Meet Jonathan Hinds, creator of Local.tt
The street wear scene in Trinidad and Tobago has been picking up recently with a lot of individuals starting their own brands. One of the individuals that has decided to start his own brand is Jonathan Hinds. I personally know Jonathan as we attended Queen's Royal College together and both graduated in 2016.
Jonathan has spoken to me about his dream and I could hear the passion in each of his statements. I realized he had a desire to show the world what he has to offer and create a great brand. A few readers told me that I should start interviewing more local brands so I took the opportunity to interview Jonathan and find out more about him and his new brand Local.tt. I hope you guys get a better understanding of his brand and Jonathan as a person and I also hope you guys enjoy this article.
1. Could you tell us about yourself so the readers could get some insight into the life of Jonathan Hinds?
My name is Jonathan Hinds, I am an aspiring entrepreneur and founder of "Local tt." I am 17 years of age and I am currently trying to start my own business of a modern, street-wear based clothing brand right here in Trinidad and Tobago. I attended Queen's Royal College and graduated in 2016. I am a strong advocate for finding your own goals and career path instead of those ordained by society, or your parents or anyone else besides you. I do all my fashion designing on my desktop computer using programs like Photoshop and Premier pro.
2. What are your strengths and weaknesses?
My strengths are having the creative, positive and hard-working mentality towards achieving my dreams and my persistent attitude despite the constant discouragement surrounding me and my "unconventional" career path. My weaknesses are procrastination and finding inspiration on a daily basis to spark my creativity.
3. Do you plan to relate to current and past fashion trends?
I intend to intertwine fashion trends of the past and present, bringing them together in such a way that the eras of fashion co-exist, like human beings. When you think about it, the current fashion trends are old ones resurfacing with a contemporary twist. To me, fashion is like a circle of trends that come and go and come again like seasons.
4. When did you originally get the idea to start a clothing brand?
The initial idea of creating my own clothing brand came to me after successfully co-hosting the launch of "Kriston.kk" (a brand of photography, videography and merchandise) with my good friend, Kriston Koon Koon. We decided to make merchandise for his supporters. He asked me to help him design the clothes and his decision was premised on how much he liked my sense of style and way I dressed. From that, my passion for designing began. Another major reason for creating this brand was that I saw a space in the clothing market where I could produce high end clothing that would not hurt the pockets of my consumers as hard as the bigger brands do.
5. What is the idea behind your brand?
The notion behind Local is that I've noticed here in Trinidad and Tobago, people tend to have little to no support for local talent or local creatives within their own country. I aim to succeed in the field of arts, in this case fashion design, so that I can represent Trinidad and Tobago in this area. In turn, I hope to get the support of my fellow natives and, quite ironically, have locals support Local.
6. Are you working on your own or with a team?
I do my designing on my own because at this moment in my budding career, I want to have creative independence. However, I have a strong support group of friends and family and, on a more business related level, a group of persons I consult. Some of which are known musical artists in the country such as Jimmy October and KAZ as well as Kriston Koon Koon, a youtuber/ photographer and videographer.
Currently, I am trying to do more networking but as for now, I have a small team of friends and associates that drive and promote Local.
7. What was the hardest thing about starting your brand?
One of the most challenging things about starting your own brand is the ever present fear of failure and the uncertainty that comes with putting your hard work and opinions out in a creative and unorthodox manner for the world to see. I have been planning the release of Local since September of 2016 and, solely because of the fear of failure, prolonged it. Being raised in a society and environment where, at this age, you're supposed to be in form 6 or university, it's a constant battle to prove myself to everyone and even to me. It's difficult to always be in the spotlight and seen as being 'different,' sometimes in a negative way, sometimes in a positive way. But yes, definitely the fear of failure was a major hurdle when starting my own brand and business.
8. What are your plans for the rest of the year?
My plans for the rest of the year are to sensitise to the youths messages and inspiration to follow their dreams and aspire to be the best even if it seems the odds are against you. Local began a series call "The White Rose Project." The kernel of the project is this: if I were to ask you what colour a rose is, 9 out of 10 times, a person would say "red." I relate this to the way people, more so the younger generation, have been taught that the "right" and most convenient way of life is to become a doctor or lawyer or teacher and so on. I'm not here to discourage you from being a doctor, lawyer or teacher because I agree that these are good and credible careers but the true measure of success for me is working with what you have and fulfilling what you set out to do. What I do intend to relate to people with the White Rose Project, however, is that as a young person in secondary school, you may be at the point where you don't know what you want to be or maybe you do know but it's a conditioned response to what you've been taught, that the field you truly desire to pursue may "not be successful" or "less practical." The white rose represents the change in the perspective of what is defined as the measure of success. The white rose represents everyone who has a dream to chase and a goal that you want to reach, like persons who decide they want to start their own business or rap, sing or act. It represents the people who may or may not have been ridiculed or seen as the outsider and lesser than because they chose to pursue a different career path other than the more popular opinion. Again, this is not a bite at anyone who decided that being a doctor, lawyer or teacher is the career for them, I have great respect for them. This is simply an encouragement to those like me, who have a fear of failure for doing something out of the ordinary. A reminder that they can be whatever they want to be because hard work and discipline always pays off. So, I want when people wear a white rose, whether it be on a hat or jersey or pants, they don't only wear it because it's fashionable but because they understand what it stands for; to be proud that they are representing the message of the White Rose Project. This is the message I plan to bring to the nation of Trinidad and Tobago.
9. Where do you see your brand in the next five years?
Even thought I am only 17 years old, 18 in October, in the next 5 years I want to see myself owning my own store or stores if it is in God's will and He chooses for me to succeed to that degree by then. I hope to bring a positive message to the youths, my main target. Especially because I myself was given the encouragement and push I needed from family and friends when I was too afraid, a push towards happiness and achieving each measure of success within myself. If I'm being completely honest, one of my main goals for the next 5 years to be an inspiration to my own generation.
10. What are you doing to set yourself apart from the competition?
One thing I am doing to set myself apart from the competition is paying extremely close attention to details and to have purpose in every choice made with a message in every piece of clothing. From colour to cut, from font to font size.
Another way I try to set my brand apart is by using my craft to make a difference by portraying messages on serious matters through my clothes. Of recent, I have seen other brands release and make their brands based around whatever memes or sayings are trending and are just seemingly trying to stay relevant but not giving any positive message or substance to their brand or what it represents. I do intend to retail other high end, established brands when I am hopefully given the opportunity to own a store but all the clothes that are produced originally through Local will have a message to bring to the table.
11. Describe your creative process.
My creative process is quite simple: I will usually start designing or get the urge to design around 11pm or 12am, for some reason, this is when my creative juices flow the most. I listen to instrumentals on YouTube and drink Coca-Cola while trying to get my message out through the clothes that I design. Pinterest is also a great help for insight on what's trending and the different perspectives of designers and how they approach the term "streetwear fashion."
12. Are you inspired by any brands or designers?
My biggest fashion inspiration would be Adidas, not only for the way they rule the game and take initiative to start trends, but also heavily on the way they have mastered marketing tactics. Everything about the Adidas Original's aesthetic is appealing to the human eye and mind and I pay a lot of respect to them. A major way in which they have inspired me is their way of advertising, it's never "Hi, we sell clothes and shoes," but more of a "Here is a meaningful story and some visually pleasing content." They sell their product without forcing it on a person but, instead, making it highly relatable to the consumer. I would definitely like to be up there one day, God's will, with the likes of Adidas, Nike, HUF, Young and Reckless and all other urban brands. Thank you.
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