How to Launch a Clothing Brand in NYC

The slightly evil guide on manufacturing hype around your new brand

hello everyone.

Apologies for the hiatus. I was in LA for work but we are BACK. I wanted to kick things off with something a little more in depth than a news roundup.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how brands go about launching so I wanted to consolidate a little playbook for a successful launch.

A successful launch means people in New York talk about your brand for approximately 10 days until our collective squirrel brain moves on to the next thing.

I’ll talk about this imaginary brand’s social media, seeding strategy, launch event, store location, and PR.

Before I start —if you’re just looking to get merch / small batches made of a funny little shirt or hat —here are the places where you should do it.

LQQK STUDIO is a print shop that’s also a brand/creative consultancy based by the Morgan L. Make sure to stop by a this historic sight if you head over there.

ARENA EMBROIDERY located in Williamsburg is a go to spot for many. This is where I got my slightly nuanced camo yankee hat made last year and at some point Siegelman Stable had their hats produced there. (Don’t let that deter you)

FUNHOUSE PRINTING used to be located in Soho but recently moved off the Morgan L and are very helpful and hands on with helping your vision come to life.

CLASSY SCREENS in Ridgewood is where I had my most recent batch of merch made. They also did the merch for *annoying TikTok Foodie Voice* “NOHO’S HOTTEST NEW BOWL PLACE, FISHBOWL”

Now for the playbook…

This has nothing to do with actual clothes being made or sold and EVERYTHING to do with “clout aggregation” and manufactured hype on launch.

If you’re bootstrapping a brand and building something close to your heart with little to no budget you don’t need a meme page admin telling you how to do that. That’s #intuition and #passion.

So.

Let’s imagine you have the perfect capsule collection ready to go and a bag of money magically appears (totally not from your parents)… here is how to launch.

INSTAGRAM

First, you need an esoteric photo that somehow ties into your brand and isn’t too on the nose. Something that intrigues and tickles but doesn’t tell you everything. This is paramount in having “tastemakers and trendsetters” feel like they are getting in on something early and extraordinarily chill.

These days, your brand doesn’t need some tired backstory so I would advise against going full Ronnie Fieg mode and putting a personal memoir in the captions. Keep it simple.

Something like this should work fine with the caption being the day you’re launching. (I just googled “film photos fleeting iceland black sand beach”).

Don’t be afraid to slap your logo on that too. You either have to pay a design agency an egregious amount of money or find a a senior at Parson’s to make your logo for free as a “portfolio building” exercise — there’s no in between.

Here’s mine that I’m going to slowly start using.

You could also use your IG as a moodboard before launch to start your wOrLd BuiLdiNg. For the love of god do NOT do a 9 photo collage that forms your logo, hopefully that’s obvious by now.

I wouldn’t start a TikTok account off the bat. Your goal here is to create scarcity and a group of loyal soldiers —not mass appeal and reach. People want to grow with the brand and trying to go viral by doing some man on the street type content is not a recipe for long term success.

I like the way that Thistles does their instagram.

Would you look at that — your social media is set up.

PR / COMMS ETC

Next, you’re going to hire Gia Kuan Consulting. You need her team’s mailing list and connections if this is going to work. She seems to always be able to get the right people in the room. Another big perk of working with them is you’ll be able to go to the WSA building and take a photo of the Toe Bed with your Rocky’s Matcha to let everyone know you were there.

Partners & Associates is also a good one. Their founder, Steph Gotch, knows how to get buzzy events/launches covered.

People pride themselves on not hiring PR firms… that’s great if you’re already “plugged in” but it’s helpful to “play the game” a little if you have a few grand a month to play with.

If you opt out of getting a PR/Comms team, the very least you can do is annoy Gerald Ortiz of GQ to get on one of their recommends list.

Amazing! PR/Comms is covered.

PHYSICAL STOREFRONT / POP UP

Is this necessary? No.

Does it feel good to have a physical space to unironically build “community” in? Yes

You’re going to want to get a spot within these 5 circles.

#1 — Tompkins graduates territory — most notably Starteam East Village is located here. If you’re going after the sub 25 year year old capri length jort platoon — consider this circle.

#2 — Underutilized space for brands. Everyone wants to be on Canal these days but you can capture multiple audiences within this circle — NYU students, GRWM TikTok people, rich NoHo weekend warriors and everyone in between. You could do a nice launch event with Tom’s Juice.

#3 — Can’t not mention Nolita here — double knee white socks with the loafer dirtbag territory with a sprinkle of G-Wagon schmucks. If you’re selling a knit polo or are Greg Yuna — you’ve come to the right place.

#4 — The GDQ (Greater D*mes Square Area) - the place that every brand wants a piece of. Bode, Awake, Fugazi, Happy99, Le Pere, Colbo, Susan Alexandra… the list goes on. If you’re a little rocks throw away from the big rocks outside Dimes Deli.. you’ve arrived.

#5— The Little Opening Ceremony District is another area that’s very expensive but will show people you’ve got BACKING and are a LEGIT brand. You will not be beating the trust fund allegations if you can get a spot here. When you listen closely you can still hear Yung Lean’s performance at V-Files softly echoing off the buildings.

Random pockets on Canal are desirable if you can grab a space that’s right between Drake’s and Happier Grocery. Same with some spots on Bowery like Vowels. I would maybe even target all the way down on Mulberry past Bayard street.

FOR BROOKLYN —

1,2,3 are obvious hot spots for well payed creative adjacent email job people and cute old polish people. If they’ve spent hundreds of dollars on squiggly candles, they’ll also spend money on your clothes. Unfortunately, by that logic, you won’t be getting any business from polish grandmas.

#4 is a good one too - Graham L stop attracts an ideal 25 year old customer with patchwork tats along with 37 year old former Vice freelancers with americana tattoos. Just follow wherever there’s a Variety Coffee and you should be good if that’s your vibe.

#5 makes sense if you’re a bespoke knitwear/jewelry company and want your store to be a studio “by appointment only” vibe.

Please refer to this meme I made last month if you’re thinking BRO wtf NYC is bigger than those two areas.

SEEDING YOUR PRODUCT

This obviously depends on the clothes and who it’s for but here are a few tips.