Started in college. There was a void in the market that I wanted to\u00a0fill so we jumped right in.<\/em><\/p>\n As a youngster, what did you want to be when you grew up?<\/strong><\/p>\n Boston Bruins defenseman.<\/em><\/p>\n What was your first job?<\/strong><\/p>\n Washing dishes in the breakfast spot. S\/O Sammy J for that job. It\u00a0was next to the race track, definitely wasn’t a place for a kid.<\/em><\/p>\n As a clothing brand where do you get your inspiration for designs?\u00a0What kind of thought process goes into 8&9 Clothing collection?<\/strong><\/p>\n Our brand is really diverse. I draw inspiration from everything\u00a0street culture revolves around. Sneakers, hip hop, gangster movies,\u00a0skating, pop culture and politics.<\/em><\/p>\n How do you feel about “Brand Jacking” where a brand mimics the\u00a0designs of another brand?<\/strong><\/p>\n I think it’s the easy way out. I’m from an era where originality was\u00a0key to respect so we’ve chosen a different path.<\/em><\/p>\n How did you come up with the name 8&9 Clothing ? What does it mean\u00a0or stand for?<\/strong><\/p>\n As a cross over brand we wanted a name that appeals to a wide\u00a0audience and wouldn’t pigeon hole us into any specific market. You can\u00a0take as much as you want away from 8&9 clothing. Each number has it’s own\u00a0meaning. 8 is infinite, some say it’s to build the mentality of self\u00a0and others. The number 9 symbolizes knowledge and completion.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n With the explosion of social media, what do you guys do to build\u00a0brand exposure? What social network is most important to 8&9 clothing<\/a>?<\/strong><\/p>\n We use social media for everything from news updates, alerting\u00a0customers of discounts or new products and even customer service.\u00a0People communicate differently these days and companies can either\u00a0resist change or adapt. Instagram is our most powerful tool allowing\u00a0us to push real time content through all of our other networks.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What is one style from the past that you wish was still popular?<\/strong><\/p>\n I wish people would balance all styles a little better. Example,\u00a0there is a time for a button up, summer days for mesh jerseys, fall\u00a0nights where flannels are appropriate. A lot of our stuff is really\u00a0classic. It annoys me when trends go sooo hard on one thing they\u00a0forget style should be classic. I really don’t like looks you can put\u00a0an exact time frame on.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What is a current trend that you cannot stand?<\/strong><\/p>\n I’m getting pretty annoyed with animal print everything. Things like\u00a0that have to be done properly and in moderation. Loud prints need\u00a0balance. But, we’re going to drop a bunch of peacock stuff before the\u00a0trend washes away. They have the best colors.<\/em><\/p>\n Snapback or Fitted? Why?<\/strong><\/p>\n Fitted all day. Great question. 5 years ago almost NO ONE would wear\u00a0a snap back, then everyone went so hard with it and now it’s dying\u00a0again. I had my first starter snap back at like 8 years old. I don’t\u00a0go back to that for a reason.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Low tops or High Tops? Why?<\/strong><\/p>\n I have a lot of sneakers and it’s about 50\/50. I like high top\u00a0jordans, wingtips and boots. But I have a ton of low top sb’s, shell\u00a0toes, air max 90’s and vans. It just depends on the shoe. I can’t\u00a0discriminate on any sneaker until I see it.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What are your thoughts on todays street wear scene?<\/strong><\/p>\n Streetwear is in a great place. I view it as a mix of everything that\u00a0happens in an urban environment from skating to hustling. That’s the\u00a0spirit of our brand streetwear as a whole. With new comers like us\u00a0bringing fresh energy and vets like 10 Deep making almost Ralph Lauren\u00a0quality the market is in a great place to mature and get to the\u00a0multi-billion dollar level urban was on.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What do you see for the future of this industry?<\/strong><\/p>\n Growth, better quality, more attention to detail and a bigger\u00a0platform as urban continues to fade and skate kids look for more\u00a0fashionable pieces. Cultures are blending together more than ever as\u00a0cities get more diverse so that’s a great thing for streetwear. It’s\u00a0dope. We’re ready.<\/em><\/p>\n What is one of the best things about being in this industry?<\/strong><\/p>\n It’s hard to say. This is what we do and we love what we’ve built.\u00a0We’ve worked with great people, traveled a lot and earned a solid\u00a0level of success. We’re happy to be here with a lot more stories\u00a0ahead.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What is one of the worst things about this industry?<\/strong><\/p>\n I have no complaints. Fashion is fickle. Trends come and go. You play\u00a0your cards the best way you can, stay true to your vision and the core\u00a0of your brand. Then you prepare and hope for the best because tomorrow\u00a0is never promised in any industry built on consumer demand.<\/em><\/p>\n How would you quickly describe your past 5 years in one short\u00a0sentence.<\/strong><\/p>\n Hard work, long days, sacrifice and growth.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n How long is your average work day running 8&9 Clothing?<\/strong><\/p>\n 16 hours.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n How many core members\/employees are on the 8&9 Clothing team?<\/strong><\/p>\n 5<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What sneakers did you rock as a kid?<\/strong><\/p>\n Tom McCann and then I graduated to Avia.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What brand names were you rocking back in the day?<\/strong><\/p>\n None until I was a teenager. Bought a pair of Van’s Half Cabs at 13\u00a0after my first pay check from washing dishes in the breakfast diner.\u00a0Once I hit high school it was Polo Sport. That was back in the day!!!!<\/em><\/p>\n In your opinion, what other brands are on the come-up in this\u00a0industry?<\/strong><\/p>\n I like Entree’s style and approach. I definitely have a lot of\u00a0respect for the hustle behind Slow Bucks.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n If you had to give up your brand today and go work for a fast food\u00a0joint, which fast food joint would it be?<\/strong><\/p>\n Isn’t Chic-Fil-A closed on Sunday? I already did KFC and MCDonald’s\u00a0so I’m going with them. Sunday should be a day of rest.<\/em><\/p>\n What will see coming from 8&9 Clothing in the future?<\/strong><\/p>\n More lifestyle pieces. We’re developing a lot of hats, some unique\u00a0twists on the cargo. Eventually we’ll get further into denim and\u00a0accessories. I think there is a big void in the quality accessory\u00a0market. Under lux but above what a lot of brands make in China.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What trends will be big in 2013 \/ 2014?<\/strong><\/p>\n Quality. It’s been overlooked for too long. People are going to be\u00a0sick of throw away tees insulting their intelligence as educated\u00a0consumers. With more brands emerging thriving ones need to do better.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n You may have seen a recent wave of exclusive graphic tees flooding the Dropcents marketplace. Most likely you have been peeping 8&9 Clothing, one the most recent additions to the Dropcents brand list. Check out the interview we did with the founders of 8&9 Clothing to get some\u00a0insight\u00a0on their movement and hear their thoughts on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":384,"featured_media":10380,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[214],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10073","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviews","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10073","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/384"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10073"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10073\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10381,"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10073\/revisions\/10381"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10380"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10073"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10073"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10073"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"8&9](\"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/89_Clothing-Banner-500x215.jpeg\" "\\"8&9_Clothing-Banner\\"")
<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\u00a0“Cultures are blending together more than ever as\u00a0cities get more diverse so that’s a great thing for streetwear.”<\/em><\/h1>\n
![\"BLOW](\"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Screen-shot-2012-10-11-at-8.00.13-PM.png\" "\\"Blow")
<\/a><\/p>\n“Streetwear is in a great place.”<\/em><\/h1>\n
![\"Modern](\"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Screen-shot-2012-10-11-at-8.00.30-PM.png\" "\\"Modern")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Eight](\"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Screen-shot-2012-10-11-at-8.12.53-PM-500x177.png\" "\\"8&9")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"8&9](\"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Screen-shot-2012-10-11-at-8.08.42-PM-500x331.png\" "\\"8&9")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"8](\"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Screen-shot-2012-10-11-at-8.12.17-PM-500x187.png\" "\\"8&9")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Middle](\"http:\/\/www.dropcents.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Screen-shot-2012-10-11-at-8.11.56-PM-500x180.png\" "\\"Middle")
<\/a><\/p>\nShop for 8&9 Clothing<\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n
\n<\/strong><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"