From starting the brand, what’s been the biggest challenges you faced along the way in the different areas that are involved, i.e, production, marketing, retail etc?

One of the hardest things when you’re a young is brand is the difficulty to meet minimums with factories, yet still being able to produce special pieces and get a pure vision seen. Additionally, growing a strong team can be challenging. Finding the right people that match your aesthetic, understand your vision and are a pleasure to spend time with is rare yet super important. We have been very lucky thus far. My wife takes care of sales and the rest of our team is either family or feels like family.

What’s been your highlight of 2016?

Being a part of the LVMH top 8 was truly amazing. Meeting all of the judges, speaking with them, walking them through the collection and hearing their thoughts was awe-inspiring. Even meeting the other designers was so special. I knew a couple of them already but just seeing the talent and how everyone works was was very moving. I think 2016 as a whole has been a really strong year. We have grown so much as a company and have acquired great new accounts worldwide. I am super proud of the imagery created for our seasonal catalogues with Nick Knight. I have also been able to progress so much in my personal design work by learning more about fabric development and working closely with incredible Italian factories to understand what is possible with garment construction.

As a brand that likes using different mediums such as print and 360 videos, how do you think technology will influence the way brands evolve moving forward, if at all?

As a modern designer, I feel I should always be taking advantage of the new technology that is available to me. I like to ask our suppliers for new materials, threads and techniques that they are using to see what works for the ALYX aesthetic. As I research and think more about the future of our world, I want to make a conscious effort to find ways to produce environmentally friendly yet high quality garments. I think the future of technology will allow garment construction to occur geographically near to where the items are sold. As far as a non-digital aspect, we produce printed catalogues to offer a sense of permanence for our supporters. We research and use special printing techniques and paper stocks to portray the images. The catalogue acts as a time capsule for this moment in time.

Has being based in Italy influenced any aspects of the brand?

Yes, definitely. As I began to develop a structure and vision for ALYX, I knew that working in Italy would be ideal for achieving the level of quality and precision I wanted for my brand. I was commuting back and forth between NYC and Ferrara so frequently. I decided to move to Italy for the next year to devote more time to developing the collections and to get closer with the production team and factories working on ALYX. The care and thoughtfulness that our suppliers put into the brand is very inspiring. Living here allows me to slow down a bit and put all of my focus into the brand. Italy is an incredible place to live. Fashion is instilled in Italian culture.

You collaborated with notable names such as Hiroshi Fujiwara and Nick Knight, what was it like working with them and what did you learn from it?

I am very lucky to call Nick Knight a dear friend. We have worked together on many projects over the past seven or eight years, so when I started my own brand I knew I wanted to involve him. It feels very special to be able to trust a collaborator so much. When we work together, we push each other hard to create a new language with the images we are producing and to try new things. It’s really fun. Working with Hiroshi is still quite new. I have always admired what he has contributed to fashion and culture over the decades. It was quite an honor when Hiroshi asked to collaborate. I really appreciate his sensibility and creation. He came to our showroom in Paris and we just started talking about fashion and clothing. The next thing I knew, I was traveling to Tokyo to work on our project together. I hope to work more with him in the future. It is really inspiring how relevant each of their work has remained over the years.

Since starting the label over two years ago, what were some of the biggest challenges that you faced along the way?

One of the biggest challenges would have to be that I jumped into an industry with no previous experience in it all the while trying to perform on the level we currently are. Besides the lack of experience, maintaining an efficient structure while keeping up with the business has taken up a lot more time than I imagined and has definitely brought on some tough challenges.

How has the brand evolved since its birth in terms of aesthetic, brand direction or even manufacturing etc?

Every aspect of the brand has evolved tremendously. I feel that our aesthetic keeps getting stronger, more refined and it is evident that we own it. The brand direction has been one of our major focuses from the beginning and it’s been great watching it evolve. The fact that we stay true to what we believe in while continuously telling our story through different approaches definitely shows our evolution with both the brand direction and the brand’s message. As for manufacturing, it’s been a crazy ride but we are in a great place right now with partners who truly believe in us and vice versa.

The brand is being stocked in quite a few locations now, is opening more accounts the direction you’re going for or you’ll still remain selective?

Our goal from the beginning when we decided to approach global retail was to be very selective. I believe in partnering up with strong retailers who can share our story the right way and in a similar way that we have been sharing it. I don’t see us going deep into the wholesale model because it’s not what ALD represents as a whole. However, with regards to marketing, global exposure and the opportunity for our consumer in Korea or Australia to touch and feel our product, this approach makes the most sense. Our main goal is to spread our message and show what ALD stands for – this can be very difficult if you don’t partner up with retailers who run parallel to that idea.

How are you going to control that distinct vision once it’s being carried at different stockists, especially when every store has its own way of presenting product?

I feel like our aesthetic and overall brand image is so strong, and with the selection of retailers we have made who respect the vision we have, I don’t believe it will be an issue. The main goal is to have our own stores where we have full control of this but it’s easy to forget we are only a little over two years old. The focus has to remain on what the big picture goal is when it comes down to the brand. If we follow the strategy and formula we’ve set forth, I’m very confident that we’ll be approaching this industry in a way like no other. We are definitely still finding our sweet spot.

From the start, Aime Leon Dore has combined offline elements (photo cards, stickers, scent on the clothes etc.) and online elements (Leon Dore, Muse etc.), why do you feel it’s important to combine all these components?

It’s not about product for me. Yes, I’m a product geek and I love to hunt for something I love but it’s always been about what that product represents rather than what it is. I think our consumer gravitates towards ALD because of our message and what we represent. Granted, our product is very well made and the quality is up to par with the vision but I think the vision and what we are trying to shed light on is what people fall in love with. At the end of the day, I’m a storyteller. It’s about continuously telling our story through a platform and that platform just so happens to be ALD.

Since setting up shop, what have been some of the biggest challenges that you”ve faced along the way?

There are too many to name. No one said it was going to be easy but the main challenge we have faced is how to make, keep and promote our identity from a brand perspective. In this day and age, that is the number one (with a bullet) thing that people want to know. This is what shapes the consumer’s confidence in you.

Constantly straddling your time between buying trips, managing inventory, and the creative direction of Union’s output, has 2016 been a progressive year for UNION?

It definitely has. First and foremost, 2015 was sh*te! The good news is, we learned the lessons that resulted lot from our mistakes in 2015 and have been able to avoid them and change things for the better in 2016.

What are some of the most exciting brands you got to work with this year?

We collaborated with Vans and we are super excited with the shoe, which will be coming out early 2017. We also have a collaboration in the works with Dickies that should be quite epic, once it’s complete. In addition, we did a slew of colabs for Complex Con: Neighborhood, Wacko Maria, Pleasure, Noah, Brain Dead and Fear of God. All of them turned out to be amazing.

As more brands move towards e-commerce, is there a strategy you follow which ensures consumers keep visiting the brick and mortar?

It’s probably not the best strategy, but honestly speaking, we just do us and we don’t worry bout anyone else. There are too many stores out there trying to do what we do. To date, we have been blessed with two things: one, our customers are loyal, and two, real recognize real…nahmeen?!

This year, you launched the ”Superdopehypeincredible” series, what do you look to achieve with this? How do you curate the lineup of creatives you feature?

My very talented wife Beth Birkett really took over all of our social media, editorials and marketing. Supredopehypeincredible has been her baby. For the most part she just f*cks with the people that we cross paths with in our life and business. Interesting people, typically creatives, doing something Suprer/Dope/Hype/Incredible in their lives. We just want to share it with everyone.