What initially drew you to clothing design ? How did NSF come into fruition ?
I was drawn to fashion at an early age , but I never aspired to be a designer . Being a skater around West Hollywood , my friends and I would always alter or destroy our shoes and clothes to make them cooler or more street skate friendly . Back then , there were no European or American designer brands . It was mostly just Levis , Dickies and surf brands . If you wanted to be unique or represent your neighborhood or your crew , you had to alter what was available .
After High School , I started working at James Perse . James hadn ’ t cut any of his own label yet ; I was the second employee . I floated between production , development & sales over a five year period . It was an amazing experience to work for James and be a part of the first years of the company ’ s explosion . After James Perse , I ran a brand called YA-YA . I spent more than five years there experiencing fashion in a much different way . I identified early on that having a boss wasn ’ t for me .
I wanted to put myself out there , so I started NSF . When I started I was broke . I developed a men ' s sample line out of my apartment in Hollywood . I went straight to Barneys with it and they bought it .
We love the way you blend luxurious comfort with a nod to classic California vintage style … Your most recent designs feel like you ’ re really going back to your roots . What currently influences your work ?
My influence relates a lot to my best skill , which is production . For me it always starts with the material and how I can do something different or unexpected to it . I ’ ve been digging way back into archives lately & getting re-connected with a lot of vintage suppliers . Early americana workwear , denim and military from different countries always excites me .
You recently opened your Flagship store in Los Angeles and it blew us away ... What was it like bringing your vision of a brick and mortar to life ? What excites you most about the space ?
Honestly , I don ’ t even know what I ’ m doing yet … I know I love the neighborhood and being able to occupy a turn of the century bow truss warehouse across the street from Chrome Hearts fulfills a dream . I ’ m really into the fixtures that I built in the store , the furniture and the vintage textiles . It ’ s pretty
rad having a retail space and spending time displaying NSF
the way I want it to be represented . We merchandise Mens and Womens styles together . Women buy Mens styles and Men buy Womens and we don ’ t tell them or define them .
How do you keep your creative energy alive ?
I don ’ t have a choice , I don ’ t know if I ' m any good at anything else . Good or bad , money or no money , I LOVE making clothes . This business is almost a sickness and you have to have the passion for it because it ’ s fucking hard !
For anyone looking to take the leap and start their first business - what advice would you share ?
The NSF x Jacquie Aiche collaboration has been such a success - what is the magic behind your creative relationship with Jacquie ? What is it that makes you two work so well together ?
Take the money and buy real estate in California .
Jacquie is such a pleasure to work with . She has total confidence in what she ' s doing and it shows through so clearly in her designs and how she approaches business . She is totally decisive and I really appreciate that . I prefer to work with creative people that know exactly who they are and who they are not . Jacquie absolutely knows who she is .
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