GWHH: How'd you get started with Dope Couture? Have you always wanted your own clothing line?
DC: I have always been into clothing. A lot of people say that they are
into clothing but I have been independently studying clothing, fashion, and trends ever since I can remember. I was always into the newest, the freshest. I was sportin Hilfiger cable knits in Elementary (thanks moms). I remember killin em with my Azure Blue Versace polo back in middle school. I've always been on some sort of fashion. It wasn't until college I discovered streetwear, which merged so many cultures into one. As I started following the movement and really getting into the culture, I felt as though I had a perspective on streetwear clothing that others would vibe with. I set out to design a line inspired by the high fashion lines I was drawn to with a streetwear perspective. Other people were doing this but we were going to do something different.
GWHH: I read that you initially planned on calling the brand 'Dynasty Goods Dope Couture', why did you end up changing the name?
DC: I shortened it to just Dope Couture first because it's a shorter name and second it was more natural, I felt, for people to abbreviate it as Dope. Plus Dynasty Goods sounds like Rocawear Jr.
GWHH: You began by selling Dope online, when did you realize it was time to open up the shop?
DC: When I wanted to be able to support myself. I saw an opportunity to seize a storefront and took the leap. It was a good decision to upgrade home base.
GWHH: What's the difference between Dope Couture and other brands & stores?
DC: I try to be a bit higher end than some of the other streetwear brands. All of our designs incorporate a luxury brand aesthetic. I also try and set us apart with hand drawn artwork and attention to small details. It's not necessarily just about the clothes though. We live it from Talent Tuesdays to Scholars Thursdays. Our last intern is now working at Burberry. Our current intern just got accepted to fashion school and is fluent in French.
GWHH: What are some of your inspirations when designing an upcoming collection? Is there an underlying message in your brand?
DC: Our inspiration comes from today's high-end fashion designers, pop culture, art and music. The underlying message has been and will be our sarcastic interpretation of how luxury, high style and street culture mesh and portray a bourgeoisie lifestyle.
GWHH: What's your favorite Dope tee to-date?
DC: That's a really hard question to answer. So many of our designs are so personal and really connect with me. Right now I'm really feeling the mosaic tile inspired tee for spring. It's a really intricate design that we spent a lot of time perfecting so that it's just right.
GWHH: How do you keep everything up and running at such a young age? Have there been any major challenges you've come across?
DC: I wouldn't be as efficient as I am without the support of my team (The Bougie Crew). They help me run the day-to-day activities so that I can focus on the progress of the brand and boutique. It's challenging when you're still in the "systems development" stage; where there are some systems in place that run themselves and others that still require focus. In general we always work it out and come out on top.
GWHH: Every time I drop into the shop, you're bringing in new labels and designers, with all the hype for limited editions, what makes a label stick out as something Dope needs to carry?
DC: If it's high end, fashion forward, creative, unique, and exclusive.
GWHH: What brands/labels can shoppers pick up in Dope?
DC: Right now you can get Dope, HUF, Kidrobot, 10.Deep, Play Cloths, The Hundreds, and Super Sunglasses just to name a few. In the next couple of weeks we will be adding Tom Ford Sunglasses, Comme Des Garcons PLAY and APC denim.
GWHH: Besides being the first and only street wear boutique in Bloomington, you've hosted several in-stores featuring Big Sean, Mike Posner, Wale, etc. and now hosting the after party for Jay-Z in Indy... How's it feel to be a part of all this?
DC: It's a lot of work and requires a lot of planning, but every event we've done thus far has been a success and a lot of fun. It's exciting too because the artists that we involve ourselves with are ones we admire and enjoy.
GWHH: What's your reaction when you see guys like Lupe, Jay-Z, Naledge, Posner, Mick Boogie, and etc. rocking Dope? Did you ever picture that in the beginning?
DC: It's exciting. There's always a bit of a "shot in the dark" element when you send product to celebrities such as these but what makes it exciting for us is that guys like these get sent a slew of product constantly and for them or their stylist to pick our stuff over others is a pretty big seal of approval. I'm confident with our line and our designs just keep getting better so I knew it was only a matter of time before we saw celebrities sporting our stuff.
GWHH: Where do you see Dope Couture in 5 years, growth wise?
DC: We will be opening at least one new boutique in the next two years; 5 years from now I hope to see at least 2 boutiques. We will also be moving into cut and sew at some point so you'll see more technical and higher quality garments. You may even see us creating a whole new division where we're producing higher end pieces that really focuses on the luxury behind the brand.
GWHH: Since Gowhere Hip Hop is a music blog; tell us about your connection with music? What's currently on the Dope playlist?
DC: Fly Union, Mick Boogie's Pharrell Mixtape, Mick Boogie + Stylecaster, Pretty Lights, New Sade, Chip Tha Ripper, Alpha.Live, J.Rocc for Supreme, and Kidz In The Hall's new album,
Land Of Make Believe.
GWHH: Tell us real quickly where else we can find Dope besides online at
dopecouture.com and in-store?
DC: Our stock list is constantly growing but a couple of places that have shown us sincere support are Motivation Boutique in Ann Arbor, MI., Got Sole in Indianapolis, IN., Kreative Sole in Huntsville, AL., and El Mercado in Los Angeles.
GWHH: Any closing thoughts, remarks? Anything random you need to air out? Where can our readers follow Dope?
DC: Something a lot of people seem to don't know is that we rarely produce more than 100 tees per color way per style. When [insert brand here] does something "limited" they are doing our normal production numbers. We are constantly getting emails to see when we are going to re-stock product. A lot of people already know what this deal is but you would be surprised at how many don't. Our product is always limited so don't sleep.
Random: We also take notice of repeat customers that have been with us from the beginning and I want to say thank you.
