We were asked to do an interview for the December 2009 issue (No. 130) of Computer Arts Projects. The issue deals with how to launch your own streetwear brand, and we delightfully shared our words of wisdom and many experiences we acquired during our endeavors in the apparel business. The full interview had to be cut and edited to fit the layout of the magazine, but you can now read the unedited, uncensored, bigger, longer and full frontal nudity version right here.

What prompted you to move into apparel design?
Actually it was something we said we would never do! We just felt there are so many people doing t-shirt designs that the whole business has reached its peak and there is not much room for getting noticed anymore. But eventually we succumbed to the medium. T-shirts, hoodies, all apparel practically, is just a great medium to explore through illustration.

What does selling your own tees do for your design reputation?
T-shirts are very comprehensive. You can connect with people much easier through them, explain to them what is it that you do and even the most experimental design doesn’t seem so hard to understand when presented on an item of clothing. You can reach a very wide audience that almost always responds positively to your work. But more importantly, showing that you can take an idea, execute it, promote it and even sell it all by yourself earns you respect. It makes you credible and shows you are capable of handling any kind of challenge.

Do you make much of a return from them?
They cover the production cost, but their primary function (for the moment) is promoting our style and method of work. An example: when we started making vinyl stickers, clients contacted us to decorate their offices and clubs. When we made some t-shirt designs, people wanted us to make exclusive designs for their brands or to promote their evens. The fact is, even if your illustrations are incredibly original and special, it will be quite hard to sell them if they are just pictures on some website. When people see the application possibilities of your work, they will realise how they can take advantage of it. And then you get commissions. And the money.

Would you recommend self-production to other designers? What benefits does it have?
We believe that self-production will become a necessity for every designer. At least at the starting point of one’s career. Working your way through an agency to your own studio, or even starting from scratch as a freelancer takes a long time and makes you vulnerable to rejection from narrow-minded people and that eventually leads to conformity and generic design. Self production gives you an opportunity to really explore yourself. That doesn’t mean that it guarantees success, but as promotion goes, it is by far the quickest way of making a name for yourself and getting noticed.

How important is your web shop? What about it’s look, feel and over all style?
Our web shop tells us what works and what not. If we don’t find any customers for lets say a tee in a specific design it usually means we won’t find any clients to use that design anywhere else. As for style goes: people always buy an experience instead of only a product. So we try to incorporate as much of ourselves that we can in the outlook of the website. Not by using some elaborate design concepts but by simply showing who we are. When people see two designers that are making a joke out of themselves and decorate clubs instead of doing corporate design they will want to but something from us.

Compared to your design and illustration work, how lucrative would you say apparel design is?
Well, we explained earlier that apparel design is mostly a vehicle for getting clients. So its not very lucrative in itself. Right now we are just restyling mainstream fashion and making unique items completely by ourselves, so we are in a more experimental phase. But on the other hand, we just started in June and already made a lot of noise, so who knows where our attention shifts in the future.

What payment methods do you use? Is it a complicated process to set up and run? What advantages/disadvantages does it have?
We use PayPal and payment on delivery for the local market. Both work great. PayPal is the new standard for online transactions and is very simple to set up. Especially compared to establishing direct payment through credit cards, that we found too complicated, full of bureaucracy and with larger transaction fees.

What do you think makes for a popular tee shirt and apparel design?
Will the healthy lifestyle obsession ever be replaced by sex, drugs and rock’n'roll again? Why the hell did they film a remake of Tron? Will men’s belted sweaters ever come in fashion again? These are all very mind boggling questions … and we have no answers to any of them.

What is it about fashion and apparel illustration that’s so alluring to designers and illustrators?
It’s great to make a poster, a book, an advertising campaign or even a completely experimental design session, but creating something that people wear, dance in, flirt with others in and generally identify with enough to make it a part of their own personality is just … as good as it gets.

What are the advantages of being solely web-based? Any drawbacks at all?
People still want to see products with their own eyes, to feel them, touch them, try them on before they buy them. It is much better to start with an actual store, a small boutique or even out of your garage and have a website to gradually expand your enterprise. Everybody who sees our t-shirts live is just so impressed with them and just can’t believe they are the same as featured on our website. That may be due to the fact that we are using a lot of neon, chrome and other special colours, but to tell the truth, we are not solely web-based by choice. It is a result of living and working in an environment with a market that is too small to support designers with a very specific style. It’s much harder to convince people of your credibility online, but on the other hand you will not catch yourself making a compromise to satisfy your local customer. There is no local customer online. You really are free to make whatever you want.

What three tips or pieces of advise could you give to designers looking to set up their own apparel labels and get stocked in places like Urban Industry?
Make t-shirts you would like to wear. Wear the t-shirts you make. Don’t make t-shirts you would not wear.