Co-owner and founder of the Hoodman clothing brand, Edwyn Huang is known for poking fun at subjects such as pop culture, politics and matters of class and race. After founding his brand in 2005, the New York City resident was resistly sued by famed Manhattan department store Bergdorf Goodman. Recently, Huang spoke with HipHopDX about the issue, and his brand’s response.
“What happened with Hoodman was this: the joke of Hoodman has always been that it’s [cleverly titled] Bergdorf Hoodman. That’s been from day one; it was in our [website’s] ‘About’ section saying that we wanted to be a retailer for the hood. We wanted to take things from high-end, or from dominant culture and flip them – basically, what other streetwear brands were doing, but we identified it as Bergdorf Hoodman,” revealed Huang. “The original logo was even Midtown skyscrapers with an H going through.“
Recently, the makers of Hoodman decided to make the humor in the naming more overt, by going outward with their marketing. “It’s too long of a name, it’s really clunky, so we were like, ‘When we roll it out as Hoodman.’ Over time though, people would [inquire about the name], so last year we said, ‘Look, let’s just be Bergdorf Hoodman, then people can get the joke more.’“
AD LOADING...
Three years into the brand that had been worn by Mos Def and DJ Whoo Kid among other, the changes were made. “We bought the Bergdorf Hoodman domain, started using it, and then we got sued by Bergdorf [Goodman]. Once we got sued, we had a decision to make, ’cause we really wanted to go with this re-branding effort. We had already [been around for years].” Apparently, the high-end store that’s been in existence since 1899 took rapid notice. “It was like three, four days. These guys are watching domains all day long.“
Although the lawsuit happened last year, Huang has just now told the public, though he remains active with the popular line. “We are still fighting it. We still don’t know what the outcome is going to be. We’re still selling on Hoodman.TV; Hoodman is still alive. We want to go forward, as long as we can win this suit.“
Before the lawsuit even took place, Huang was looking to show his creativity and hustle through spawning a second line, called Tonk, which is also available through the Hoodman site and TonkShop.com. “The Tonk thing is kind of on its own; it came at a very good time. Right now we don’t want to put out a new season of Hoodman, without knowing the legal status. Tonk was already in the chamber. We saw a lot of brands doing very, very well. Hoodman is very political. It’s very much my brand – me talking through t-shirts. It’s offensive, it doesn’t appeal to everyone. I mean, we have a giant Jaffe Joffer t-shirt with a lion on it. Not everybody can wear that shirt. [Laughs] I wanted to make stuff that was more accessible to people.” With Tonk, the mission seems to be less about message than color, style and broader appeal. Edwyn revealed his intention in saying, “Let me do one that’s a little simpler, a little cleaner, just enough to hustle.“
AD LOADING...
The name comes from Huang‘s childhood hustling nostalgia. “Down south, we used to always play ghetto-Rummy for lunch money. Your mom would give you $2.00, $3.50 for lunch, you’d play everyday so you could double up the food or go buy nickel bags. It was called Tonk. You win by tonking out, like Dominoes. Tonk was really the way that we hustled when we were kids. That’s why I named it Tonk.“
With an established brand’s future hanging in the balance and a new line surfacing, Huang also commented on the trend shifts he’s noticing. “What I’m noticing is between ’03 and ’07, Nike SBs and SK4 culture owned clothing and streetware. It used to be that skateboard kids borrowed from Hip Hop, and it was more Hip Hop-dominated. Now, it’s the skate kids taking over. Even though they’re Hip Hop-inspired, they have their own spin and their own way of contributing to Hip Hop culture, which is dope.” Although he has yet to forray into shoe-making, Huang also deduced that through design changes, athletic sneaker’s popularity have shifted towards non-performance based sneakers. “I am not Japanese, so in no way am I biased, but it’s Tokyo, it’s Japan. It’s all those little cities in Japan that’s really doing it.” He pointed out to one particular brand that’s witnessed growing popularity in the States, Visvim at Ato cow hides.
Outside of his role in streetware, Huang updated DX about his other areas of interest, including potentially opening a restaurant. “I did a major sponsored competition, the competition was really cool, eye-opening, so I’ve decided that I’m going to open my own restaurant now. It’s either gonna be in Boston or New York, but probably New York.” The clothing-maker and cook added the cuisine may either focus on Chinese or barbeque, but be low-cost with several daily specialties. Prior to his opening the restaurant, Huang’s food blog is ThePopChef.Blogspot.com.
AD LOADING...
Besides the two niches, Huang has also taken his love of sports to radio recently, with The Parlay courtesy of Brooklyn’s PNC Radio. Past guests, including both emcees and athletes, have included Zab Judah. The show, co-hosted by Martin Berrios and Rafael Martinez, airs Fridays at 5pm EST. Edwyn states his place in the market, “Hip Hop and sports are really connected, but no one’s ever tried to do a sports show that’s Hip Hop-connected, besides Stephen A. Smith.“
HipHopDX will keep you updated on the lawsuit between Hoodman and Bergdorf Goodman.
