PANYC State
Introducing PANYC State! A new brand now available on Dropcents.com! We recently caught up with the minds behind PANYC State to learn a little bit about them and the ther PANYC State collection. Keep reading to learn how a joke between brothers transpired into the PANYC State clothing line headed by a chemical engineer. Check out the PANYC State interview below!
What label,brand, or company are you with? And what is your title.
PANYC State, Managing Partner/Co-Founder
What kind of products does PANYC State specialize in?
PANYC State produces Streetwear Apparel (Screen Printed and Embroidered Tees, Hoodies, Crew Necks, Hats, etc.) depicting messages and themes inspired by contemporary and historical issues impacting popular culture whether it be economic pressures dividing socioeconomic classes, environmental erosion, or social and educational inequality.
How did PANYC State begin?
PANYC State started as a joke after my brothers (also Partners and CO-Founders) returned from the local mall after back to school shopping. We realized that no store had anything that we liked.
Everything was styled logos, skulls, or just plain garbage. We joked that we would be better off making our own clothes, and the idea that spawned PANYC State grew from there. We realized we had all the pieces to form a clothing company with my little brother as the creative head, my twin brother as the business mind, and me with the drive and ambition to run the company day to day. Literally right then and there we just decided to go for it.
When you were a little kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Since 6th Grade I’ve wanted to be a Chemical Engineer working in the Pharmaceutical Industry helping people with the medicines I make. Funny thing is…in my day job I work as a Chemical Engineer at Merck/MSD supporting vaccine manufacture. Fashion Designer was my other dream!!
Where do the PANYC State designers get their inspiration for designs? What kind of thought process goes into your collection?
I am generally the one who comes up with all of the design ideas, and I’m purely inspired by the world around me. I am always finding things that I see and hear that spark a great idea that would be perfect for the line so I keep a notepad on my phone with design ideas that grows every single day. Many of the design ideas come from parts of lyrics that evoke images in my head and get my creative juices flowing.
How do you feel about “Brand Jacking” where a brand mimics the designs of another brand?
That is WACK! At PANYC State we strive to create and sustain a brand that is unique and drives dialogue and, hopefully change. We also push for our customers to be unique, and that is why we produce limited quantities of each of our designs. We see no value in being anything but ourselves, and anyone that tries to gain popularity or money by copying someone else’s hard work and creativity gets no respect from us.
How did you come up with the name PANYC State? What does it mean or stand for?
PANYC State (Pronounced “panic state”) was originally created to pay homage to the hometowns of the original founders of the company. PA stands for Pennsylvania, and NYC stands, obviously, for New York City. In addition to that significance, PANYC State was founded in the
winter of 2007 when there was a lot of bad going on at home and around the world, and every time you turned on the news there was nothing but stories about all the evils and bad in the world. It seemed the media (video and print) were stirring up hysteria in the face of war, an economic downturn, and whatever other monsters there were in the world. We saw the world was in a state of panic, hence PANYC State.
With the explosion of social media, what is PANYC State doing to build brand exposure? What social network is most important to your brand?
Facebook by far has been the social media vehicle that we have exploited the most to build our audience and our brand awareness. We use Facebook to post breaking news about the company including our achievements, markdowns, and polls to generate feedback on our work and to see what our fans want to see from our brand. We are quickly moving to increase our presence on Twitter and Google+ as well. Basically an free method we can use to spread the message of PANYC State we use! Social media has been awesome for us because, even though word of mouth marketing is slow, it is free (again!), and it has helped us generate the grass roots buzz and following that is crucial to sustaining and growing the fashion movement that we seek to
achieve with PANYC State.
What is one style from the past that you wish was still popular?
That’s funny because it seems like everything is coming back (Starter hats, members only jackets, tie-dye, acid wash, and the list goes on!) The one thing I always liked when I was younger and hoped came back is the black aviator jacket with the reversible orange side. I still have one but don’t wear it…womp. That thing was super warm and pretty cheap if I remember correctly.
What is a current trend that wont fly at PANYC State?
Skinny jeans. No grown man should be wearing jeans (or any clothing for that matter) that was originally designed for women to show off their “assets.” Come on bro you and I both know you look absolutely ridiculous. I leave that mess to the Justin Beibers of the world.
Snapback or Fitted? Why?
Snapback all the way!! As a consumer I just think snap backs are flyer worn forward or backwards, and they can even just be used as an accessory by snapping to a belt loop or bag. As the owner of a clothing brand, snapbacks are much easier to use for designing because they are one size fits all. I’ll never have to worry about deciding what sizes and how many of each size to get embroidered like I would with fitteds.
Low tops or High Tops? Why?
Haha…I am a HUGE sneakerhead, and I generally don’t have a preference really. Spring/Summer I generally rock lows. Fall/Winter I generally rock highs. If I had to choose I’d probably have to say high top because my all time favorite pair of kicks is the Playoff 12s.
What are your thoughts on todays street wear scene?
The streetwear scene is EXPLODING as the sneaker game grows because old, popular styles are being re-released at staggering rates. in addition to that, there are newer independent brands like AH and Creative Recreation bringing a fresh new spin to sneaker culture. There are also a ton of apparel and accessory brands flooding the market with new merchandise every day.
What do you see for the future of this industry?
Honestly, I hope to see PANYC State as a big part of the future of streetwear. From talking with people all over the world, we see that there is a hole in streetwear fashion where there aren’t many brands out there that produce apparel that consumers can use to express themselves. I think PANYC State and other brands will step up to fill that hole for those out there that are seeking something to wear that is comfortable, thoughtful, unique, and, of course, looks dope.
What is one of the best things about being in this industry?
The best thing by far is interacting with our fans and people new to our brand and its concept and getting their thoughts on the line and our designs. It’s really cool to see how different people interpret our designs especially when their opinions differ from anything we have ever considered. That is the point behind why we do what we do, and it is awesome to see the brand concept catch on slowly but surely!
What is one of the worst things about this industry?
The worst thing about this industry is the “copy cat” mentality that you eluded to earlier. A lot of times you’ll be in the store or online shopping, and it is almost impossible to determine when one brand ends and the next starts.
How would you quickly describe your past 5 years in one short sentence?
We’ve been grinding hard every day to improve ourselves and our brand.
How long is the average work day for a co-founder of PANYC State?
I work full time at my “day job” then full time again when I get home for PANYC State so lets conservatively say my work day is 16 hours…because I am always doing something for PANYC State even if it just in thought.
How many core members/employees are on the PANYC State team?
PANYC State, LLC has 5 Partners and 5 team members who help with
anything from designing, to sales, to marketing.
What sneakers did you rock as a kid?
I’ve always been a Nike kid so I always had Air Maxes, Air Forces,
Jordans, and various basketball shoes. I occasionally rocked some
Adidas especially Sambas and Forum Lows, and I tired to stay away from
Reebok except for a couple of Iverson kicks.
Before PANYC State what brand names were you rocking back in the day?
I was a proud FUBU kid, and I also used to rock a lot of Nike Jerseys and And 1. I guess I had more of a sporty style back in the day.
In your opinion, besides PANYC State, what other brands are on the come-up in this industry?
Man, there are so many dope brands out there. I am a big fan of Rich Weirdo, The Award Tour, and Annie Mulz.
If you had to give up PANYC State today and go work for a fast food joint, which fast food joint would it be?
1) PANYC State is our life so we’d never give up!!
2) Gun to head (my brothers would kill me if I didn’t say this)
Popeyes. It’s their biscuits man…can’t get enough, can’t get enough.
What was your first job?
My first real job was working at Finishline in the local mall. I LOVED that job and wish I could sell sneakers forever, but that just won’t pay the bills. That was the greatest job to cultivate my love
for sneakers, learn the history, learn the technical side of kicks, and interact with other sneakerheads on a daily basis. Oh, the 30% discount and first shot at exclusive kicks wasn’t bad either.
What will see coming from PANYC State in the future?
In the near future PANYC State wants to expand the line into more types of apparel with more hoodies, more crewnecks, more and different types of hats, more accessories especially watches and shades. In the future we hope to expand into a “full service” fashion brand including “higher fashion” (as we call it) like sweaters, cardigans, button downs, and the list goes on. We want to do it all, and we want to do it all with a message!
What trends will be big in 2013 / 2014?
Kickswise I definitely think Jordans are going to be big again in the next couple of years especially if JB continues with the aggressive release schedule that they did this year. When it comes to apparel and accessories, I definitely see patterns in the streetwear industry blowing up especially as designers and brands go outside the box and start incorporating more abstract designs.
PANYC STATE
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