There’s a lot to learn from the 100 Miles Brand. They’ve been in the Toronto street wear scene for over 20 years and are still relevant today. The 100 Miles Brand proves to be more than just a t-shirt brand by having a clothing line that’s available for men and women. They are heavily influenced by hip-hop and urban culture, but stress the importance of shining a positive light on it. – Written by Samantha Singh / Interview by Cassandra John
What’s the story behind the name 100 Miles Brand?
It came to me 23 years ago when I was in my university lecture at Ryerson, and the professor said to us to look at your life and find something that inspires you. It just happened to be the TTC bus strike. I was in front of the 100 miles kilometre sign and I was like, “100 km, nah that doesn’t make sense…100 Miles!” From that everything came into place. I came with a concept where 100 miles symbolizes the world, the fact that we as people go through a lot of struggles, so we have 100 miles to go in everyday life.
What was it like creating a line in 1992? In this day and age there are so many resources available for people wanting to start a line, I could only imagine the resources or the lack of resources there was back then. Could you walk me through the process?
The process back then was the Yellow Pages and your feet! Basically being a minority, a lot of people didn’t take me seriously [and] being young were some of the obstacles that I faced. I had to be mature to get what I wanted without being so demanding. It took a lot of research, trial and error. No one was there to say, ‘Hey! Get more followers or hash tags!’ There was none of that. It was pretty much you believing in yourself, or having a small team of people that saw your vision and wanted to help in terms of getting it to the next step in the career or just the vision. It was a lot more difficult, a lot more footwork, people closing the door in your face. It’s not like now, where it’s a buyers market and everybody wants a piece of something.
Your brand has been worn by some of the most influential people in hip-hop, both alive and dead. Explain what that feeling was like.
I would say surreal, humbling, to say the least. From Tupac, to Biggie, to Wu-Tang Clan, living legends like EPMD, KRS1, A Tribe Called Quest, just to name a few. It’s been a blessing and an honor as a Toronto clothing brand and as a member of Toronto to have people globally recognized now to wear our clothing. To feel recognized in the sense that Toronto is a fashion capital, in my eyes at least, a place where people do respect the fashion job of our city.
The heights that you’ve take 100 Miles Brand to, most people can only dream about. What’s a takeaway that you can share with the Freshest Goods audience?
I would say believe in yourself. Always have faith in the powers above, and stay humble. Don’t let it get to your head, things can happen. As much as you feel that you’re in control, there are other energies and people that are also in control or assisting. You’ve got to believe all the time strongly in yourself, believe in what you’re doing. Do it for the love of it, don’t do it because of money or you want to get famous, do it from the heart.
How has the 100 Miles Brand managed to stand the test of time? What are some of your secrets?
Smiling, laughing, enjoying, just loving every minute of it. Loving the customers that are buying our merchandise or even rooting us on. It means a lot to myself and the rest of our company, getting the positive encouragement and even when we get criticized we prove that we’re taking it in a positive direction. Just building with our consumer base, now it’s global and just spreading the love that to me, that’s what it’s about. Trying to stay positive and staying creative and not leaning towards trends, but always trying to lean towards fashion.
The 100 Miles Brand will be at the Freshest Goods Market at Live at the Square on Sept. 19th. You can find them at 100milesbrand.com, Instagram and Twitter.
