A BAthing Ape (BAPE) has annouced that they plan to open a temporary BAPE Pirate store in New York City at the start of the new school Semester. This will be an outlet-style store with clothing, footwear and other accessories to calm your craving. The store itself is going to be up from September 3rd till the September 7th with no word yet of a location. I will bring you that info as soon as its released.

On wednesday i got a call from Sean McKenzie to show me his second season of UpScene. Sean founded the clothing line and launched his brand to the massesin 2008 selling to boutiques in New York. “One of the first places i got to sell my pieces was in a art gallery which was funny” he explained. he believes that much of his brand, that they are art pieces. his designs are really proof of his work to bring a product that reflects the people that wears it.

UpScene is basically what you see. A brand represnting people trying to live above the scene. but Sean goes into great detail to explain the direction that his brand is trying to take by not falling in the box. “I’m building a brand thats not falling in line. Once you’re in the box its hard to climd back out”, he explains while looking over the Aventura area. this Harlem, New York native understands where streetwear came from and incorporates that education and his ideas into the designs you’ll catch below.

one thing he doesn’t want is to people to mistake his designs with the novelty of t-shirts we have been seeing lately. he offers a variety tees and hats with nuetral and bright colorways. Yet Sean sees his brand branching out to different areas of fashion and also streetwear culture. right now the line is available exclusively in New York but he loves the vibe in miami so much that he will branch out here and Cali soon. Visit http://www.upscene.bigcartel.com/ to cop your own piece of the UpScene movement. Sean was a cool New Yorker to me and thats unusaul ( Knicks Vs. Heat 1997-2000 Playoffs). at the end he just says ” i want UpScene to represent that group who are on top of their scene”. i can dig that.

These babies were designed to deliver maximum comfort and stability but check out  the twenty and the three on em. Very nice. the Nike Max also features, a company first,  an innovative, basketball-specific Max Air airbag unit. The VIIs are constructed with a full-grain leather upper and patent leather all around with that sick tongue that represents seventh shoe in the signature series.  the $160.00 shoe will release on OCtober 24th with another flashy press release. happy hunting people!!!

Now, there is always some symbolism or meaning behind every brand and the BlackGrapes are no different. the “Black” is used to represent achievement, like Chris said “its like receiving a Black cap and gown for graduation. the grapes, when processed correctly, have the potential of becoming something better than expected, like a fine bottle of wine”. this is truly a unique outlook on a brand that promises to pay homage to the pioneers that paved the way for them. Streetwear is not only a business to them but also a passion they hope to incorperate into their designs.

right now you can catch most of the BlackGrape collection at their web store. Make sure to check out their blog to voice your opinions on the brand and designs. they want to hear from you, the customers. they want to include a showcase of success stories that match their own struggles. Chris has one more thing for you all.” If you’re willing to process yourself against all odds, you can become something that everyone can appreciate. In the end, BlackGrapes is the individual”. well said.

Five years ago when the company started sending its clothes to the US it offered credit to all its retail customers and learned the hard way. In some cases they waited up to a year to be paid, chief executive Nick Clegg says, “and in a few instances not at all”.

At one point they made the trek to a trade show in New York, where they got orders but not enough to cover the expense of being there.

But on that trip they met Marvin Jarrett, editor-in-chief of street fashion magazine Nylon, who took the Kiwis under his wing and “opened all the doors for us”.

Through Jarrett, Federation ended up supplying the large Urban Outfitters retail chain. The company had to weigh up the offer carefully. The American retailer’s list of requirements were lengthy and the profit margins less than impressive.

“The margins weren’t really there, which meant we had to look at other sources of production to justify the whole exercise of dealing with these guys.”

Around 90 per cent of Federation’s production is now done offshore, and it can do fast turnarounds of collections.

But the state of the US economy has meant even further margin reductions, and the company has decided to pull back from that market for now.

Federation was also sold by British department store Selfridges for a couple of years, but the label didn’t have anyone on the ground there and managing it from so far away was difficult so it has withdrawn.

Clegg says the company is now focusing on its still growing Asian, Australian and domestic markets.

Real Hip-Hop heads- listen up!!! Beasted has just dropped a new amazing limited & highly collectable series with Rap’s Grateful Dead tribute tees. The Rap’s Grateful Dead series features ODB, 2PAC, Biggie, JDilla, and Big Pun. Collect the entire series!

West coast heads rejoice! Yeaaah the Lakers won! Now go celebrate in style with Penant Race’s new Champs Courtside Tee! Also for the East coast homies – PR just dropped the sick new Queens and Bronx Box seat tees too!

Odds are you probably saw Transformers or are planning to…just to see Megan Fox run in slow motion, right!? 8103 came through with the ILL shirt reppin one of the dopest females on the planet! Peep it here: The Fox Tee

Ladies – get familiar with Yours Truly! Yours Truly is an awesome brand from New York pushing out some of the finest tees, sweatshirts, and tees for ladies. Make sure you pick up the sexy Circles sweatshirt and Clouds tee from Yours Truly.

Be sure to check these new arrivals out and so much more on the Karmaloop Kazbah!

The brand started its business in 2003, featuring designs inspired by the California and Los Angeles lifestyles, specifically the SoCal’s skateboarding, surf, punk and hip hop cultures. As a nod to the times when the founders were growing up, the designs are heavily influenced by 80’s surf t-shirts and indie skateboarding clothing of the 90’s. There are a wide array of graphic t-shirts, denim, woven clothes, fleece, jackets and outerwear, headwear and accessories. By late 2008, The Hundreds had launched its shoe line titled The Hundreds Footware. Within its mere 5 years of existence, The Hundreds has also produced sub-labels such as Tens for women, The Hundreds Public label and the inhouse label titled The Hundreds Rosewood Collection.

Currently The Hundreds is housed at their original flagship store in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles, and a second store in Union Square, San Francisco. They’re also stocked at over 400 accounts in almost every major city throughout the globe. The popularity of the brand has been boosted by coverage from media outlets such as the New York Times Magazine, Antenna, Giant Robot, KoreAm, MuchMusic Television, Inc. Magazine and most recently The Los Angeles Times.

The Hundreds have their fingers in many pots, collaborating on design projects with major international brands such as Disney, Casio G-Shock, eS, Gravis, Medicom and also up and coming artists and designers namely Johnny Cupcakes, David Choe, Tofer, Robbie Conal, H2O, Kurupt, Craola, Avail and Usugrow.

According Shenassafar, the company raked in $4.8 million in sales in 2008–almost a 4x increase over the prior year– almost entirely through small boutiques, their webstore and the two retail outlets.  Shenassafar and Kim have decided to turn down major department stores’ requests for orders. Since the brand’s appeal is rooted in underground exclusivity, how well they manage growth against the risk of being perceived as mainstream or “sellouts” will be key to The Hundreds’ future success.

Another key part of The Hundreds secret sauce is the strength of their online presence. Their website, updated every day by the founders, is part blog, part streetwear lifestyle documentary wrapped around an online store.

The Hundreds remain true to its official statement in its website:

More than just an online magazine or clothing line, The Hundreds is a lifestyle project that remains personal and direct, reflective of the community and culture, and dedicated to its fanbase.

The Hundreds is Huge.