NO GUIDANCE CONDENSES THE EXPLORATIVE SPIRIT INTO THE SKYLINE OF NEW YORK CITY AND ONTO THE SAVANNAH OF SOUTH AFRICA. OUR DREAM IS TO IGNITE IT AROUND THE WORLD.
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Just had the absolute pleasure of having the founder of the up-and-coming streetwear brand NoGuidance, Thomas Stenz on The You Ask, We Podcast! Make sure to check it out! https://lnkd.in/gss8VAaF #content #youask #yawp #podcast #professionals #success #advice #fashion #clothes #brand #streetwear #streetfashion #drip #streetwearbrand #NYC #NewYork #southafrica #afrobeats #art #artist #artists #branding #NoGuidance
CHAPTER 4 For all our verbal commitments, seeing the boxes of the Origins Collection in person, as a physical, marketable, and scalable product, was gratifying. But, like a well-rehearsed actor waiting in the wings, visceral moments stay in the backend. It was time to cross the chasm. With our limited financing, came drastic tradeoffs. Paying for Instagram ads would artificially (but effectively) give us exposure to a powerful online community. However this meant leaving everything we had built up to scrolling fingers on over-used smartphones. That is not our style. Option two was sending some stock back to South Africa to be handled and retailed to a community in which we were not physically present. That didn't feel right...not yet. Then there was the contrarian option. Go downtown and open our doors to the SoHo masses; betting our tight budget on the upside that people would buy into our message. A crucible decision. Just the kind we like. Two days after clearing customs at JFK, we had finalized a date and address for our temporary home. Boxes of garments were stacked higher with boxes of furniture and of art and by the end of the week, we found ourselves standing in a beautifully set up boutique on Elizabeth Street, with an insatiable appetite to engage.
CHAPTER 3 Stubbornness became our best friend. The lack of a manufacturer was a non starter. But in Europe we had made a commitment. Not just to start, but to endure. We refused to let that responsibility sink into the concrete. The drawing board brought us back to South Africa, where a brand management company saw potential. Their advice: If we found creative inspiration abroad, in Europe and South Africa, it followed then that the source of our production line must lie overseas too. Walking the halls of the foreign manufacturing market was daunting. Then, a friend of a friend introduced us to Shiju. Having managed and operated a premium textiles factory in Chennai, India for over 40 years, Shiju was veteran of the industry. High end production, beautiful fabrics, and most importantly a trusted relationship, ended our search for a manufacturer in the finest sense of the word. He celebrates Indian craftsmanship, and after we pitched him our vision, he celebrated No Guidance too. And he meant it. Thus it was decided: No Guidance would be rooted in South Africa, manufactured in India, and blended into New York. The next small order of business was financing and marketing the brand to the world...
CHAPTER 2 The electricity of New York City surged through us. We wanted to infuse its energy into every fibre of the brand. Assuming we would achieve that literally - by sourcing, stitching and sewing locally in Manhattan - we went knocking on the doors of bespoke manufacturers across the city. However after putting together a short list, we found no viable way forward. Between minimum order quantities in the thousands, and unit costs way above our budget, it was time to pivot. Networking efforts led us abroad where we were promised low minimums, great quality and sustainably sourced materials. Naively, we accepted the terms, but soon realized that execution was lax - and that more diligence was due. Our grand journey of brand building seemed to be falling apart at the first hurdle. How could we build a clothing company without any clothing? The grandeur of the dream clouded the progress. "What could be?" overpowered "What now?" Reality is nonlinear, Zen says. No future, no past. All is now. That meant manufacturing. Now or never...
CHAPTER 1 Inspiration is ephemeral. Like a fading ember, if not fueled, then forgotten. At a pub overlooking the streets of a small town in the Netherlands, we decided to try. To experiment with brand building. To find fuel and build a fire. A happenstance connection with an old friend brought the logo to life: arrows falling inwards, colliding to make the abstract forms of an 'N' atop a 'G.' It quickly became the indicative portrayal of how we were feeling - a little bit lost. We wanted to do everything, everywhere, all at once. So much so, we didn't know where to start. And we cherished it. Because looking at that distinct, rounded logo we realized that the confusion itself was the fuel. That having no guidance means taking on the responsibility to make of our inspiration, what we desire.