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22 n e w h a v e n B I Z | M a y 2 0 2 3 | n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m F O C U S : S m a l l B u s i n e s s On Trend Streetwear entrepreneurs find local success in brick-and-mortar By Liese Klein A s her sister Ciahna Battle worked at the sewing machine, LaDrea Moss spoke about building her Mindless oughts fashion brand from a side gig run out of her car into a success- ful New Haven retail store. "I got started from my trunk, actually," Moss said of her business selling unique sweatshirts, T-shirts and sweatpants. "So, I just go to people's houses, deliver the stuff, post it on Instagram that we just dropped. People give me their ad- dresses and I pull up and drop it off." Founded in 2012, the brand grew gradually as an online store. en, during the pandemic, Moss bought and renovated a building at 1296 State St., in the Cedar Hills neighborhood of New Haven with the intention of going in-person. She celebrated the store's opening last June at an event with May- or Justin Elicker and other city officials. Battle helped Moss come up with the store's signature "Geraldo" character logo and look — his face is in the shape of the state of Connecticut, with his hanging tongue marking the location of their hometown. Another version of the logo rep- resents Geraldo's brain, with a season- al variation shaped in the form of a flower. e brand's strong local roots help propel sales, Moss said. A former Hillhouse High School basketball star, Moss turned to fashion design aer playing briefly in college and drew on her New Haven connections to grow the Mindless oughts brand. "I'm very popular in my city because I played basketball, I'm involved in a lot of things," Moss said. "I talk to everybody about it," she said of her clothing line. She's also very active promoting the brand on social media, especially on Instagram and Twitter. Mindless oughts' style draws from and influences New Haven street fash- ion and has been adopted by celebrities including rappers Soulja Boy and Young M. A, and former Knicks player Iman Shumpert. Moss' advice to aspiring designers? "I would say definitely pitch a logo out there, have a piece that's going to be noticeable — a logo that's going to be recognizable," Moss said. Global popularity Streetwear, also known as urban wear and popular with young people of all backgrounds, is a growing retail fashion niche, according to international mar- keting agency Appnova. e general category — which in- cludes sneakers, apparel and accessories — is valued at $309 billion worldwide, with online searches for streetwear items increasing 157% since 2017, the agency said in a post. In New Haven, streetwear increas- ingly takes the form of small boutiques featuring casual clothing, sneakers, skate fashion and accessories like hats, bags, patches and pins. Multiple stores have sprung up around town in recent years as consumers look for a more local and personalized experience, store owners say. Larger retailers in the business include EbLens, a 23-store chain based in Torrington with a store on Whalley Avenue, and Snipes, a German retailer specializing in "hip hop and street cul- ture" with nearly 700 stores worldwide, according to a company statement. Last year Snipes bought Rhode Island-based streetwear chain Expres- sions, which operated a large store at 868 Chapel St., on the corner of the New Haven Green. at store is now a Snipes, with other area locations in Hamden and Waterbury. Starting over in retail Shakim Shabazz got his start selling hoodies and T-shirts at West Haven streetwear retailer Jimmy's Clothing & Footwear before opening his own store three years ago, New Haven Apparel, at 801 Dixwell Ave. A decade earlier, aer a stint in pris- on, Shabazz was looking to turn his life around and realized he could leverage his fashion sense into a business. His brand soon started taking off online, with invitations to New York Fashion Week and other high-profile events. With orders growing, Shabazz de- cided to open up a store in his home neighborhood of Dixwell. "It was a no-brainer," Shabazz said. He now has space to print his own shirts and customize items, in addi- tion to training local young people on how to operate the equipment. He also LaDrea Moss inside her Mindless Thoughts storefront in New Haven, which features her signature designs. PHOTOS | LIESE KLEIN

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