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David started HighSnobiety in early 2005. It all started as an online archive of the things he liked and people started to notice. A couple years later and with a solid readership, HighSnobiety is one of the most read online magazines when it comes to streetwear.
TRENDMILL had the chance to sit down and talk to David to talk about skateboarding, streetwear snobs and even his personal life.
- Tell us a little bit about your website and it's purporse?
- HighSnobiety is an online magazine that reports about streetwear, fashion, sneakers, streetart mainly, on a daily basis. We keep our readers informed on whats going on in terms of stores, products, events, etc. HighSnobiety was initially created for myself to keep track of things that I liked and it was actually quite a surprise to me in the beginning when other people started reading and responding to it. The purpose of the site has of course changed a bit. At this point we have become a daily read for many people and also have to deliver to those expectations. But it's a lot of fun!
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How many people check you out daily?
- There are some people every day that come and check. Cannot tell you the numbers though! :-)
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What is your story? How did you get into the whole streetwear scene?
- I guess like many out there I started skating when I was around 12 and did that for a while. Unfortunately I was never really good at it, so I moved on. Music has also been a big influence for me as of the age of 14 or so. I really started getting into Hip Hop at the time, when it was still quite new in Europe. Even got myself some turntables and a mixer and did that for a few years. Wu-Tang was always my favorite at the time! I was also always very much interested in fashion and that interest mixed with the music just kind of made me get into streetwear. It was a natural path and not really a decision that I took!
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When did streetwear really hit the mainstream market? Is it really still an exclusive group of people?
- I am not sure it is really that mainstream. Skateboarding became mainstream and skatebrands also to a certain degree. But even though streetwear is growing a lot these past years, I still don't see it really playing a big role in the mainstream market. It does sometimes seem like it, but that's in my opinion many times just an illusion because one is surrounded by people that are into it and so it seems like everybody knows about it and cares about it.
The mainstream fashion market has become more casual and sneakers have definitely become mainstream though! But that's it! Overall we are still a pretty niche group of people!
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Who are some of the freshest brands right now?
- I really like a lot the more subtle stuff out there. Some of the Japanese brands such as Head Porter Plus and Visvim interest me. But also classics such as Burton or European brands such as Stone Island I like a lot. I also like brands like 10Deep, especially the more simple things that they start doing now. After the crazy past two year, we are finally finding back to more stable design and subtle styles. I am quite happy about that!
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Do you think of your site as more of a place for people in the know or as a place to educate people who may be new to the market?
- I guess a bit of both. Most of the people are already in the know, but a good amount also comes for the first time and only starts getting into it. That's why we try to deliver to both of these groups. On one side we report about new products of brands that our readers already know, but we also introduce new brands all the time and always try to give as much information as possible. Also we try to connect people, brands, etc so that people see where what comes from instead of just saying that it's there. We always try to give the whole picture and I guess that goes under education.
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Do you think their are a lot of snobs in the streetwear world?
- Oh, yeah! The word snob in our case is not referred to being rich, but to being snobby about something that you care about and there everybody has something. That can be sneakers, t-shirts, clothing in general or it can be an attitude. Since people in the streetwear world care a lot about their appearance, I am convinced that we have a lot of snobs! That's not even negative I think!
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Is this because people take being the first to be on a new limited shoe or t-shirt too seriously?
- That for sure. I also catch myself sometimes really wanting something and these days with the limited quantities out there you really have to hurry up. But one should never take it too serious. Caring is fine, but remember that it's only clothing or only a damn sneaker and there are things way more important out there!
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Do you find that group of streetwear snobs take away from what streetwear used to be, which was just being an individual and not necessarily paying insane prices for it?
- Many new brands miss a bit the point I think. Marking a product up high because it has special cuts, materials or quality is fine. But we see lots of brands that sell expensive stuff with poor quality and design. Also many of these people that are willing to pay these tremendous prices for not so outstanding products of course ruin a bit the market, because one tends to think that the prices are normal now.
But it's a market, that regulates itself. People can change these things again and make them right. Right now many new brands get in, but don't deliver anything new. Thus, these brands we will probably not see for that long. It's all a cycle that will eventually be right again I think.
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How much of an influence do you think skateboarding had on streetwear?
- I think as a lifestyle it has a huge influence. Now streetwear has many influences though. It can be surfing, skating, music, fixed gear biking, art etc. Skating is definitely the biggest movement of these, contributing the most, but what I personally like is that you do not have to be a skater to be into streetwear or to have a connection to streetwear. The mix of people really makes it fun and interesting!
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How do you feel about Stussy and Freshjive being sold in big department stores? Do you think that availability takes away from the brand?
- I think that first it's incredible to see these brands still being around and doing their thing. Also both are having, especially Stussy, a pretty strong comeback and are tightening distribution again to avoid these mistakes in the future. They realized again what their market is. But in general as long as the fit is given nobody should be punished for selling to a lot of stores. A product is not good because it's limited. That's a wrong perception. Uniqlo sells millions of pieces a year and it's a lot of good product. Judge the product for what it is and not for how much there is of it.
But selling these brands in department stores might of course not be the best strategy, but they realized that themselves!
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Are you married and if so, did you meet your wife through the site?
- No, I am not married but in a relationship. My girlfriend has absolutely nothing to do with streetwear and that's cool. She understands what I am doing and appreciates it, but does not have that background and that's sometimes really refreshing, because I already deal with it 15 hours a day, and I think that's enough.
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What should we look out for from you guys in the months to come?
- We are constantly working on improving the site and making it a more complete experience. Expect some new things and functions to happen before the summer this year. Hopefully you'll enjoy them!
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Do you have any insider tips for us?
- Not really!
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Thanks for your time and keep up with the amazing work.
- Thanks a lot, you too guys. Was a pleasure chatting with you!
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