By, The Curator
I actually didn’t find today’s brand on purpose. I was on Instagram and saw some cool graffiti and art posts so I went to look at the account that posted them. It turned out to be a New York based streetwear brand called Aye One Clothing. At the time I was grinding out the foundation for The Curator so of course I hit them up. Thankfully Aye One agreed to do an interview which you can read below!
The Curator Blog (TCB): What’s your name and where are you from?
Aye One Clothing (AOC): My name is Charles and I’m from New York City Queens.
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TCB: How long have you been running Aye One?
AOC: I started Aye One about two years ago, but I gave it a break one year in. Later I decided to get back into full gear.
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TCB: What does the name mean and what inspired it?
AOC: Coming up with the name had to be, and still is one of the hardest things when you’re first starting a t-shirt brand. There’s many things to take into account and I spent literally weeks trying to figure out what name to come up with. I finally came up with A1 while sitting at a restaurant called BBQs reading it from the sauce “A1” and decided to run with it except pronouncing it differently “aye” “one” which really comes from the urban slang “A1” and has several meanings “Top Quality” “on point” “perfect condition”.
The origin however, A1 was the term used around 1775 to classify physical structure and equipment such as ships. A company called Lloyd’s Register graded ship’s hull on a letter scale “A” being in best condition. Then the equipment would be graded by a number, “1” being the best or top quality, sort of like a system used for quality control. So this is where the expression A1 derives from. Nowadays the phrase A1 is used to describe something that is top notch or very good.
TCB: Tell me about how Aye One got started.
AOC: I’ve always been a t-shirt collector owning more than 150 t-shirts from all brands from LRG, to Popular Demand, Stussy, BBC, 10 Deep, Ecko, Mecca, that’s just to name a few. I remember going to the mall with the intention of buying a few t-shirts to add to my wardrobe. After going through multiple racks I thought to myself how can these stores have all these t-shirts and not have one design that is appealing. No offense to the brands on the racks, but the graphics on these shirts made me feel like a five year old designed it. That’s when I came up with idea of creating t-shirts that I would wear and possibly putting it out there for others to wear as well.
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TCB: Do you have a team or is it just you?
AOC: It’s just me, which is challenging because there’s so many aspects of this business that you have to take charge in. Not to mention you have about 1,000+ competitors out there that you have to compete with.
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TCB: What aspects of the brand are your favorite to handle?
AOC: I’d say the designing part because it’s really the most consuming aspect, being creative, getting proof of concept and just running with it.
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TCB: What is your design process like?
AOC: I’d say the usual as any other designer out there messing around with Photoshop and Illustrator. I think the hardest part is coming up with a design that is unique, catchy, and straight to the point. I’m more into typography, sometimes people relate more to phrases than pictures so I’m constantly revising designs. Sometimes I find myself working on a design for hours and hours only to realize the end result was so simple.
TCB: What is your production process like? Do you do it yourself or outsource the work?
AOC: I outsource my work, although it took me some time to find a good supplier for printing and garment wise.
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TCB: What are one or two things that you have learned from your time running Aye One?
AOC: I’ve learn that not everyone is going to like your work, you have to pull your big boy pants up and take criticism. You can’t be sensitive, just take the constructive feedback and see what you can do better and run with it because at the end of the day customers equal sales and it’s what matters. Without them there’s no brand. You can have the best design in the world but if no one knows about it then, that’s exactly what you become.
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TCB: Where do you see yourself and where do you see your brand two years from now?
AOC: Two years from now I would like to see my shirts in boutique shops and several large stores. I would actually like to expand to California, I feel that’s the motherland of graphic designed t shirts.
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TCB: Tell me a bit about yourself outside of Aye One. What’s your story?
AOC: Growing up I fell in love with art. I drew my first house on a piece of paper and gradually merged into the graffiti world. From graffiti on walls and paper to painting on canvases. Art is just a beautiful world of expression. As technology advanced I got into graphic designing and well, here I am. By the way everything I’ve ever known has been self-taught. I took like two semesters of accounting and one course of graphic design in college and it’s funny because I actually taught my professor shortcuts using Photoshop and Illustrator so I became the professor at some point.
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TCB: Are there any people or brands that you would like to collaborate with?
AOC: Honestly I haven’t thought about it. In my opinion most top brands would only collaborate with you if you bring an equal amount of exposure or have a large following to the table. It’s rare to see a brand like Supreme or Bape collaborate with a unknown starting brand. #facts
TCB: What did you do before you started Aye One and what do you think you would be doing if you hadn’t?
AOC: I was going from job to job doing general accounting work, and I’ve come to realize that I can’t do a 9-5, it’s just not in me. Don’t get me wrong I’m a hard worker, but I’d rather work hard on building my vision and realizing my dream.
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TCB: What’s one of the best experiences you’ve had with Aye One so far?
AOC: The best experience I’ve had, I would say is the photo shoot part. You get to work with positive people, models, and photographers etc. Not to mention in the process you might attract street fashion bloggers which is always good exposure. It does makes you feel good and gives you a key sense of accomplishment.
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TCB: What would you say is the most interesting aspect of your brand?
AOC: I’d say the name some people just wonder about it.. mystery could be good. Sometimes bad if they care less to know about it.
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TCB: Is there anything else you would like to say or anyone you would like to shoutout?
AOC: I’m launching the site really soon so stay tuned, in the interim you can check me out on Instagram @aye_one_clothing for updates.
Go check out Charles’ brand and stay tuned for more releases from Aye One Clothing soon!
Website: https://www.aye-one.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aye_one_clothing/
The Curator 
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