Starting your own clothing brand has never been easier. But with a lower barrier to entry, it has also gotten more competitive than ever before. Getting the attention of a community in a meaningful way isn’t easy. But that shouldn’t stop you from trying. It isn’t impossible.
Someone who has been able to establish a foothold in the global streetwear scene is Paris-based creative and brand owner Pablo Attal. The 27-year-old has been involved in the industry since he was a teenager and has spanned many roles along the way, from modeling to manufacturing. His main job is operating Pablo T-Shirt Factory. Founded in 2021, the Parisian factory prints and produces apparel for brands, hosts community events through its retail space, and collaborates with major brands to release its own items. Along the way, he has helped establish a legitimate streetwear presence in a city traditionally associated with luxury and couture fashion. If you’re a streetwear brand trying to make some noise in Paris, you call Attal.
Just this past Paris Fashion Week Men’s, Pablo T-Shirt Factory hosted a customization activations with Timberland, Levi’s, and Salomon, launched an apparel collaboration with Paris Saint-Germain, hosted a merch signing with SZA, and hosted a giveaway with Ghanian label Free the Youth for its Air Jordan 1 collaboration. And that isn’t even scratching the surface of Attal’s personal footprint, which extended from friends and family functions to front row seats at the Louis Vuitton show.
Needless to say, Attal knows what it takes to make it in the industry. We spoke to him for his 10 tips for How to Start a Streetwear Brand.
Pablo Says: “Find who you are and who you want to be. Once you’ve found that, navigating in spaces is always easier.
“I want to be a family man. I’m very focused on building a company that allows other humans to grow. This year, one of my oldest colleagues, he had a daughter. My satisfaction comes from the fact that I had an idea five years ago that created an environment that allowed someone to actually nurture a life.
God helps you take a step back and think, ‘What do I actually do that has an impact on people? What do I actually do that’s made someone else feel good?'”
Pablo Says: “I was really lucky to be in the generation who saw the rise of Virgil [Abloh]. Virgil had an amazing group, whether that was Jerry Lorenzo, Justin Saunders, Heron Preston, or Matthew Williams. They all had that energy together.
“I always wanted to be part of a pack, exchanging with people that make that conversation evolve. Having that group of friends that also believe in the same things makes the journey easier. They don’t necessarily have to be your best friends, but who do you want to spend your days with? Who do you want to go on vacation with? Who do you want to speak about the last Virgil fashion show until four in the morning or argue who should be the next creative director or do the next album cover with? I think that passion should be the filter of who you surround yourself with when you’re young.”
Pablo Says: “Take your time. Finding yourself and finding the right people to surround yourself with won’t come overnight.
“It’s all small bricks. You’re just building slowly and steadily, every little post, every little pop-up, every project. There’s always some stuff that brings more publicity, but that’s not always bringing the most money. It’s a balance.
“There’s no one post or project that changed my life. I know in this era of social media, it happens to a few people, but it’s still a few people. Majority of the people that succeed are just working every day, showing dedication, and building consistently.”
Pablo Says: “I think growing in any industry, growing professionally, and just growing as a human being, it is important to define what the metrics of success for life are for yourself. As I grew in the industry, I understood that there was some stuff that I thought I wanted that didn’t actually bring me the happiness or the satisfaction that I thought it would. I think with social media it’s harder because it created a new metric system. Some people think having one million followers is going to makes them happy.”
Pablo Says: “Do you want this thing that you love so much to become something a little less sexy? You’re not going to be able to just hang out with friends and talk about that Virgil show until 4:00 AM anymore. You’re going to have to build something and figure out how to do that fashion show yourself. And it’s two very different things. You’re going to have to figure out how to make money out of that passion. It won’t be only fun and watching. It’s going to be doing.
“When you’re just a consumer, everything is so great. And then you discover the reality and there’s all the disillusion of what it means. Are you ready to see the other side? The other side is not as sexy as you think. It comes with a lot of big challenges that you’re going to have to overcome and that will definitely challenge your love for the actual culture, like when you work for your favorite artist or brand and it’s just so messy.
“I love to be a fan, but when you pass the backstage and you start working in the industry, there’s so much stuff you see.”
Pablo Says: “When I used to enter a new rooms, sometimes my insecurity would come from the fact that I was just there. I didn’t really know why I was there. When you don’t really know your purpose in your room, sometimes it’s hard to position yourself in that room and it’s easy for the insecurities to come. But that doesn’t mean you don’t belong. You have to try and meet people, shake hands.
“How do I sit? Who do I talk to? Who I do not talk to? Do I shake this guy hands? The more you know why you’re in the room, the easier it all is to navigate.
“But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try and just step in even when you don’t really have a purpose. Because if you really care and if you’re really trying to do something, you should always try and use an opportunity to meet someone or to be somewhere.
“When the factory came about, it became way simpler because my name is Pablo, I have Pablo T-shirt Factory, and we have a clothing solution. That doesn’t mean that’s all I can be. But the introduction is easy. It’s simple and anyone can understand. Be yourself, but also try and present yourself in a way that’s understandable. What do you bring to the table and how can that be understood by people easily?”
Pablo Says: “However good you are at networking, if you’re not delivering, nothing will happen. If you’re not really good with networking, but you’re always delivering and the quality of whatever you have to offer is just top tier, people will work with you.
“Your work is always your biggest vehicle. I think there’s a great moment in my career that arrived maybe like a year or two where I entered rooms and met people that I’m a fan of. Because of my work, they heard about me lready on good terms. And that’s so great because my work already did the networking.
The most important part is the delivery. Is someone going to trust you with a check?”
Pablo Says: “You have to spend the hours. Get those flights. Get those trains. Go spend some time outside in real life. I’m sure you could launch a Google Ads campaign that targets that city. I’m not really interested in that. You reach a ton of people through social media, but actually go there. You’re from Paris and want to expand in London? Get the train. Go to London two, three, four, five, six times a year. Spend some time with the people, build a community of friends, and do stuff. Go out there and tell people about your brand in any way you want: Speak about it, make some moves, shoot a lookbook with some locals.
“I think we had a great example in France with our friend Clint and his brand Corteiz. He has a very big exposure in France. Look how much time he spent here. He kept coming and had some small happenings until the big Nike release that made so much noise. But I could tell you about that time we made a little giveaway in the park and 10 people showed up. That’s how it has to start.”
Pablo Says: “It’s about starting. Just drop it. With the output comes the lessons and the growth. I think this is the hardest thing. You see a lot of good brands. They pop out, they have a good year because they have two or three drops, and then they have a little pass for six months.
“It’s never perfect. And that’s why you keep dropping, because you’re always touching up a little and updating. But I think for a young designer, the most important thing is the consistency and the output, just pressuring yourself to drop. What’s great is you’re forcing your ideas to be out. So many young designers have their Photoshop full of great ideas. It’s so easy to design and to have the ideas. Doing them is where the struggle starts, the challenges start, but also it’s where the growth starts.”
Pablo Says: “To build a brand, you don’t need the world. If you drop 50 T-shirts and sell them for $35, you made nearly two bands. You only need 50 people that believe in your $35 idea to make $1,700. And then you can do the same thing with 100 people and it’s $3,500. 100 people is not that many people. Social media and all those metrics are scaring people because they want to have 10,000 followers. But if only 100 of them buy your $35 T-shirt, you made nearly four bands. That community of consumers will only grow as you drop.”
Read the full article here
