Awake NY Celebrates Its Store's One-Year Anniversary with Summer 24 Tee Capsule
Including an anniversary tee with original artwork by legendary NY graffiti artist Skuf YKK and an “Icon Series” tee featuring a photo of Che Guevera.
Awake NY opened the doors to its flagship store in New York City’s Lower East Side on June 1, 2023, and now the brand is celebrating the store’s first anniversary with a new Summer 24 tee capsule. Over the past year, the Awake NY store has become one of the centerpieces of a cultural nexus on the LES’s Orchard Street — throwing all-are-welcome block parties, hosting artists like Alicia Keys, Charlotte Day Wilson and Styles P, releasing a Jordan Brand collaboration and dropping exclusive designs with everyone from Verdy to Fear of God — an expansion that’s based on brand founder Angelo Baque‘s community-first mindset. “I do think that sincerity is missing in retail nowadays, and with us there’s no hidden agenda or intention. If you’re a customer that wants to support Awake, then you’re part of our community and I want to get to know you,” Baque told Hypebeast in a May 2023 interview shortly before the store’s opening.
The styles in the T-shirt capsule celebrate both Awake’s community and some of its most familiar designs. Spotlighting the store’s first anniversary is a tee created with legendary NYC graffiti artist Skuf YKK, which uses his recognizable handstyle in tandem with Awake NY logo treatments and bold block letters that read “All Praise Due,” as well as serving as a follow-up to the special “If Not Us, Then Who?” tee Awake released to celebrate the store’s opening. Other graphics feature the latest tee in Awake NY’s “Icon Series,” which boasts a full-sized portrait of Che Guevara, a shirt with an abstract flower print and another with a collage of New York City landmarks. Last but not least is an extensive selection of classic logo tees that feature the store’s address spread across the back — an evolution of the Holiday Classics 23 collection, which featured classic logo tees with a small, store-centric embellishment at the nape of the neck.
Expect the collection to touch down via the Awake NY website and the brand’s brick-and-mortar at 62 Orchard Street come Saturday, June 1 at 12 PM EST. The black Skuf YKK tee and classic logo tees are exclusive to the store, while the white Skuf YKK tee will only be available on the webstore.
