. There are times when I
haven't and now I have, and now I have, like
and here's the here's the proof, here's the receipt. I
didn't I didn't speak up here. We went with this
and it didn't work. What happened, you know what I mean.
And so when I called the huddle, I was like,
look where there's a partnership here, and you guys are
(32:23):
a big part of it. So I'm not trying to
I just want to make sure we're having the conversation.
So I know when people talk about, hey, is there
someone in the room, is there someone at that table.
I don't always need to have it go my way,
but I always want that conversation to be had, and
as long as I feel like I've been listened to,
(32:44):
I can walk away with whatever the end result is
and whatever the decisions made that a lot of times
isn't what I wanted.
Speaker 4 (32:51):
But all right, y'all listen to me.
Speaker 1 (32:54):
Right, Well, you know what you mentioned community in a
lot of that and you being a reflection of the community,
and I think your boutique serves as a hub for
the local community. How do you believe having this connected
and engaged community, both locally and online kind of contributes
to the success and sustainability of the business.
Speaker 2 (33:13):
Yeah, I mean it's everything. It's who we are. We're
not successful without it, full stop. I really believe that
there's this and I don't know, maybe there's a term
for that I'm unaware of, but there's this energy right that.
Speaker 4 (33:30):
Brand.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
I'm the retailer and I have a relationship with the consumer,
but it could be flipped, right, It's more universal, this energy,
and people just can smell bullshit, yep, and they can
smell earnest and honest intentions. And I think how I've
tried to run our company is in making sure there's
just an earnest idea, an honest representation of that idea.
(33:54):
We've never been like if I don't most people say,
even from day one, never been a store that tried to, oh, yeah,
that looks dope on you because we need to sell.
Doesn't look dope. Now that don't look dope, man, look
for something else. I've sent people to stores up the block.
We don't have something that's going to work for you today,
but you know that might but they do. But I remember, yo, dude,
(34:17):
suld I should have been getting royalties early on. So Union,
New York, we sold PRPs denim from day one, and
it was like a favorite great denim. And then when
I moved out to La it was sold at the
denim bar American Rag. And people would come in and
you know, for example, when I first moved here, most
of the denim that we carried was Japanese denim. Yes,
(34:40):
and there's certain body types it just doesn't fit right.
And so people come in and they try and wouldn't
and I'd be like, dude, it just ain't working for you,
but I know what you want. Go to American Rag.
They have denim. You're good, hey man. And that person
might may or may not get a T shirt or
a hat or a sneaker from us at the time,
(35:01):
but they appreciate, like, I got your back, I'm looking
out for you, want to I just want you to
be Our purpose is to make sure we used to
have a little I used to do a blog post
on our which I stopped. But the ship I do
to make you look fly, and it would be kind
of like the whole premise behind it was like, I'm
traveling to Paris. You know, I'm traveling to Japan, Tokyo, London,
(35:26):
I'm Italy, I'm traveling all over the world, and I'm suffering,
Like it's such a hard work to get on the
plane and go to Japan, and I'm saving away, I'm
working hard so you could be fly, but then showing
you amazing pictures of like Tokyo and Paris, but kind
of like, but this is just hard work for me,
That's all I'm doing.
Speaker 1 (35:45):
You know, you have put a definition on a community
that was so rich that I hope people captured because
you reflected in so many ways on the surface level
that everybody knows and we know what union means and
we know what you mean.
Speaker 3 (35:59):
To the culture. But what you just shared about.
Speaker 1 (36:03):
We don't have what you want, what you need, or
what you're looking for. However, here's where you can find it.
That's a real community. Yeah, because people just be like,
now we don't have it, but here, let me get
you something else.
Speaker 3 (36:18):
Yeah, you know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (36:19):
That's the richness and I hope that was truly grasped
by people of what community really entails. How are you
really helping the collective regardless if you benefit.
Speaker 2 (36:29):
From yeah or not. To sound like a I don't know,
grumpy old man, but I think our core customers from
this from a particular era really got it and helped
us grow. And I'm really thankful because we don't grow
without the support of our core customers. We're having a
tough time translating that to this newer generation, and I
(36:53):
take full responsibility for it. I'm not like, oh fuck,
you know, for those kids, they don't know what's up.
We're just having a tough time. That's our That's something
we're gonna have to figure out is how to communicate
that same thing because they've been brought up in a
different space.
Speaker 4 (37:09):
A lot of them have been brought up kind of.
Speaker 2 (37:11):
Almost spoon fed you know, I remember like back in
the day, you know, Supreme did like a they did
a like a black Panther T shirt, right, and you know,
fuck like this is early early aughts, maybe late nineties,
maybe late nineties. Actually, I was like, I have to
have that T shirt. But yeah, no doubt no black
(37:34):
Panther like the Panther, not the comic book. Sorry, thank
you for that correction. And I was like, ya, I
have this is the hardest T shirt. I need to
have this T shirt. But for me, I knew I
couldn't rocket if I didn't do the math first, and
so I went and read seized the time so I
could wear that T shirt. And I don't think that's
(37:56):
happening today, right, the kids rocking a band T shirt
because it's the cool T shirt to where the band
that they don't even know the band is. They don't
even know the music, you know, or whatever, you know.
So I'd like for them to do their own math.
But we're in a time where it's hard for people
to commit to that, to that, to that homework.
Speaker 1 (38:16):
You've shared so much, but you know, we always kind
of end with sharing what are the three seeds you
would leave with the stewarts of culture moving for because
you and I both know we're at a critical point,
and culture, I mean for me obviously, is a huge
through line and of all things I think, and if
(38:36):
we do this right, we can change a lot of
what's going on worldly. But I'd love to hear from
you if there are three things that you could leave
this next generation or these stewarts of culture move for.
Speaker 3 (38:47):
What would it be?
Speaker 2 (38:48):
One of the things I try to tell people when
they ask me, I hope this answers the question. Is
this is probably the most important thing for me, and
I should I should have this like down to science
on how I communicate it, but I never do and
I was fumblow over my words, so forgive me.
Speaker 4 (39:05):
But like.
Speaker 2 (39:08):
Early on in my career, I'm a mixed kid from Canada,
from no like not even the city you never heard of, Canada.
I don't think I had any special relationship with like
culture or fashion or music or anything. I was just
a regular kid coming up like we all are. Like
(39:28):
Lebron has I'm a kid from Akron right, right, and
that messaging really resonated to me. I'm not from Akron
right obviously, but like I knew what he was trying
to say, I'm just like you, and even though I've
got the best to ever do it on the court
or arguably top three whatever. I'm not trying to start
that debate today, but I'm just saying, like, you know,
(39:49):
even though I've got these skills that you might not have,
Like I have a story to tell. It's mine. It's
unique to me, and people want to hear it, you know.
And so what I try to tell people is like, yo,
when I'm designing, when I'm I'm just trying to tell
my stories. And I try to tell young people coming up,
(40:12):
you have a story to tell. I don't care where
you're from, rich, poor, black, white, anything. You've got a
story to tell your life experience that's interesting, you know
what I mean. And so tell your story. Feel have
your agency to be you. That's a big thing for me,
you know. I used to like the big thing.
Speaker 3 (40:32):
Do you know?
Speaker 2 (40:33):
That could be boiled down into do you right? But
the zoomed out verse is having agency and to be
able to tell your stories. That's hard. It's hard for
people to be Like, people care what I have to say,
People care about where I come from Ottawa, Like who
the fuck cares, you know what I mean.
Speaker 4 (40:52):
But being raised in Ottawa.
Speaker 2 (40:55):
Kind of far away from where the action was allowed
me to look at it in a different way, and
you know, and come with a new perspective and an
understanding and appreciation for it. So that's a big thing
to me. That's one damn.
Speaker 4 (41:13):
So do you.
Speaker 2 (41:16):
I think I mentioned it earlier on work ethic is
really important. You know, I worked they. I think there's
an adage like dress for the job you want, not
the job you have. Right, mine's a little different. Work
for the job you want, not the job you have.
I tell that to my staff. It's hard because I'm
(41:37):
the man, right we always think about the man. I've
got to be the man at work. But I try
to tell that to my staff. Like, Yo, if you're
here and you've worked it so that you can be
on your phone watching social media for six hours a
day and you give me two hours of work and
you can get over where I'm where I'm right, Hey,
(41:58):
more power to you. I'm not a time clock watcher.
That's not what I'm into. And you might think you're
getting over on me, like you're getting over you just
wasted six hours where you didn't build experience, work ethic
your career. You think you got over on me, you
got over on you. I'm sitting here today because I
(42:20):
gave ten hours when I needed eight, when the when
the when the my boss required eight, I gave twelve,
you know what I mean, and that that gave me experience,
understanding a work ethic that now I could build my
own career off of. So if you're in your goofing
off cool and you can get over on me if
(42:41):
that's what you want to call it, whatever, right, And
maybe you are, maybe you're not, but you're actually doing
yourself a diservice.
Speaker 4 (42:46):
You're not learning what you need to do.
Speaker 3 (42:48):
Listen.
Speaker 1 (42:49):
You know you obviously dropped the mic on that one,
and you know you're obviously such a great reflection of
that because you look at your story when you started
with New York and thank you for sharing that, and
more importantly, I thank you for sharing that knowledge with
that next generation. And I ask that you continue to
(43:09):
be who you are in this space, keep your why
at the forefront of all things, and just thank you
for what you've done and will continue to do for
the culture.
Speaker 4 (43:17):
Bro. Thank you, appreciate you, thank you.
Speaker 3 (43:19):
Thank you Chris good to see.
Speaker 1 (43:21):
We truly appreciate your support because it helps us fulfill
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Host
Astor Chamber
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