Today we’d like to introduce you to Ja’Michael Breckenridge.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Ja’Michael. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Well, I’ve been into urban/street fashion my whole life. Grew up wearing different brands like FUBU, Sean John, Diamond Supply, KREW, Vans, I could go all day. But the how I got into streetwear was just I was so tired of going shopping and seeing stuff I didn’t really like. So I remember one day, I just Googled “online t-shirt maker” and came across this site called BlueCotton.com. So I’m just on the site, finding clip art Google and just designing tees on BlueCotton.com. I’m just glad I never put those designs out. So over time, I’m just coming up with different ideas everyday and making the designs on BlueCotton. And ever since then, that’s all she wrote.
So the more I started designing, the more I started studying to. I had figure out to market streetwear, the business behind it, just different things about the industry. Another thing I really had to learn was how to bring in revenue. I knew just posting links to your product on Twitter and IG wasn’t gonna do me any good. So I learned about this marketing technique called guerilla marketing. Guerilla marketing is just basically getting on your feet and getting your brand out there. So I started going to different events in DFW as a vendor and setting up shop. Doing that really helped MYHM gain local notoriety. Gaining local followers on Instagram, just brand being recognized in DFW. People are telling me saying “I saw somebody out wearing your shirt”. It’s pretty surreal.
Has it been a smooth road?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. It’s been like the roads on NE 28th in Fort Worth. Just bumps everywhere (Laughs). Life itself is the biggest obstacle I’ve had to overcome. Just 2019 itself definitely didn’t go as planned as I did in 2018. Different things that happened this year had caused me to go MIA from the creatives scenes in DFW for a while. Not being able to have the crazy run MYHM had in 2018, in 2019, definitely hasn’t been an easy pill to swallow. You just feel like you belong out there. But it’s all small things to a giant. Things are coming into fruition and I’m just ready to get back out there! Stay tuned!
Please tell us about MYHM (The Mayhem Brand).
I launched MYHM (The Mayhem Brand) November 22, 2017. The overall aesthetic of MYHM is a retro, vintage look with a modern twist to it. The way the name MYHM came about is MYHM is the acronym for Mayhem. The concept of the way Mayhem came about is so corny, but I’ve made it work. Basically, it’s you’ve gotta still look good despite the fact it’s so mayhem going on. But just being called MAYHEM sounded too basic. So I decided to abbreviate it to MYHM just to give it more appeal.
I pretty much run all operations of the company. From designing to communicating and working with screenprinters, consultants, graphic designers, photographers, videographers, booking vendor slots, the whole nine. It’s pretty fun wearing all the hats of the company right now. It just makes you learn abundantly. And it increases your business savvy. You’ll know to handle big situations in your company. You’ll know what’s best for your company. You learn stuff that college won’t teach you.
MYHM is known for its retro, vintage aesthetic. I’ve always been into past and present pop culture. But over time, I really got into the retro vintage look. It may have started in high school when I would go thrift shopping on purpose. I started getting into the retro NBA and NFL snapbacks, jackets, and tees. Then I REALLY started getting into vintage wear. I started going to the DFW Vintage Swap Meet and grabbing any retro thrift I would find.
I think that’s one thing I’m proud of with MYHM is its ability to stand out do something different in streetwear. To deliver a retro, vintage look with its own creative, modern twist to it. I’ve always been a standout guy and that’s what the inspiration behind MYHM is. To stand out. Be different.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I see streetwear just constantly growing. We’ve gotten subtitles on Reddit. It’s some streetwear blogs and podcasts out there that everyone doesn’t know about yet. The underground community is gonna constantly grow. It’s a lot of brands out there that people don’t know about. These brands are doing big things with their brands. You’ve got brands like Nike, Gucci, Louis Vuitton that need streetwear help. Gucci is starting make more graphic tees, Nike is getting more creative with their apparel and shoes, Supreme and Louis Vuitton did a collab. You’ll continue to see more collaborations between brands. It’s just a part of keeping up with the trends. But the industry is gonna definitely keep growing.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @myhmbrand
- Twitter: @myhmbrand
Image Credit:
Christopher Craig (IG: @christophercraig._)
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