http://www.beunequaled.com Be Unequaled - Stand out from the crowd en-us Fashion Sat, 17 May 2008 03:15:23 -0700 Wed, 07 May 2008 14:17:20 -0700 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification admin@beunequaled.com admin@beunequaled.com http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/172/ Boosted have recently released a new range of DJ style headphones, featuring both a vintage and a more modern design. Each headphone comes in three colourways and are available now from Urban Outfitters and Karmaloop. The headphones have some decent specs and are billed as multi device so should be compatible with a whole range of mobile phones and mp3 players. You can see more from Boosted Mobiles' blog here, here and here! Find out more about Urban Outfitters and Karmaloop on our store pages. Wed, 7 May 2008 14:12:57 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/171/ Karmaloop continue to bring ladies a great choice of 'streetwear' items with the stock update from Goumada, Pa:nnu and Princess of The Posse. Goumada is, quite literaly, the sister brand of SSUR! Pa:nnu is a brand that's all about design! Princess of The Posse is a powerful blend of street swag and sophistication. Find out more about Karmaloop on our store page. Wed, 7 May 2008 14:10:23 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/170/ If you're a fan of Google and use their iGoogle service as your homepage, take a look at their new artists series of headers. Even Nigo has got in on the act offering a BAPE branded homepage. As well as a few fashion brands, there's lots of offer from musicians and more traditional artists. Find out more about BAPE on our brand page. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 02:50:14 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/169/ The evening of the 29th May sees Grazia and Carnaby Street join forces to bring shoppers 20% off in participating stores. Find out more at http://www.carnaby.co.uk/grazia/ Mon, 28 Apr 2008 12:22:30 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/168/ This dropped in my inbox earlier today: ENGLISH: Dear customers, companies, competitors and friends. We were confronted in the last time often with the question which problem between Solebox and Nike is existing. Our Answer: Nothing. Everything is alright from our side. It seems, that somebody at Nike Germany have a problem with Solebox. The reason seems to be that we do not want to do without the other companies on the market. The first feedback from this person was to exclude us from the Limited Editions distribution. After asking why and some argumentation on both sides, the final result ended in a total sanction of Nike products in form of delivery delay/stop for all Nike items we ordered. As Sneaker Lovers we do not want to miss any of these brands in our portfolio like: Adidas, Asics, Lacoste, New Balance, Puma, Reebok, Onitsuka Tiger, Vans and others. Especially we do not like to be forced to this. Even sanctifying us in form of suspension of deliveries and hindrance of using the business portal Nike.net will not change this. This behaviour is more than questionable. And we are sure, it is NOT in the interest of Nike, but rather maybe the subjective acting of one person. It is a total misuse and unprofessional acting of the position held. We are sure, that Nike is never afraid of any competition. Competition is a constructive factor of the whole market. Thank you all for your understanding, that we will not pass on any brands. Even if we would love to still sell Nikes. Your Solebox Team GERMAN: Liebe Kunden, Firmen, Mitbewerber und Freunde. Wir mussten uns in der letzten Zeit oft der Frage stellen, was mit Solebox und Nike los ist. Unsere Antwort: Alles ist von Seiten Solebox in Ordnung. Scheinbar hat jemand bei Nike Deutschland ein Problem mit Solebox. Der Grund liegt wahrscheinlich darin, dass wir nicht auf andere Marken verzichten wollen. Als erste Resonanz dieser Person wurde Solebox aus der Distribution für limitierte Styles gestrichen. Nach Gesprächen und Nachfragen über dieses Verhalten wurde uns dann gänzlich die Auslieferung zu allen Nike Produkten gestoppt und/oder verzögert mit Verweis auf diese Person. Als Turnschuh Liebhaber möchten wir nicht auf Adidas, Asics, Lacoste, New Balance, Puma, Reebok, Onitsuka Tiger, Vans oder andere verzichten. Erst recht werden wir uns nicht dazu zwingen lassen! Auch Sanktionen in Form von Lieferverzögerung/Lieferstopp und auch Verwehrung jeglicher Zugänge zum Business Portal Nike.net werden daran nichts ändern. Das Verhalten ist mehr als fragwürdig. Und wir sind uns sicher, dass das nicht im Interesse von Nike ist, sondern nur ein subjektives Handeln eines Einzelnen sein kann. Es ist der totale Missbrauch der Position und ein unprofessionelles Handeln. Wir sind uns sicher: Nike scheut niemals den Wettbewerb mit anderen Firmen. Wettbewerb ist als ein konstruktiver Faktor des Marktes zu sehen. Wir danken allen Kunden für ihr Verständnis, dass wir nicht auf andere Marken verzichten werden, auch wenn wir gerne Nike bei Solebox verkaufen würden. Euer Solebox Team Find out more about Solebox on our store page. Thu, 17 Apr 2008 08:11:58 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/167/ British artist, Mode 2, has recently completed a couple of collaborations with some well known British brands. First up was his work with Maharishi and now a new set of items with Addict. Both collaborations feature work that centres on the female body You can purchase the Addict x Mode 2 items direct from Addict and the Maharishi x Mode 2 items direct from DPMhi. Various artwork by Mode 2 is also available from DPMhi. To find out more about Maharishi,Addict and DPMhi, visit our brand and store pages. Visit the Mode 2 website to find out more. Wed, 16 Apr 2008 14:50:01 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/166/ Graffiti artist Stash has teamed up with Be@brick to bring you the 400% Nort figure. The figure comes in a glow in a dark material, featuring a white print but actually glows blue in the dark with the print appearing black. The figure is available now at wellgosh Tue, 15 Apr 2008 07:39:44 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/165/ Although I will never quite understand why original-fake.com isn't used as the store front for, erm, Orignal-Fake items, KAWSONE.com is now carrying some items from the latest range. The site continues the minimal theme that has become the trademark for KAWS' websites but now features a lot more items than ever before. The site was changed to the current style very recently, but they've added a whole range of new items that are sure to get his fans excited. Find out more about Original-Fake on our brand page. Mon, 14 Apr 2008 10:21:27 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/164/ Twelve Bar finally updated their website to show off some of their forthcoming summer items. It does seem like some denim is available already as part of the spring collection, but the summer looks set to bring some shorts and t-shirt lovelyness! Alongside the new shorts and denim, we get a whole bunch of t-shirts and more smart/casual shirts. The above t-shirt graphic reminds me of the BBC x Jelly Bean stuff we saw recently but done in a way that very different. The model also looks a little like Carmen Electra to me?!! Find out more about Twelve Bar on our brand page. Mon, 7 Apr 2008 03:29:56 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/163/ Nike have recently introduced the Blazer mids to the iD program and they are a welcome addition in my eyes. As usual, you get a choice of materials, colours and the chance to iD the shoe The shoes are available for both men and women. We actually made a mention about the Blazer's forthcoming a while back in the forum soon after I had my London studio appointment. To find out more about Nike and the Nike iD program, take a look at our brand and store pages. Thu, 3 Apr 2008 06:49:33 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/162/ I was walking past London's BAPE store earlier today and saw something in the window. Being in a rush I didn't stop, but thanks to pondon I now know what it was! The mystery item was in fact a BAPE 'lunchbox' containing a 15th anniversary t-shirt. The familiar BAPE camo used is one of my favourites and looks great. The pics here just don't do it justice. Find out more about BAPE and pondon on our brand and store pages. Tue, 1 Apr 2008 09:08:52 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/161/ Be Unequaled is proud to present the first 'Beta' release of it's new 'Feeds' service. This new feature for Be Unequaled brings the latest info from the top blogs into one place. The feeds can be customised to show the number of items you desire* and into any order you wish. Put your favourite blogs at the top and relegate the rest to the bottom, it's entirely up to you! Hypebeast, High Snobiety, CtotheJL, selected Clot Inc guest bloggers, KAWS and many more find their way into our Feeds system! Be sure to be logged into to make the most of it and we hope you enjoy this new feature. While it's in 'Beta', we welcome all feedback**. Feeds does need you to have Javascript enabled in your browser to function correctly. The page does take a while to load, but we feel that the features are well worth the wait! * Although we cater for longer feeds, not all of the websites provide enough items to populate the entire list. ** We are working on getting pictures to make browsing even easier, but some websites block anyone from using their pictures and not all websites provide them in an accessible way. Sun, 30 Mar 2008 13:43:50 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/160/ Along with guest appearances from Mode this season, MHI have teamed up with IRAK to produce the following tee for their spring/summer line up. The tee features a front and back print and fits in with the current Maharishi theme of 'no future'. Find out more about Maharishi and IRAK on our brand pages. Fri, 21 Mar 2008 02:07:51 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/159/ During my usual browse around the 'streetwear' portion of the web, I stumbled across KAWS' blog post entitled Forged. His artwork and items from his brand, Original-Fake, are a common target for those in the business of reproductions. His involvement with BAPE has lead to some pieces being faked beyond belief. Baby Milo x KAWS tees, BAPE x KAWS 'Chomper' hoodys and even pieces that feature the features of the BAPE Ape face logo with 'X's' for eyes are all mass produced in fake form and distributed through the stupidly high number of fape re-sellers. Education is key. The Real or Fake forum here on Be Unequaled is invaluable as it gives others a chance to find authentic items, avoid fakes and learn for themseleves. The only problem with education is that as well as the consumer getting wiser, the fakers also get more information on how to perfect their product. KAWS took what I see as an unconventional step to post up an email address where you can get an official legit check from someone involved with him and his brands. Very few brands have taken this step, but to me it's a positive and somewhat necessary one. Channel 4 recently screened a two part series showing how far the fake trade has come. The series highlighted the poor conditions for the workers making these items, which is reason enough to not buy them. They also showed how far those at the top of the trade are willing to go. It's now possible to buy fake eggs (chicken eggs) and even fake medication that are supposed to help in the treatment of cancer and heart patients. Some people see the fake clothing/accessory trade as a necessary evil, thanks to the huge profits these companies make, but would they have the same view on these fake medical products if they had to take them, knowing full well the profits some drug companies make?! I think not. The biggest problem I see with combating fakes is information. Firstly, people often buy fakes for one of three reasons. 1. They don't know that items are fake, 2. They knowingly buy fakes because they don't care and 3. They buy fakes because they want to buy the real thing but cannot afford them. The last two will be very hard to convince to do the 'right' thing, but it may not be impossible. Attitudes need to be changed and education is key. Well done to KAWS, I say. I hope that more companies and individuals will take more responsibility and try to help stamp out the fake culture. (FYI: Timbaland and Adidas were both featured in the Channel 4 program and are actively combating fakes. I also believe that Evisu will authenticate via email, just like KAWS) Oh, and apologies for not writing about the changes in the 'industry' as promised some time ago. Things are moving faster and faster with each season that goes by and my comments are usually well out of date the minute I've finished penning them down for your enjoyment :( and further apologies for this sensible post that turned into a rant! Mon, 17 Mar 2008 04:02:15 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/158/ As you may have seen, Stussy has released a colection that features art direction from graffiti artist, Futura. There have been a few 'skull' graphic t-shirts and the odd accessory appearing in the usual spots, but I've seen a few more pieces from the collection that are making the collabo look better and better. Above is one of the skull graphic tees in the range. Most clothing pieces are available online in various Stussy retailers, with these photos being taken from Wellgosh. US residents are also able to order the accessories direct from Stussy's website. Find out more about Futura, Stussy and Wellgosh on our brand and store pages. Sun, 16 Mar 2008 14:10:30 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/157/ Futura Laboratory's new line is finding it's way in to stores and it's looking good to me! The line has a variation of 'pointman' inspired pieces, made famous by his UNKLE collabos, and art that reflects the Futura Laboratory website more than anything else. These pieces are available in various stores online, these photos taken from Wellgosh, where you can see more from Futura. Find out more about Futura and Wellgosh on our brand and store pages. Sun, 16 Mar 2008 13:57:07 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/156/ It's been a long while, but the BU Q & A is back, this time with the up and coming label, MadeMe. BU: Was it tough to get started? MM: No it was easy. It’s all came really naturally. It was something I really wanted to do, and whenever I want to do something it never seems hard. BU: If so, is it still tough going? If not, what changed to make it easier? MM: The toughest time is shipping time!! It’s also the most stressful and uninspiring. But once everything is out the door I do feel a HUGE sense of accomplishment. Plus, that’s when I start seeing the MONEYYY so its always a good time. BU: What's been your biggest hurdle so far? MM: I really have to get over not wanting to be the face of the brand. I just want the clothes and the aesthetic to speak for itself. I’m not good at putting myself out there as a spokesperson. But I guess this is America and in the land of P Diddy you have to be like that. BU: The 'streetwear' industry is heavily dominated by male influences. Forum's get aggressive, blogging is repetitive and the hype is ridiculous! What's your take on it all? MM: Yes, the streetwear industry is very male dominated, similar to a lot of industries. Honestly, I don’t pay attention to much of it. I am too busy to go on blogs and forums. I just know what’s going on by being immersed in it everyday. I work at Supreme and I live in the Lower East Side so basically I eat streetwear for breakfast. I actually really like being one of the few girls brands in the land of ‘boy’s’. BU: How did you get involved in 'streetwear'? MM: I began my ‘professional career’ at Umbro working on the Kim Jones collection. While at Umbro I worked with the Supreme Team to do a 2 season Umbro x Supreme collaboration. Then, I got hired on by Supreme as a production manager. BU: The current season has a real 70's influence, any particular reason? MM: It’s really funny to hear what people think of the brand, because I wasn’t going for a 1970’s vibe at all. But now that you mention it I see where you are getting it from, the OP ART print on the leggings and the Miss America 1/2 Top. I think I always have a huge early 1980’s influence. I look to the 1980’s as a period in New York that was really inspiring to me. All of my favorite artists and musicians came out of the Lower East Side in the early 1980’s, Sade, Madonna, Keith Haring, and Maripol. I take a lot of direction from that time period. BU: What else can we expect from this season? MM: All of the Spring 2008 product has shipped to stores, so look out for MadeMe at all the freshest boutiques around the world. There’s a new look on the site, so check out www.mademeclothing.com and cop some of your favorite spring gear. BU: Who is your target audience? MM: I don’t think like that. I only make product that I like, and that I would wear. I strictly produce clothes for me. That’s where the name comes from, and I firmly believe that if always remember that, then MadeMe will always stay relevant. I refuse to make things that I think someone else MIGHT like, or MIGHT buy just for the sake of making extra money. BU: Any plans for a men's branch? MM: No, no plans of doing men’s clothes in the near future. Unless I stop sleeping, since I am really busy at the moment making the brand come to fruition. MadeMe’s whole aesthetic is very masculine so I think it would take away from the vibe. BU: If you collaborate with a male orientated brand, which one(s) would you choose? MM: I don’t see myself doing that, but who knows. If the right opportunity came I would definitely jump at it. BU: Is there a brand you wish did more for women? MM: I actually wear a lot of men’s clothes and I would have to say Dior Homme. But then it wouldn’t be ‘Homme’ anymore would it?? And I don’t think I would like it as much if it was designed specifically for women. BU: What are your ambitions for yourself and for the brand? MM: I am very ambitious. I want MadeMe to keep growing naturally and genuinely (like it has been). I see MadeMe getting bigger and better everyday, I see it in Bloomingdales, I see it at Fred Segal. I want to collaborate with brands, artists and musicians that inspire me and are in alignment with what MadeMe stands for. There are so many things I want to do with MadeMe, its hard for me to answer that question. BU: And finally... what makes MadeMe stand out from the crowd MM: Its well made clothing. It’s women streetwear from an educated and fun perspective. And its really fucking cool. Thanks to EM for the answers to the Q & A! Find out more about MadeMe on our brand page. Fri, 14 Mar 2008 13:36:30 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/155/ After avoiding having an online presence for so long, W)taps have finally got themselves going by launching their official website. There's a nice amount of info, but no online store. The website also has a few images showcasing their newest collection, some photos have already been seen around and about online, but it's nice to see them with fuller descriptions. You can see more at www.wtaps.com. Find out more about W)taps on our brand page. Fri, 14 Mar 2008 06:34:39 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/154/ Alife have had a graphic on their homepage for a little while now and it makes a great bit of viral marketing. I've seen it posted elsewhere and thought I'd post it up here for your enjoyment! The photo/graphic is very well put together, immitating the classic Hershey bar perfectly as a parody. It will be very interesting to see where this goes... although the image as a t-shirt graphic would be awesome in itself! Find out more about Alife on our brand page. Thu, 13 Mar 2008 10:20:13 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/153/ Be Unequaled finally has an official Facebook group, so get yourselves over there, join, show your support and spread the word! Wed, 12 Mar 2008 05:22:15 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/152/ Most 'streetwear' forums, Be Unequaled not being an exception, draw a lot of questions about what a good price is. Be it for clothing, sneakers, accessories or even gadgets and other goods. As always, my advice is always to say an item is worth whatever you're willing to pay to get it. Off course, if you're asking the question, you're looking for a figure that will help you to get the best deal possible! Sneaker Freaker have just published an extensive list of over 250 different shoes, detailing their average (re)selling price as well as the highest and lowest. The guide has shoes from a range of manufacturers and a range of styles and was compiled by Dave Skop of rareairshoes.com. Take a look, and who knows, you may be sitting on a gold mine! Wed, 12 Mar 2008 02:52:52 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/151/ the Maharishi webstore was updated last week, and now DPMHi release of the spring/summer collection seems to be complete too. As always, DPMHi have picked a theme that leads to some interesting pieces. SS 2008's theme is 'No Future'. Find out more about DPMhi and Maharishi on our store and brand pages. Mon, 10 Mar 2008 03:47:14 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/150/ The Maharishi online store has been re-stocked with the latest gear from the British brand. Highlights include items from the much anticipated collaboration with Lupe Fiasco and Andy Warhol inspired hoodies and tees. They've released a larger amount of women's clothing too this time round too. The range of items isn't unusual, there's the usual mix of como and non-camo pieces, mixed with the new Lupe Fiasco pieces mentioned before, which are actually reversible and enjoy the best of both worlds by having a camo and non-camo side! Find out more about Maharishi on our brand page. Fri, 7 Mar 2008 01:22:34 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/149/ Some 9 months ago, I wrote about Twelve Bar's upcoming items. Spring is just around the corner and those items have made their way to a few online stores and to the official Twelve Bar website. Previously only t-shirts were on offer, but they've gone all out this time with denim, jackets, shirts, crews and more on offer straight from Twelve Bar. The above is an interior shot of their new selvedge denim, available in raw and washed. The details are nice in photos and I hope to see a pair in person as they could well make their way into my current rotation. The logo above has found it's way across a variety of new products alongside the unique Twelve Bar heart logo. I was lucky enough to pick up two items from the new season during a trip to Amsterdam and the quality continues to be great for their tees, so I'm hoping the same applies to their other items. Update: The items are now available to buy online and the summer preview should be available soon! Find out more about Twelve Bar on our brand page. Thu, 6 Mar 2008 05:58:14 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/148/ As part of Converse's ongoing involvement with the (RED), they've begun to release a 100 different shoes in collaboration with 100 artists in conjunction with their 100th year! Read on for selected pictures from the project. Converse x Meghan Berckes Converse x Camilla Engman I'll try to update this post when any of the shoes take my fancy! I can't find a direct link, but to see the whole series (4/100 available at time of writing), click on the Converse (RED) icon and then follow links for 1 HUND(RED). Find out more about Converse on our brand page. Thu, 6 Mar 2008 05:47:57 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/147/ Nike have released an Asia only premium dunk for the Beijing Olympics, which caught my eye. Not normally a fan of gold highlights, but I think they work really well on these shoes. Get more info on them from Kix-Files. Find out more about Nike on our brand page. Sun, 2 Mar 2008 04:29:40 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/146/ Maharishi have slowly been dropping items for their Spring and Summer lines for '08 on he emaharishi and DPMhi websites. Both websites are definitely worth a look. The DPMhi half have teamed up with guest artists and released a couple of designs for the new season. I'll post up about the new seasons again when more about the line and the collabos have been revealed. Find out more about Maharishi and DPMhi on our brand pages. Sun, 24 Feb 2008 02:09:34 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/145/ ...now how awesome would that be? I had a brief conversation about Futura with a forum member who reminded me of his photo blog. Flicking through every post, I found some interesting images, but one really caught my eye. The above photo, I assume is Futura himself, wearing a Threadless t-shirt. That got my mind working. Man, what a collabo that would be! 'Read' Futura's blog over at Clot Inc. The t-shirt in the above image is called Nuts and is available direct from Threadless.com. Find out more about Futura, Threadless and Clot Inc. on our brand pages. Tue, 19 Feb 2008 03:19:23 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/144/ Just wanted to give a quick follow up to a previous rant of mine on the state of fake's in the UK. There doesn't seem to be any slow down in the trade, but as I've ranted before, educating and attaching a stigma to those that purchase fakes can only help to put counterfeiters out of business. The BBC are running a show tonight called Britain's Favourite Fakes on BBC 2 at 7pm (GMT), which may feature brands that are of interest to our visitors. Hopefully it will be on the iPlayer so I can catch it later in the evening! Also, don't forget that Be Unequaled has a real or fake forum to help you identify fakes. If ever in doubt, please feel free to post up links and photos and our members will try to help identify anything that is fake. There are many real or fake guides for almost every brand, so do your research, and remember the old Billionaire-Boys-Club.co.uk motto; if it's too good to be true, it probably is. Update: I made it home in time to catch the show. It wasn't the best piece of journalism, and the show was very much about who and how many people buy fakes. It was nice to see New Era and Timberland make a contribution to the show, clearly indicating to anyone watching how much of their business and profits are affected by fakes. If you have access to the BBC iPlayer, you should be able to watch the show for the next 7 days. Fri, 15 Feb 2008 02:21:18 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/143/ A Bathing Ape may well be one of the reasons that you first visited Be Unequaled, or Billionaire-Boys-Club.co.uk but in recent months/years it's popularity has soared and subsequently fallen. Forum member mythbauer24 posted a few 'OG' items earlier this month, all of which look awesome and pretty much showcase what a lot of the old 'BAPE heads' found appealing about the brand. None of that Baby Milo x everything or anything of that nature, just great design (imo off course)! Pondon's has been stocking a few items that have really caught my eye, so I thought I'd share one particular range of pieces that you might like. Fast forward to 2008 and things are certainly picking up. I've seen a number of BAPE items recently that are really nice and thought I'd post them up here for your enjoyment! They're nothing really special, but basic, interesting and well executed pieces. BAPE's use of their duckhunter camo could be called in to question, but it's overuse is clearly down to popularity and demand. It's use here in these t-shirts is subtle and just enough. Towards the end of 2007, we saw a few pieces from one of the many BAPE Paper releases and a few items got a far more positive reception than the re-release upon re-release of shark and tiger hoodies have! I've previously blogged about some other pieces I've really liked, so who knows, maybe my BAPE x DC Batman t-shirt won't be the last BAPE purchase I make! Find out more about A Bathing Ape and Pondon on our brand and store pages. Wed, 13 Feb 2008 06:44:55 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/142/ Be Unequqled shoe week? Sure feels like it! Here's the latest offering from Gola, a UK based brand who have passed their 100th anniversary in the past few years. Caliroots have a selection of Gola Vibes for mens and womens, both versions in a familiar shape, but in brighter and bolder than normal colours. I dont' think that the shoes are really anything that special, but to see Gola popping up in more and more boutique style stores, especially in the UK and Europe is something I didn't really expect. For me, Gola had always been a cheap, readily available brand. The change in style is nice, and as I said, the colours are definitely bold. Find out more about Gola and Caliroots on our brand and store pages. Fri, 8 Feb 2008 13:42:51 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/141/ In4Mation will be releasing 5 shoes by renowned artist Methamphibian. The shoes are very nicely detailed and every version has a colour that works very well. Find out more about, or buy his work, from his own site at www.methamphibian.com. Find out more about In4Mation on our brand page. Thu, 7 Feb 2008 11:02:32 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/140/ I'm always on the look out for new media and content, so I was pleasantly surprised when I saw an email about the Boosted Films video podcast. The podcasts are a look at the lifestyle of artists with Madsteez, Revok (see images below), Sabre and Klaw Money the first to be featured. Visit the Boosted website for more info, ebrooks714 YouTube channel for more videos or subscribe to the podcast here. Wed, 6 Feb 2008 13:24:25 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/139/ TOMS Shoes Argentinian inspired TOMS Shoes is a novel way of getting shoes to those that need them most. They may not be the most exciting thing ever, but there's not much better value for money around. TOMS Shoes actually provide you with a pair of Argintinian inspired shoes called alpargatas. At the same time, provide another pair for underpriveledged kids in developing countries. That's two pairs for the price of one, with one pair making it's way to someone who really really needs them. Based in California, TOMS Shoes actually delivered around 50,000 shoes in a drop in Africa last year! Camo patch: Women's glitter: Various other styles for men and women available, as well as a kids selection. Tyler Ramsey Hand Painted TOMS Red Designs and colours are basic, but more materials being added and there've even been a couple of artists' series shoes. Check out the TOMS Shoes website for more information, see their Wikipedia entry. Oh, and they're also available from Karmaloop! Originally seen on the Mahalo Daily video podcast, you can see the video here. Wed, 6 Feb 2008 04:24:33 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/138/ For those that don't subscribe to the Alife's announcments, here's a quick look at their new Everybody mids. Available on general release, they're a nice take on a shape they made use of in previous seasons. I was a fan of the shape, but some of the colours didn't sit right with me, especially after trying them on. The red version aren't really to my taste, but the coloured accents on the soles are a really nice touch, although i'm not sold on the embossed pattern that they've gone with. It seems a similar finish to the one on their first round collabo with Puma, but I feel it suited that shoe a little better. Find out more about Alife on our brand page. Oh, and having seen their previous collabo with Asics in person, check out this amended blog post. Tue, 5 Feb 2008 07:58:12 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/137/ Not exactly a new video, but certainly something very interesting that grabbed my eye on the Discovery Channel. A range of his toys and some clothing can be found in the DPMhi store. Find out more about DPMhi on our store page. Mon, 4 Feb 2008 01:39:45 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/136/ Back in the day, when the Star Trak forum was at it's peak, M.I.A. was getting a lot of love for her unique sounds and flows. Not the most well known artist, but her profile must be getting bigger and bigger. She recently made a guest appearance on Timbaland's Shock Value and has collaborated with a few other artists over the past year or so. A few years, miles and tracks later, M.I.A has made her way into a more mainstream role. She was featured on Karmaloop TV earlier this week. Take a look to see what she's up to and who else she's collaborated with: Thu, 31 Jan 2008 12:15:39 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/135/ Lupe Fiasco's current album, 'The Cool' has been out for a little while now. Even before it's release, FALSE had previewed a 'Support the Cool' t-shirt. That particular t-shirt was actually made available to our very own Dean of Ques-Clamation (aka Stack Bundles) in the Be Unequaled forum even before it officially went up for sale in the Ques-Clamation store! Fast forward to the end of January and Karmaloop have teamed up with Lupe Fiasco to bring to you 'The Cool T-shirt Design Contest'! Simply submit a design with your interpretation of the theme 'cool'. Winners can grab $1000 in prizes and their shirt will be printed and sold through Karmaloop to raise money for Lupe's charity of choice, WHY (World Hunger Year). Check out http://www.karmaloop.com/tshirt-signup.asp for more info! Oh, and I just realised we featured a Karmaloop x Jason Lee story a few months back... I wonder who's next! ;) Find out more about Karmaloop and FALSE on our store and brand pages. Thu, 31 Jan 2008 12:10:35 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/134/ Here's the third, long overdue, part of our wallpaper series. BAPE and Maharishi's camo efforts are followed hot on their heels by the iconic VANS logo. 240 x 320, 640 x 480, 800 x 600, 1024 x 768, 1280 x 960, 1280 x 1024 and 1440 x 900. Find out more about the brands featured in our wallpaper series in our brands directory. Sun, 27 Jan 2008 01:56:57 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/133/ Nike's latest campaign launched a couple of days ago with a look at the dunk. They set up a whole new site which features a manga style interactive magazine and a whole load of 2008 shoes to flick through. You may have already seen the URL on promotional material from UNDFTD and visited a pretty dead website, but I assure you there's a lot more there to hold your interest! Find out more about Nike and UNDFTD on our brand pages. Thu, 17 Jan 2008 06:26:22 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/132/ Ever since the store opened a couple of months ago, I've been dying to go! Doing it online is fine, and pretty much how the whole 'by appointment' service works, it's just... better! After making my appointment, I spent a few days lurking through forums, trawling through the Nike archives and picking the brains of previous visitors for ideas, inspirations and what to expect. My research was pretty much pointless, because apart from one key colour I wanted, I ended up with something a little unexpected but something that I will definitely be wearing when it arrives. Oh, and be sure to read the whole article to see what I created. Floor one of the London Studio, is pretty much open to the public. It's the same as what you see online, BUT you can see hundreds of shoes on display. You can pick them up, touch them, see the materials up close. I didn't have time to visit this section on this visit, but it would definitely make me think twice about certain colours and combos. The second floor is where it's appointment only and you are assigned a design consultant. I was assigned Simon, who was a great help. You may know what you want, but with extra materials and more panel options, you can get a little too crazy, so it's great to have someone there as a guide. All of the consultants have had training in various aspects of the Nike iD experience, and they're not just the pick of the day from the shop floor, so they do know what they're talking about! I managed to spend the full 45 minutes (and then some) on designing my shoe. I ended up with 5 final options, but went with the first one I did! Currently, there's a choice of the following: Dunk hi, dunk lo, Air Force 25, Classic BW and the Air Max 90. A great selection and they're all open for even more customization than the Nike iD website. Currently, you have the choice of normal , cracked patent and a wood effect leather, all of which can be combined in any number of ways. Oh, and with the dunk celebrating 10 years since it's re-introduction into production, look out for any specials that may appear at the London Studio. Here's mine: I'll reveal the design once it arrives in 2-4 weeks! ;) Find out more about Nike and Nike iD on our brand and store pages. Update(s): 6 Sun, 6 Jan 2008 10:59:17 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/131/ Enjoy Fri, 4 Jan 2008 12:31:11 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/130/ To start the new year, we've collated the results of our members' votes for the best and not so best of 2007! Check out the results for our forum awards. Congratulations to all the winners! Wed, 2 Jan 2008 03:00:20 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/129/ One design that made me laugh, and one that made me smile! New this week at Threadless.com Find out more about Threadless on our brand page. Tue, 1 Jan 2008 12:11:06 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/128/ From and to all that visit, frequent and populate Be Unequaled, Happy New Year! We really hope 2008 is a great year for you! :) Tue, 1 Jan 2008 00:00:01 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/127/ Here's the second part of our wallpaper series. After Maharishi's bonsai camo, we bring you the classic BAPE camo. 240 x 320, 640 x 480, 800 x 600, 1024 x 768, 1280 x 960, 1280 x 1024 and 1440 x 900. Find out more about the brands featured in our wallpaper series in our brands directory. Sun, 30 Dec 2007 02:05:55 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/126/ Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all Be Unequaled visitors, members and passers by. I hope you all have a great few days and get everything you want. Tue, 25 Dec 2007 02:54:40 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/125/ Over the next week or two, I'll be dropping some wallpapers to brighten up your desktops. You can look forward to BAPE, Stussy, Maharishi and Supreme wallpapers. They'll be available in a variety of sizes. First up is Maharishi, available in the following sizes: 640 x 480, 800 x 600, 1024 x 768, 1280 x 960, 1280 x 1024 and 1440 x 900. Find out more about the brands featured in our wallpaper series in our brands directory. Sun, 23 Dec 2007 04:59:32 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/124/ Back in June we featured a brand called 667 in our Q & A feature. As we approach 2008, they've released their lookbook which has some great pieces for both men and women. I've picked a few images from the mens, you'll have to download the lookbook to see what's available for the women! The pieces that really caught my eye were these DCIDE pieces: Download the 667 lookbook (3.1MB) and find out more about 667 on our brand page. Thu, 20 Dec 2007 13:45:42 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/123/ 13th - 16th December 2007 in London, just off Brick Lane. Wed, 12 Dec 2007 13:59:46 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/122/ In an earlier post, I said I wasn't too sure about the Dr. Romanelli that were available in the DPMHi store, but having seen them in the flesh, they look awesome! If you can get a look at them, it's well worth it. Too expensive for my tastes, but a few more have surfaced and they're looking good! Find out more about Dr. Romanelli and Maharishi on our brand pages. Wed, 12 Dec 2007 13:49:10 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/121/ Vote for your favourites in the Be Unequaled Forum Awards. Wed, 5 Dec 2007 03:49:28 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/120/ Soccer isn't the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about what's inspired 'street' fashion over the years, but a Dutch brand has changed that with a football, or soccer, isnpired line. Of all the items from MONTA, the above ball is probably the most interesting. Denim is currently experiencing a real rise in popularity again and with raw and selvedge denim everywhere these days, it's an unique application of the material. In this instance, MONTA's choice of material isn't only for asthetic reasons (which are outlined in the animation below), but also for technical reasons. They cite better control and less bounce as the main ones I'm a big fan of playing football in the street, so this is a great product in my eyes and it will be interesting to see some of the results people come up with after a few plays with one of these balls. MONTA's official online store can be found on the Subside Sports website, where there is a whole range of outer and practical sports wear. Find out more about MONTA and Subside Sports on our brand and store pages. Tue, 4 Dec 2007 12:42:56 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/119/ Not had the chance to roam the web as freely as I'd like over the last few weeks, so I'm not sure how new this news is, but Maharishi have got some Dr. Romanelli jackets in while giving them pride of place on the emaharishi website. All jackets follow the patch approach that Dr. Romanelli is famour for. Below you can see a few more examples of what's on offer. There was quite a bit of buzz in the forum a while ago thanks to the Maharishi x Dr. Romanelli x Lupe Fiasco jacket. Check out the thread here. I'm a big Maharishi fan, but not so sure about the Dr. Romanelli items. Some look very nice, like the photo above, and I'll be sure to take a look at them up close in the near future before giving a final verdict. Find out more about Dr. Romanelli and Maharishi on our brand pages. Mon, 3 Dec 2007 15:12:14 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/118/ Courtesy of forum member Sarom, Be Unequaled has some great grand opening photos in the forum. He was also kind enough to take and post up some photos of the after party. Looks like it was a good trip. I'll let you you find all the photos yourself by browsing through this topic, but you should jump straight to the first round of photos. Find out more about Billionaire Boys Club on our brand page. Thu, 29 Nov 2007 05:36:35 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/117/ Over the course of the last 18 months, BAPE has, to put it simply, fallen from grace. After the heady heights of riding on the Pharrell success train, it's sudden popularity was probably a big part of it's downfall. Add the amount of 'FAPE' available in to the equation and it was probably inevitable. However, in my own opinion, BAPE has just continued to do what it's always done; churn out the odd piece you just feel you have got to have, collaborate with the best of them and still keep it's 'limited' and 'exclusive' persona and the appeal that goes with that. What I mean is, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery (or so they say) and FAPE still floods ebay and other online stores with ease! If people are still producing and selling FAPE, there must be a market for it. This post is all about the collaboration part of BAPE's operations. It does seem as though BAPE's relationship with W)Taps just continues to get better and better. They've done some nice stuff in the past, and that continues into the last and present seasons. (All images are from Pondon's ebay store - click on an image to visit the auction page) I know they're simple, but they're also well executed designs in my opnion. The last one though, really reminds me of the recent Supreme x W)taps collabo. BAPE back on top? Not really, but I feel they're getting back to their best. W)Taps have been on top of their game with some great collaborations with Supreme, Vans and whole load of previous BAPE collabos behind them, I look forward to seeing what else they can bring to the party. Check out all of Pondon's BAPE x W)taps inventory. Find out more about BAPE, W)Taps and Pondon on our brand and store pages. Wed, 21 Nov 2007 14:25:12 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/116/ After 4 months with my first pair of selvedge, I've posted a few photos in the forum. In recent weeks, I've been after a black pair of denim and Uniqlo seem to hit the spot with their S-002 range. Take a look at the photos I posted in the denim wash/wear process thread, which I plan to update once I've given them their first wash in the near future. I stumbled upon them when I popped into a Uniqlo store, but it took me a while to find a pair of these jeans in my size, so I was well pleased when I found them. I'll hopefully have some positive stuff to say about these jeans, just as I have with the GAP Morissons. Find out more about Uniqlo on our brand page. Edit: After posting and a couple of opinions on the pics, I'll probably keep the jeans unwashed for a little longer, but rotate them with the new Uniqlo jeans. I'll also try to make an effort to post up monthly photos of both jeans too. Who knows, less usage of the GAP could see me surpass the 6 month mark! Tue, 20 Nov 2007 13:45:26 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/115/ If in fact it has gone wrong. Maybe we're just seeing the inevitable evolution of 'streetwear' and the culture that surrounds it. Look out for my posts as I take a look at how things have changed over the years, for better and for worse. Thu, 15 Nov 2007 04:07:17 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/114/ One Anthem has teamed up with Formatmag for the 1st Annual T-Shirt Design Contest. They want artist, designers, or people with some raw skills to design One Anthem's next T-Shirt. One Anthem and Format is offering $100's in gift certificates and royalties to the best t-shirt design submissions in November. The Grand Prize will be produced by One Anthem and sold on oneanthem.com with 30% of the total profits going to the winner and more. For further details check out Format Mon, 5 Nov 2007 12:43:16 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/113/ Supremebeing was established in 1999 in the United Kingdom; it is based around the lives of people who love their art, love their music and love their friends. They are basically a family of artists: some design, some paint, some sketch, some make music, some are the doers, some are thinkers... they just all live to produce inspiring things whether visual, audio or conceptual. Supremebeing was founded with the idea in mind that you DON'T have to be ruthless heartless bastards to make a company work. Being = everybody is created by the same process. Therefore everybody is supreme. Created first amongst equals. Check out the mens and womens line at One Anthem. Thu, 1 Nov 2007 16:06:54 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/112/ Maharishi has expanded even more over the last few days with the official launch of their Emmaichai line, aimed at the women. The name, and a few pieces under this name, have been seen around their Great Portland Street store in London for a while, but the pieces featured on DPMHi.com are the first pieces from a women's line to make it into the online store. There are only a small number of items on offer at the moment, but expect more to roll in over the coming weeks and months. Find out more about Maharishi and DPMHi on our brand and store pages. Fri, 26 Oct 2007 03:10:39 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/111/ Online retailer ASOS launched a competition earlier this year, in association with the London College of Fashion and over the past month or so, the winners' have had their products released through the ASOS brand. There were two winners, one for each of the sexes. Personally, I found the male items to be me far more appealing than the jumpsuit entry that won it for the ladies, but that's just me. Having seen the above items earlier this week, I put some money down and bought the jacket and t-shirt from the photo above, and was impressed with the quality of the items that arrived. James Hawkes' design is simple but the outfit works very well in my opinion. Nothing is overpowering, although the jacket is a whole different proposition in the flesh! Here's a look at the winning female design in both purple and black You can read more about the competition here, male winner, James Hawkes and female winner, Eyizera Pheonix. Find out more about ASOS on our store page. Wed, 24 Oct 2007 14:58:21 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/110/ Alife and Asics have got together to create a show that is most certainly unique. The insole features a graphic typical of Alife's recent work, but the outer work is far more unusual than anything they, or any other 'big' brand has produced before. Just in time for Halloween. I guess :? Edit: I saw these in Patta a few days ago, and, especially in black, they look far better in person. They didn't have my size so I didn't get to try them on, but without the eyes, a pretty good looking pair of shoes! Find out more about Alife and Asics on our brand pages. Tue, 23 Oct 2007 04:55:43 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/109/ Ek5obition will be throwing a Party on November 2nd in Los Angeles at the Mountain Bar for their Fall-Winter Line. Ek5obition is doing it real big for this season with a bigger line up. The Fall-Winter line is going to be bananas! So, if you are going to be in the LA area come thru and show some love. These tees will drop soon at One Anthem. Wed, 17 Oct 2007 09:43:25 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/108/ One Anthem (www.oneanthem.com) started as an online streetwear shop. But now they are debuting their own tees with some pretty fresh graphics. These tees have been flying out of their shop when it was first released. 3 tees were released - "Jessica Loves 1ANTM" rocking a One Anthem shirt, "Buggin' Out" from the classic hit movie "Do the Right Thing", and lastly the "Ain't Ish" tee with a quote from "Training Day". Look out for new colorways and new graphics in the upcoming months. They are now available at One Anthem. Wed, 17 Oct 2007 09:25:21 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/107/ Females may be in the minority when it comes to streetwear, but Caliroots are stepping their game up and giving more choice to those that belong to the fairer sex. Luckily, those targetting the other half are striking up a nice balance between what the mainstream stores and brands are doing, while applying their own street influences. A new brand called MadeMe is putting out some original stuff, as you can see in the two pics below. And here's some more stuff from Married to the Mob, who have been doing their girly thing for some time now. ^ dirrty! Find out more about Married to the Mob, MadeMe and Caliroots on our brand and store pages. Thu, 11 Oct 2007 12:46:59 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/106/ I do own a 'season 0' BBC hoody, which is pretty plain. Even the BAPE shark hoody is pretty plain (excluding the all over camo ones), but this possibly takes the award for the plainest hoody for an extortionate price! It is a nice piece once you see the details, but you've got to get up close and personal to see them! It's a similar idea to the BAPE x KAWS chomper hoody from a few years back, just with a smaller and more difficult design. The sleeves also feature the signature cross, which is also in grey. Some of the features and details scream BAPE & BBC from 2004/5, which isn't a bad thing, but a bit more originality wouldn't have gone amiss. Still, a nice piece that costs way too much for what it is! It's also a piece where subtlety is maybe over done to the point where it's invisible. Find out more about Original Fake and We Sold Out! on our brand and store pages. Thu, 4 Oct 2007 06:32:28 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/105/ If you feel you have good design skills or artistic flair and want somewhere to show off what you can do, check out this thread in the Be Unequaled forum. I'm offering the chance to showcase a piece of work to 1,000's of our visitors every month! Tue, 2 Oct 2007 08:22:49 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/104/ ..but only a little! Burton isn't really a brand/store I have much interest in and it's certainly not one that I'd often give the time of day, other than to marvel at the clones that pop out and head straight to Topman. Oh, by the way, I'm not talking about Burton the snowbard company, but the UK high street store that can be found up and down the country looking bland. Uninspired and trying not hard enough. The store has become best known for it's generic clothing and suites, while it sits comfortably with it's sister Dorothy Perkins and well behind it's bigger, but by no means better, brother, Topman. In the last week or so, Burton have launched (re-launched) their Black Label line, which features more premium products. The Black Label collection features some knitwear, trousers, shirts and jackets. All are very smart and simple pieces, but look well cut and comfortable. Burton claim that the 35 pieces that make up the collection are stylish, classic and modern. Follow the external link to find out more. Find out more about Burton on our store page. Mon, 1 Oct 2007 16:28:14 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/103/ Karmaloop are getting ready to launch their new venture, Karmaloop TV. The service was revealed a little earlier this year in our exclusive Q & A with the store and is ready to launch. Check out the teaser below. The station is the first 'streetwear' orientated one, in both the real and virtual world and looks very interesting. The teaser features a whole range of artists from the music and fashion worlds. From Lil' John to Bun B, from Jonus of LRG to Russell Simmons of Phat Farm, a wide spectrum of those that influence street culture are represented. Find out more about Karmaloop on our brand page. Thu, 27 Sep 2007 11:58:05 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/102/ 'Iconic skateboarder' Jason Lee followed in the footsteps of a number of other celebrities to visit Karmaloop. He was even kind enough to pose for them in some WeSC gear. Jason Lee is best known by some as a professional skateboarder from the 80's and 90's and to others as the star of My Name Is Earl. Find out more about Karmaloop on our brand page. Wed, 26 Sep 2007 15:28:57 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/101/ You may remember a blog post I put up a few weeks ago about some promo items I've put up for sale through Cafe Press? If not, you can read the post here. I ordered a t-shirt for myself and was suprised by the quality of the direct print, as I've had mixed results in the past with other companies. A big thanks to anyone and everyone that has already bought an item from the Cafe Press store, which I intend to remove products from in the next week or so. I may re-fresh the store with some newer pieces when I get some time, but that could be a while! Sun, 23 Sep 2007 03:23:51 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/100/ As you may have seen on the Hundreds' blog, their Rosewood collection will soon be available and from the photos they posted, there are some nice pieces. Read on for pics of my favourites. The imagery and design used for these and the others in the collection are among the best I've seen from The Hundreds, in my opinion, and I hope to get a few pieces, although that may prove a little difficult seeing that they're the The Hundreds LA store exclusives :( I'll be posting a request in the forum for these, so if you are able to help, PM me!!! Find out more about The Hundreds on our brand page. Thu, 20 Sep 2007 02:24:29 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/99/ As you may have seen, One Anthem is currently in the process of a re-launch for the web store. Things will be back to normal on Wednesday, 19th September and there's plenty on offer to get you in the mood for a visit. As well as the usual array of brands, One Anthem will be selling their own line of t-shirts, 1ANTM, but that's not all, expect to get 20% off your order on launch day with the code: 1ANTM. Update: The site is back and it's all very familiar, which is good. The site does feel fresher and there's even more available than before! I hope anyone that read this made use of One Anthem's generous offer on the opening day! Find out more about One Anthem on our store page. Tue, 18 Sep 2007 14:02:36 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/98/ This Q & A comes to you from Be Unequaled via the One Anthem BU: Where, why and when did One Anthem begin? One Anthem: Where: Chino, Ca (Southern Cali) When: The dream started Oct 2005 but it came to came to fruition March 28, 2006 Why: I was always into sneakers and fashion. One of my dreams was to open up a sneaker boutique but too many variables were involved to start one up plus the capital needed is insane. BU: Who or what does One Anthem represent? OA: One Anthem represents the people. Anyone who lives life searching or striving for 1 thing may it be freedom, spirituality, family, a life dream or just searching for your Holy Grail (Sneakers) that is what One Anthem stands for. BU: Where did the name One Anthem come from? OA: A group of friends and I were going to start a clothing line together, but it never came to fruition. I really liked the name and thought it was a perfect fit for what I wanted to create. BU: What made One Anthem go from a thought/ dream to happening for real? OA: I got tired of my day job as a graphic designer for Oakley. Plus, driving all the way out there was just terrible… I guess the positive thing that came out of it was that I met a lot of people and I was able to brainstorm a lot while sitting in traffic. BU: One Anthem is one of a growing number of online only stores, are there any ambitions for a real world store, or have you found the world wide web a good way to reach your customers? OA: Hmmm… online stuff has its good and bad sides but sometimes it's hard to get some of the good brands in because the online shops are getting a little too oversaturated. As far as a "real" physical store, there are a lot of ambitions for it to happen but the timing has to be right. So I guess you will just have to stay tuned. Although, I am excited to say that our showroom will be opening up very soon. BU: What makes a brand worth stocking? OA: As an artist and in a perfect world I look for strong concepts and good graphics but from a business standpoint I also need to bring in brands that people want and labels that have hype behind them. Also, sometimes it’s just intuition. BU: One Anthem has a few underground/unknown brands, what makes you take the plunge to invest in an unknown? OA: Again, it depends on strong concepts and good graphics as well as just having something fresh. Sometimes a lot of designs look the same so I try to stay away from that as much as I can but other times I bring it in cuz of the demand for it. BU: Who is your target audience? OA: Sneakerheads, hip-hop heads, skaters and artists. BU: Corny question, but if you had to choose an artist to sing/write an anthem for One Anthem, who would you like to hook up with? OA: Man this is tough… let me put it this way. I grew up listening to old school hip hop so I would have to get my favorite hip hop group of all time, "A Tribe Called Quest." BUT for the new school I would want Common doing a collaboration with Kanye West. BU: Who would direct and star in the video?! OA: Hype Williams and the star will be me. Lol. BU: and finally... what makes One Anthem really stand out from the crowd? OA: The website is designed from an artistic stand point. Also, I’m very selective in the brands we carry and who we represent. We are not gonna be a website where we will bring in any brands just to have brands in our online shop. A huge thanks to Ritchie at One Anthem! Find out more about One Anthem on our store page. Fri, 14 Sep 2007 14:55:44 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/97/ UK sneaker powerhouse Size? launched an interactive magazine a few weeks ago and it's a nice little feature for their website. You can 'flick' through the magazine, which has some nice photography and information on the sneakers it features. The magazine can be picked up instore as a broadsheet style newspaper for sneakers, or you it can be viewed online through the flash player in you browser. And they have put it to great use since you can click straight through to products from the magazine. Above is a preview of a number of wallpapers that they've made available through the interactive magazine. The magazine can be found on the Size? website. Find out more about Size? check out our store page. Tue, 4 Sep 2007 15:32:27 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/96/ WWW.SHOPFRESHMEN.COM We have been moving quite alot of our new stock of Kid Robot Hoodies, along with alot of the BBC and Ice Cream items that were on sale. We still have some left, but we are mostly looking to get rid of alot so that we can add more in a few weeks. We are looking to add more hats and most likely more hoodies as well. Also, many of the BBC and Ice Cream items that have been put as "sold out" have been restocked as people failed to pay on time. Also don't miss out on the selection of BAPE items Sun, 2 Sep 2007 16:48:41 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/95/ Over the past few months, I've taken some time out to read a few books and I've been posting reviews that I hope will help you decide whether they're worth the read. So far, it's been pretty positive and Sneaker Freaker is not different! Coming straight out of Oz, Sneaker Freaker the Book is basically a compilation of the fist 6 issues of the magazine of the same name. The years 2002 - 2005 are covered, and this review is extremely late for a book of this age, but it's a really good read so I thought I'd share my thoughts anyway. The book has no real structure other than that it's about sneakers. The book doesn't really have a flow and reads much like a huge magazine, which is basically what it is. The book charters a wide range of companies and contains interviews, features and a whole lot more. I'm not a sneaker freak myself, but Sneaker Freaker makes it easier to understand what it is that makes people into one. As well as the graphics and photos, the best bit about this book is that you can pick it up whenever you like, pick a page and read. You don't have to make any sort of logical progression through it. The magazine format works really well for a book like this and I look forward to the next installment! It gets an official Be Unequaled rating of: 4.5/5 Find out more about Sneaker Freaker on their website. You can talk about footwear in our forum. Sun, 2 Sep 2007 03:43:44 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/94/ Maharishi have done a number of successful collaborations over the course of their existence. Both individuals and companies have joined forces with Maharishi and Mhi to create something special for their customers. Accessories and lifestyle products haven't escaped the monster that is the Maharishi collaboration and now they've moved to create something really special. Now, I'm not the only one who thought they had seen Maharishi camoflauge everything already, so I'm not the only one who's wrong. I've seen pet accessories, clothing, shoes, toys, furniture, books, electronics and camping equipment. Male grooming has now been given the Maharishi treatment in the form of a set of clippers. Wahl teamed up with Mhi to bring you the Palm Frond clipper set in a great looking black on black Sikh camo. Whatever will be next? The clippers look great and comfortable to hold. I'm not a grooming expert, but I've used clippers before and they look top quality. For £100, they should be too! Find out more about Maharishi on our brand page, DPMhi on our store pages and check out the clippers here. Sat, 1 Sep 2007 14:25:47 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/93/ Once again, the lovely people over at Threadless.com have started another $10 sale! Threadless.com, for those of you that don't know, is one of my favourite brands/stores. They have an ongoing competition where the members of their community design, blog and vote on each others' designs, with the very best getting through to the printing process. The sale brings t-shirts down from the usual $15 to just $10 up until the 3rd September. There's always something for everyone. Men, women and even kids are catered for, and with such a diverse range of designs to choose from, there's bound to be something that tickles your fancy! So, get over to Threadless and buy buy buy! Here's a taste of what to expect from Threadless: Find out more about Threadless on our brand page. Tue, 28 Aug 2007 15:42:35 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/92/ Billionaire Boys Club have relaunched their website after almost two years with the current format. A new lookbook accompanied the new look. The new website has a different look and feel to it from the previous version. Flash plays a bigger part, as do elements from the brand and the Ice Cream store in Japan. On the right there are palm trees which feature hidden design elements from the BBC range, and on the right there are ice cream cones featuring elements from the '04/5 boutique shoes. The whole thing is so much fresher and visually appealing, which is a nice move away from the darkness of version 1. I love the new look, and I hope the clothing picks up a a bit more. The news section makes reference to two new flagship stores, one in New York and one in Hong Kong, as well as a womens line in 2008. The lookbook has some interesting pieces, of which a few have been seen before. Namely the robot themed hoodies and beanies. The news of the new website was mentioned by BU member Sarom here and a big hello to fishbucket, the web developers for the official BBC website that made an appearance in the forum! :) Find out more about Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream on our brand pages. Tue, 28 Aug 2007 14:56:55 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/91/ I'm just going to come out and say it... I'm really not sure I like the idea that much, but hey, people wanted it, so rather than letting you do it yourself with varying results, I thought I'd setup the store so that it's consistent. Yes that's right, Be Unequaled promotional items are available to buy! First up in our promotional revolution is the Be Unequaled box logo. The first batch consists of a bunch Supreme-esque box logo products which are available with an orange/white colourway. You can see and purchase the items in our very own Be Unequaled x CafePress store. Depending on sale numbers etc, I may not leave the products up for long, so if you want one, don't hang around! Oh, and a HUGE thanks to anyone that buys one and reps the site! Your support is always appreciated! You can read about how this all came about in this thread. Feel free to contribute to help drum up ideas for future products. Sat, 25 Aug 2007 09:47:38 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/90/ After a week away from the Q & As we're back in business with Urban Industry, a great store from the South Coast of the UK! BU: Where, why and when did Urban Industry begin? Urban Industry: Me and Vicky started Urban Industry back in July 2002, the store opened in November 2002 and we switched live the webstore in May 2003. The store's home is in Eastbourne on the south coast of the United Kingdom. Probably like most store owners we thought our local town could do with some quality street wear! BU: Who or what does Urban Industry represent? UI: We've always wanted Urban Industry to represent the freshest street wear, clothing, sneakers and accessories. The main thing though was that we want to be accessible to people that don't read the latest hype blogs or the right magazines so having premium brands is equally important as having slightly more mainstream brands to tie it all together. BU: Where did the name Urban Industry come from? UI: The idea behind the name is to describe the how taking our pastimes and passions like BMX'ing, skateboarding, graphic design, filming etc etc can be developed into a small business and developed and built like any other big business. I liked the idea that a proper business could come not from going to university and learning about it but from a grass roots approach and from doing what we liked to do. BU: Urban Industry has had a lot of custom graffiti work done to the store, how did that start? UI: We have 3 big windows at the store and when we had a few brands come down to do stock booking appointments it often came up that we could do something cool for the store using the windows. Eastpak stepped up first with German artist Kabe and after that we had Butch from the Attai Press to do the front window. We also got Matt Sewell in to do our changing room doors which look great. BU: Is there anyone else lined up for more? UI: Not presently as we are moving but we have talked to a few brands for future collaborations BU: What do the header graphics on the website represent? UI: nothing too in depth, most of them are cool visuals that some of our brands have produced, we try to keep them fresh and may well do some seasonal banners as we go. BU: What can we expect from Urban Industry in the near and far future? UI: We're right in the middle of the 3rd move in 5 years at the moment. we're the gypsies of the street wear world! We're moving to a much bigger warehouse and shop fitting a destination boutique store into the warehouse itself. We're adding in features like a small kitchen so we can serve customers coffee while they browse the goods. Lots of things in the pipeline including a Hip Hop Mix CD with Evil Ed, an underground UK producer and dj plus we're developing our our label. lots on the go! BU: Urban Industry looks like one of the few stores in the urban/street scene that makes an effort to cater for women, is there a lot of interest? UI: we're re-looking at our womens offering at the moment as in the UK womens fashion is going through a super cheap period where high street stores are pumping out cheaper and cheaper items. We can't compete with the more expensive brands we carry and it seems women aren't that interested in the brand rather the look. BU: Who is your target audience? UI: I think our target audience is anyone who wants something different from their fashion and clothes, any age from 16 - 60. We have one 80 year old that likes Addict records bags and has bought 3 in the past year! We try to appeal to the people out there interested in the off centre, anything out of the mainstream, something that has a story and a background. BU: What word or phrase sums Urban Industry up best? UI: The independent shall inherit the earth. BU: and finally... what makes Urban Industry really stand out from the crowd? UI: Hopefully the design and style that we put into our web store and forthcoming, new shop. The fact that we're not fashion snobs or elitest. we're stocking the cool brands but we're still totally accessible for customers who are long standing street wear buyers or to the person buying their first Stussy t-shirt. Many thanks to Dan at Urban Industry for his help with the Q & A. Find out more about Urban Industry on our store page. Fri, 24 Aug 2007 08:54:39 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/89/ We have been working to get a Kid Robot wholesale toy account for the past few weeks, as the market for designer vinyl seems to be growing. We also restocked and added some KR hoodies, and are selling them pretty cheap. They are going pretty fast. www.shopfreshmen.com There are also still BBC/Ice Cream Items left for sale. Email us for requests also. Wed, 22 Aug 2007 12:07:40 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/88/ I thought I'd draw some attention to the very minor re-fresh I've given the site today. I've replaced the selvedge denim theme with a custom Maharishi bonsai camo affair! It's something I've been toying with for a while and I just managed to find some time to go ahead and make the change. Thanks to the guys behind the DPMhi website who have made some wallpapers available, which is where I managed to get the assets from. You can download a variety of wallpapers direct from DPMhi from the following link: http://www.dpmhi.com/downloads.php. Find out more about DPMhi and Maharishi on our store and brand pages. If you have any suggestions for improvements that can be made to Be Unequaled, please feel free to post them here. Fri, 17 Aug 2007 13:29:09 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/87/ After getting by with a holding page for quite a while now, Neighborhood have finally put made their website a reality and are counting down to it's launch! Above is a screenshot from their email newsletter that was sent out today. It looks like it will be up and running for real soon, so I will post up my expert analysis later ;) Update The website has been launched and it's pretty sweet! Like most websites, there's an unnecessary intro, but the content is presented well. I'm looking forward to the online store and whatever else they have coming through. Official Be Unequaled thumbs up for this one! haha! Find out more about Neighborhood on our brand page. Wed, 15 Aug 2007 12:31:04 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/86/ www.shopfreshmen.com I just finished up a trip in San Francisco, which turned out to be a pretty interesting. I stopped by Huf a few times, thier prices seem to be way too high for BBC/Ice Cream and many other brands. By the way... Understand there are still items left, and items have been restocked! As I was saying, the trip was not very long, so I only really had a chance to hit up a few stores. I found myself buying 2 KAWS toys in Double Punch (Pushead Companions) after visiting Nort/Recon next door. I hit up True twice and bought fitteds, but mostly I was interested in the sneakers. The trip overall went well but was cut short by business to take care of with the online store at home. Tue, 14 Aug 2007 00:19:50 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/85/ Back at the beginning of July, I posted a teaser for the Be Unequaled Giveaway, well now it's here! It's one of the easiest competitions you will ever come across and there are two chance to win a couple of prizes. The winners will each win a Be Unequaled iPod shuffle, in either orange or silver and $75 in Karmaloop vouchers. All you have to do to enter is be a registered member of our forum, have at least 20 posts and then vote for your favourite brands and stores. By voting for a brand or store, you enter your name into our hat and a random voter will be picked at a random time over the few days/weeks. The winner will receive an email with a unique code. If you're lucky enough to receive this email and code, forward it onto BBChaz who will confirm your win, prizes and everything else. You can enter as many times as you like by voting for your favourite brands and stores! There's no time limit, and the winners will be announced as they are picked. There are other entry requirements. So, lets recap, 20 forum posts is all you need to enter, and you just need to vote. come and comment on the competition in this thread. Please note that this competition is automated and the admin/moderators of this site have no control over who the winner(s) are. Good luck! Sun, 12 Aug 2007 04:26:45 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/84/ The Hospital, a london art gallery is currently running a Andy Warhol vs Banksy exhibition where you can see both artists' work side by side in an effort to show their influence. In true Banksy style, he actually tagged The Hospital in the opening week with a stencil that is similar to Warhol's famous screen printed piece. The exhibition is short and there aren't that many pieces, but it's worth a look. If you've had the pleasure of going, comment in our Warhol vs Banksy thread or talk about Banksy in our Banksy thread. Sat, 11 Aug 2007 08:54:30 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/83/ This weeks Q & A involves German store jues. BU: What is jues? Jues: Jues is an independent retailer for local and international streetwear BU: Who or what does jues represent? J: Jues represents Düsseldorf-Flingern and everybody who is down with subculture BU: What was the main idea behind jues? J: To offer people in Düsseldorf a nice place where they can stop by, hang out and check out nice garments remote from the usual fasion pap. This local aspect was always and is very important to us. Besides that we do events with artists and brands from time to time. BU: When and where did it all begin? J: It all began back in Summer 2005 BU: What does the future hold for jues? J: If I would tell you, it would not be a suprise anymore. But i can tell you that there will be some killer-collabo stuff! BU: Who or what has been the biggest influence to the store as a whole, or to your running of Jues? J: Jues is the first Job we really can identify with. Everybody needs job to earn money for living. We are in the lucky position to earn money and do the stuff we would do in our freetime and call it a job. BU: The jues online store has launched very recently, was it something that had been planned for sometime? J: Honestly, it never was planned. But it was economically necessary. There are too few people we are able to reach here in Düsseldorf to survive as just an physical store with this kind of specific clothes. BU: Jues is home to a lot of brands, is there any one in particular that your customers seem to prefer? J: No, all brands are sold equally. BU: You currently have a limited edition Adidas shoe, who else should we be looking forward to!? J: As i said, there is a lot to look out for! We have a few very nice thing in the pipeline! BU: Who is your target audience? J: Our target audience is everybody who stops by the store and likes our way of life and selection of streetwear! BU: and finally... what makes jues stand out from the crowd? J: Jues is not just a store, its a community meeting-point. Many thanks to Mirko at jues for his help with the Q & A. Find out more about jues on our store page. Fri, 10 Aug 2007 13:39:47 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/82/ Maharishi have just changed their new seasons look page on their website. Some really nice pieces coming up in the next season, which is already available in a number of stores and should be hitting the official London and online stores soon. Here's a few pieces I thought that looked really interesting from the forthcoming autumn/winter 2008 collection. An interesting hoody with a paisley look effect. Jacket with heavy embroidery on the back, one of the things I love about Maharishi. Wed, 8 Aug 2007 04:48:54 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/81/ I've had a rant or two over the past month, but I thought I should show some love! Don't worry, I have plenty more to come but for now, I just wanted to talk about the work of Tim from Zeek&Destroy. Above is the latest camo/pattern for Carhartt Europe, which really caught my eye. This work follows on from a range of logo designs earlier this year and plenty of other work between Tim and Carharrt over the last few years. Tim's also includes print work and his own t-shirt designs from his own brand Zeek&Destroy, all of which I strongly recommend that you take a look at! The ranting service will resume again in the near future! Find out more about Zeek&Destroy on our brand page. Mon, 6 Aug 2007 06:42:34 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/80/ Just a very quick post to let you know about some updates I've done over the weekend. Hopefully, they will make Be Unequaled even better than it already is! :p The first two updates concern the forum, you can now state your favourite brand and your ebay username. Your favourite brand appears under you avatar with each post and in your profile. Your ebay username allows you to let others visit your account to see what you have for sale. The link appears in your profile and under each post alongside your profile, pm and other contact options. Update 3 for the beginning of August sees the long promised (and overdue) icon ads. Find out more by clicking on 'icons' in the nav. And last, but certainly not least, the introduction of the Be Unequaled feed. You can paste a small chunk of code and edit to make it fit in with your site while feeding in some great Be Unequaled info. Get the names of the last 5 Q & A participants as well as the top 5 brands and stores! Here's what it looks like: bu_mini_feed(425,160,'FF5500'); It can also be found on the Q & A page in a different format, just showing how it can be adapted. Read and comment on both updates here (profile updates), here (icons) and here (feed). Sun, 5 Aug 2007 11:56:01 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/79/ Triumvir's new website has finally gone live! The holding page was simple but effective. The new website carries on from where the old one left off, just with a little more flair. I love the image used on the intro for the site: A great image that will have me stopping by just to get another glimpse! I don't really know how I feel about Triumvir's work, some of it I like, but most isn't for me. I'm not a fan of their current season, but they have really excelled in the past, so I will always keep an eye for their work. The new site has all the familiar bits, but in a way that makes content more important than the logo! There's plenty of photography to look at, some of which is among the best that I've seen on similar sites. Find out more about Triumvir3 on our brand page. Sun, 5 Aug 2007 02:20:34 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/78/ The image below was taken from the Fuct blog and depicts an Ape General, made famous by A Bathing Ape's very similar t-shirt graphics. It's not very clear how much of a difference there is between the two versions, but Fuct look to be applying it in a different way in their forthcoming winter collection. It will be interesting to see what they do with it on a whole piece, but the embroidery looks to be excellent quality. Find out more about Fuct on our brand page. Sun, 5 Aug 2007 02:12:50 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/77/ Our seventh Q & A features LA based X-LARGE. BU: What is XLARGE? X-LARGE: XLARGE is a clothing/lifestyle brand based out of LA. BU: Who or what does XLARGE represent? XL: XLARGE represents quality and creative clothes and items. BU: What was the main idea behind XLARGE? XL: It started off as just a retail store. Workman's clothes and deadstock Adidas were the staple of the inventory. That grew to producing clothes under the label XLARGE for hip hop/alternative kids. Back then there really wasn't a thing called "streetwear". XLARGE helped cultivate the market back then to what it is today. BU: When and where did it all begin? XL: XLARGE started in 1991 in the Loz Feliz area of Los Angeles. BU: What's been the biggest influence on XLARGE? XL: LA culture has probably been the biggest influence to XLARGE. Even though it has a following all over America and the world, LA's culture and scene has always been an undercurrent to the way of thinking for this company. BU: How easy it to relate to your audience when you have stores spread across the world? XL: With the internet and blogs and with people traveling from all over the world to our flagship store in LA, it's not as difficult as one may imagine. The world is becoming a smaller and smaller place. We also trust that our reps in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Japan have their ears to the ground. BU: Does one market get preference or do you try to cater for them all? XL: We listen to suggestions from everyone, but at the end of the day it's Eli's company and he does what is best for XLARGE. BU: Do you have a target audience? XL: The company usually attracts people between the ages of 16-35, urban, artistic, fashion aware individuals. BU:16 years and still going strong... what's your secret?! XL: No secret really. Everyone has to keep to their original standards that they set, but also grow with the times. BU: What does the future hold for XLARGE? Are there any ambitions left to fulfill? XL: We're expecting to continue building with old friends and working on projects with new ones. There is a gallery space in our flagship store dedicated on showcasing the best artists around the world. We recently worked with The London Police, Logan Hicks, Dez Einswell and will work with Tyler Gibney, Andy Howell, Tim Barber and others. BU: What word or phrase sums XLARGE up best? XL: Streetwear is back. BU: and finally... what makes XLARGE stand out from the crowd? XL: I think longevity and being one of the original streetwear brands, but also XLARGE just makes cool clothes that people like to wear even if they're not streetwear kids. Many thanks to Paul at X-LARGE for his help with the Q & A. Find out more about X-LARGE on our brand page. Fri, 3 Aug 2007 11:55:56 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/76/ We have made our first trip to Norfolk and picked up many T's and other items to be added to the sale. The sale will begin Midnight on Sunday night leading into Monday. We have many new registered customers so register before the sale starts. We will be heading back through to pick up more items again. All items will be added the 5th. Thu, 2 Aug 2007 21:24:24 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/75/ As a subscriber to numerous blogs, I always take a look at what lands into my readers' inbox and give it the once over. Usually, it's just a lot of pointless photos, a few words or just boring mumblings and links. Today was a little different as Bobby from the Hundreds took some time out to write about the current state of street culture. The amount of text caught my eye and I'm glad I took some time out to read what he had to say. The article can be found in the Hundreds' blog. His thoughts are not ground breaking or original, but they put a good emphasis on how the culture has changed since its inception, more specifically since it's rise in popularity and before the rise of the internet. There will always be those that do things the 'old-fashioned' way and that's a fair reflection on how something consume people more than others. Some people make their way into a culture for self-gratification, some do it to impress others, some because it's just who they feel they are and then there are those that don't realize they're even part of it. I personally found my way into the culture because of my love of good design. My views and attitudes towards the culture have changed (almost through necessity, but mainly through a natural evolution as well as from the influences I have experienced from running a forum) since I was first introduced to it all, but I try and stay true to the person I was way back then. I am wiser, better educated and even more of an individual now, which is no bad thing! Now, while information and knowledge are the key, personal tastes should be what really defines a person, not what you see posted on a blog. I'd like to think that my choices are made by me as a person, and not because of what my peers might say or feel. I may sound like I'm harking back to the good old days with what I'm about to say, and at first it annoyed me when Bobby seemed to be doing the same, but he touched on some aspects of the culture which I hold close to my heart, mainly because of my profession and interests, but there are things that have changed, but not necessarily for the better. People need to be given less immediate access to information in my opinion. The internet has made a profound difference within the industry and the culture as a whole. A lot of the changes have had positive effects, but as I've hinted at in a previous post, I feel that creativity is being stifled because the overall view on what really is cool is being skewed. Be it fakers, hypebeasts, horedbeasts or those that just follow others. This brings me onto the subject matter of websites, which I will be ranting about very soon... Tue, 31 Jul 2007 12:16:13 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/74/ I've been designing and building websites since 1995 and to be honest, some of the early stuff is enough to make you want to gouge your eyes out! It took me a long while to get my own website up and running, and after being replaced with a holding page for much of the last few months, I've finally gotten around to re-launching it and letting the world back in! Please take some time to have a look at CChana.co.uk. I've used a whole load of different technologies to help demonstrate my web development skills. If you have any feedback, please feel free to email me or reply to this topic. All feedback is appreciated and I do listen to it! :) Sun, 29 Jul 2007 03:31:25 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/73/ Our sixth Q & A features Boston based Karmaloop! BU: What is Karmaloop? Greg Selkoe: Karmaloop is a community of style that sells clothing to the global streetwear culture, hard to find and limited edition gear for men and women BU: Who or what does Karmaloop represent? GS: We represent the type A personality, the early adopter, the influencer. The person who cares about having style, these are the people who are DJ's, Musicians, artists, designers, promoters, authors, or people who just like to turn the party out and live life! BU: What was the main idea behind Karmaloop? GS: Karmaloop was created as an alternative were people could find dope gear, people are sick off all the bull shit and conformity at the mall we have lots of stuff you won't be able to find anywhere else, we provide universal reach to the most innovative and flyest gear on the planet, we sell to over 35 countries world wide. With that being said about our quest for the unique, limited, and underground we are not all dogmatic about it we have a few brands on Karmaloop that have made it really big and or are bigger brands like LRG, Artful Dodge, Adidas, Nike we don’t hate on success even if the brand is big if the stays true and are about good design then they make the cut. But we still have the brands on the site that might be one dude grinding out T-shirts in Brooklyn some place that is gonna be the next LRG or Stussy. BU: When and where did it all begin? GS: 2000 in my parents basement in JP Boston MA! Man the stuff we went through to make this happen you wouldn't believe it floods, low money, no money, maxing out credit cards, getting robbed the list keeps going on but we kept believing and kept pushing and we have had amazing customers who have stuck with us and helped spread the word. We have over 15,000 Karmaloop customer Reps around the world that hold it down for us and promote the site When I started the company I had another job I used to pack the orders myself take them on the subway in the morning drop them at the post office and then go into work in a cubical.... BU: How has karma been to Karmaloop? GS: Karma has been damn good, we have had a lot of luck, a lot of help, and a lot good stuff happen to us! BU: The Kazbah couldn't have been an easy thing to put together, what prompted Karmaloop to even think of such a feature for their store? GS: Basically Kazbah is an underground marketplace for the most up and coming underground brands. People kept hitting me up wanting us to carry their brand on Karmaloop like 10 a week, a lot of them were amazing but were to small to carry on the main site so we set up Kazbah selected only the best of the best and let them sell through the site meaning they do all of their own customer service and fulfillment. The response has been crazy! And it feels really good to see some of these brands just coming up killing it, some of them had little or no distribution before Karmaloop now they are global growing like wildfire! People need to check brands like 9 Grand, Beandip, Jeepney, Methods, Gold Coin...these brands got next, these are some talented cats, hustling and building the next LRG's the next OBEY's, I wish I could name them all because they are all dope. BU: Who or what has been the biggest influence to the store as a whole, or to the running of Karmaloop? GS: The customers and all of the staff all the people here from the beginning who never quit never gave up BU: The Karmaloop store has been around for a while now, but in recent years it's gained more and more exposure, how are you guys coping?! GS: Things are cool we are coping and just trying to go with the flow, working long days! BU: What does the immediate future hold for Karmaloop? GS: Karmaloop TV you will see it is going to be amazing! The Karmaloop Ikons programs we have people we think are streetwear Ikons modeling for the site we already have had some huge people sign on DMC, Gym Class Hereos, Common, Jason Lee, Roxy Oxycottontail BU: Where do you see Karmaloop a year, 5 years and 10 years from now? GS: Hopefully still selling gear and making moves BU: What are Karmaloops biggest goals and aspirations as a store or business? GS: Have fun, reach people and have an influence on people and culture, and make money BU: Have you achieved them or are still being worked towards? GS: Yes but hopefully there is more of all three to come! BU: What word or phrase sums Karmaloop up best? GS: bezerkoogearology BU: and finally... what makes Karmaloop stand out from the crowd? GS: We give a shit and love what we do! A huge thanks to Greg Selkoe, CEO of Karmaloop! Find out more about Karmaloop on our store page. Fri, 27 Jul 2007 13:04:47 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/72/ Many people have been asking us when we would finally head to Nofolk, VA to meet up with certain affiliates of Star Trak who would be willing to sell us BBC and Ice Cream (maybe Bape). Well the time has come, we are heading down this week and are planning on adding a lot of new items. We have decided to set up a site wide sale on all items, including denim and accessories. www.shopfreshmen.com Because we have do not know the specifics of what we may be able to get, requests are welcome and can be e-mailed to us at webmaster@shopfreshmen.com. The sale will start midnight EST August 5th. Anyone wanting to wait for the minute the sale starts should register on our site prior to that time. Fri, 27 Jul 2007 09:59:27 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/71/ Let me start of by saying, this was an unintended rant, but it became one, so here it is: I doubt very many people know why I actually started the old BBC website. Well, I'm going to tell you why! Back in 2004/05 BBC was announced and everything looked promising. It was something I was interested in because the design had something about them. Yes, it's true I probably wouldn't have come across it had it not been Pharrell Williams' brand, but I can honestly say his involvement was purely to introduce me back into something I had been interested in years before but couldn't afford. Anyway, I started the website to give people a bit of help when trying to locate authentic BBC items. I'd seen fake stuff up front and it just made me laugh. The quality was extremely poor and made for maximum profit. I wanted to, at the very least, help just one person find an authentic item with my help. More brands were introduced (my intentions) and the forum became far bigger than I intended and so after 16months, Be Unequaled was born. Now I feel the difference between myself, as well as what I see as a minority of other people, and others is that I knew I couldn't afford BAPE and so I left it at that. People I consider to be on my side of the argument may have aspired to own a piece and so worked to buy an authentic piece, but there seems to be a market that continues to grow which sells fake items. These items are often bought by people who aspire to belong to a culture or achieve a look similar to the popular crowd/celebrities for minimum outlay and effort. Most of these 'people' are often kids, and they often don't carry the kind of money that BAPE buyers need to have. These kids need to be taught the importance of money. Any adults need to get their life in check and put a few more important things before clothing. It's now so much easier to find fake pieces than it is to find anything authentic if you don't know where or what you're looking for. This brings me on to an article I found on the BBC News website (how this rant started) about how Britain's are increasingly finding it acceptable to buy and wear fake goods. If a piece of clothing or an accessory makes you feel THAT good about yourself, you seriously need help. Yes, I do have prized possessions and there are items I looked long and hard for, but I have passed on so many purely because I will not buy into the hype and I will not let a single item define who I am. I will also not put life's essentials ahead of a piece of clothing. I have never been in debt and I don't intend to start over a red camouflage hoody! I see a whole load of people on my way to work, even within my own family and circle of friends, that find it acceptable to buy fake items and act like they're real. If you're happy to buy fake, why aren't you happy to say that it is indeed fake? If that is what you do, I have no problem at all with you. It's not like I challenge these people, but the swagger they have when they walk with a fake piece is quit frankly amazing! I personally don't buy the 'fakes support terrorism' line myself, although it may be true on a small (or maybe even a large) scale. There are only two aspects I'm interested in. The first might be slightly selfish on my part, but is to give the brands that produced these items real support. I find that fakes often give brands a false representation of what works and what doesn't. BAPE is a prime example of this. Some of the stuff they've produced recently has been unimaginative, but when fakers jump on to an item and it sells, they must think they've hit on a good idea because not only have their stores sold out, but fakers are making money out of a copied idea. This just leads to more mediocrity. Great! My second reason is that some lazy fuck is making money by copying other peoples ideas. If I made unlicensed copies of Harry Potter (highly topical today!) there would be an outrage and I could well be staring a date with a judge in the face! Yet it just seems so acceptable for people to buy and support fake clothing and it annoys me. Maybe the brands need to do more to combat fakes. I know for a fact that eBay allows brands to register and remove any item from their listings if they think it's fake. I've told the people at BBC this TWICE and they have done nothing. I asked for permission to register as them over a year ago and heard nothing. A few brands obviously don't see it as a real threat to their business. Within the confines of Be Unequaled, the members do seem to make owning a fake a bit of a stigma. You do get clowned on and it probably makes a difference by education a person here or there, but is it enough? As long as little chavs are running around with fake Burberry on, NO. [/RANT] Mon, 23 Jul 2007 05:03:41 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/70/ The members' items section is back! We've refurbished the shop space and hopefully made it a little easier to use. Now, all you have to do is supply a moderator with some personal details that we keep on file in the event of any fraudulent activities. Don't worry, we won't share any of this information, but if it isn't provided, no 'store'. We've made a big change, which follows on from all the blogspot 'stores' that have been created. When you contact a moderator with your details, they will set up a thread which you can then add and remove items from at your pleasure. Please take a look at our rules. The moderators will keep an eye on things and if anything seems out of place, we will terminate a 'store' and ban you from listing items in the future. The old members' items section will remain for a month or so to give everyone a chance to move their stuff over. Thread requests start on the 24th July. Sun, 22 Jul 2007 13:40:29 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/69/ This one's for the denim heads or those that are into their denim. As you may have already noticed, Be Unequaled was launched with a 'selvedge denim' theme, and after avoiding the hype, even I've fallen for it! :( But first things first! I've just bought some new Gap Morrisons denim which I'll be breaking in. I then took some photos of my old Levis and added them to the denim wash/wear process thread along with a unstructured process of my wear, experiences, conclusions and thoughts on how they turned out. Using selvedge denim will be a whole new experience for me and I'm looking forward to it. The Morrisons are darker than I usually go for, but that's what I wanted. I'll be looking after these more than my Levis and I will try and post a few more photos of these than I did with the Levis. Sun, 22 Jul 2007 05:57:12 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/68/ I was born in the early 1980's so I have first hand knowledge of what the Transformers are. I even bought the first Movie on DVD a few months back as a primer for the story. Classic animation! The film starts at the very beginning, but I won't spoil anything by saying how far it gets compared to the TV series. It has been updated for the 21st Century, which is probably a good idea. I've seen a few interviews with the screen writers and their reasons are totally justified. Nothing looks out of place in the film, even if a few die hard fans will complain! The film was simply awesome. Any faults it has are minor and shouldn't detract from the job that was done. The effects are spectacular and amazing. The Autobots and Decepticons look perfect and the casting was pretty much spot on. If you're a child of 80's and you haven't seen this, please make the effort to go. Since I saw the trailer almost a year ago, I've been waiting and I wasn't disappointed at all! Sat, 21 Jul 2007 13:34:56 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/67/ Following on from our first two reviews of Banksy wall and piece and Steven Vogel's Streetwear, we've got a new review for All Gone, the book from Collette and LA MJC. All Gone was, fittingly, released in a limited quantity. It doesn't actually have any reference numbers, like an ISBN code, so it's unlikely that you'll be able to get your hands on a copy now, but I thought it was worth talking about because of what it covers. The book basically chronicles the limited edition releases from 2006. Starting with a KAWS toy and finishing with an Acapulco Gold t-shirt, the book really covers a wide and exciting range of products! My main criticism of the book, is that it sometimes seems a bit, erm, Googled. For the most part, there's nothing too probing or anything that seems original within. Off course there are the odd exceptions. It does contain some excellent imagery that really capture the beauty of the products. The book comes in a high-quality hard back binded cover with a gold leaf print which makes it a really nice piece in a collection. The spine and cover feature the usual title, whereas the back has a list, again in gold leaf, of the brands featured. Puma x MTV - Yo! Raps spread BAPE x Marvel & Supreme x Dipest If you manage to find it for a decent price (RRP ~€30 i think) than it's worth a look. It's been a while since I had a good look through and even today, quite a while since it was released, the images still look great and they've definitely picked some of the best pieces to feature. It gets an official Be Unequaled rating of: 3/5 But I just have to give the photos a: 5/5 Find out more about Collette on our store page. You can find out more about LA MJC on their website. I'm not sure what will be next, most probably a book by Sneaker Freaker, IF it ever arrives! Sat, 21 Jul 2007 04:17:53 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/66/ A long while ago was talking with a number friends and associates about the whole street culture and how it's changed. Most changes seem to have come around in the last few years, but that's as far as we got and left it at that while we carried on with our ways... Or so I thought! One friend had an idea. I liked it enough to help him out by setting up a website with him. It's not a huge thing by any means, and no one expects it to be a big hit at all, but it's there now and hopefully a few people will take a look. There's a lot of work still to do but we've both been itching to get it out there as a bit of a hit back at the people we think are speeding up the change in 'street' wear (i HATE that term!). I won't say to much, as you can find all the info on the site, but if you feel the same as we do, hopefully you'll like what we've said and will visit again when I've had some more time to put a few more features into place! There's a small chance that the main man behind HoredBeast might make an appearance on the Be Unequaled blog in the near future too, so keep an eye out! I'll definitely let you know of any big changes or updates to the site as they happen. Sat, 21 Jul 2007 03:33:17 http://www.beunequaled.com/blogs/posts/65/ Our fifth Q & A courtesy of Be Unequaled's own blogger and forum member Stack Bundles! BU: What is Ques-Clamation? Stack Bundles: Ques-Clamation is a boutique dedicated to bringing the UK and European market a selection of labels that are not as easily or readily accessible as they are elsewhere in the world. The labels that we deal with are also people that we have good relationships with and with them it is more of a friendship situation than a business one, and so we are more willing to go that extra length to accommodate each other than we would be if we were simply a buyer/seller situation. BU: Who or what does Ques-Clamation represent? SB: Individuality, progression and looking better than some shemagh-wearing idiot who gets his style-tips from a Topman mannequin. BU: What was the main idea behind Ques-Clamation? SB: To bring the clothing that myself and my partner desired to our homeland. Customs charges are a pain to the nut-sack so whilst we cater to ourselves, why not cater to everyone else who had the same problems. We also aim to make our side of the pond more aware of the labels that we feel are outstanding and deserve further recognition. We have customers from Japan to Australia to America to Germany and all have been more than impressed with our service and what we bring to them, so we must be doing something right. BU: When and where did it all begin? SB: It started in a Starbucks over a year ago when me and my cousin (Mo Afzal) who is also my partner, were thinking of business ideas together. Basically the office life is tedious enough to lead even the most disciplined to the assault rifle and pump rounds around the area he works in. BU: Who's behind Ques-Clamation? SB: Dean Mirza aka Stack Bundles aka Me and Mo Afzal aka Johnny Wishbone aka Him BU: What else does the future hold for Ques-Clamation? SB: Expansion, serious expansion. We are in the midst of talking to a number