Personal Space: LA | Luke Tadashi

Editor’s Note: As a marketplace for the new luxury economy, we’re constantly seeing products with a level of creativity and craftsmanship that is on another level. It got us thinking about the places where these level of ideas are born, how that level of creativity is cultivated in a physical space, and the importance of it in the creative process. Enter our new content series Personal Space, where we give StockX followers an intimate look at the spaces that inspire our favorite creatives across the country. To kick things off, our own Lizzie Kassab, Ari Nonahal, and Christian Najjar traveled out to sunny Los Angeles to visit Luke Tadashi of Bristol Studios. Read up.

Bristol Studio’s headquarters in LA’s arts district isn’t massive, but Luke Tadashi’s work certainly is. Coming off wildly popular collabs with brands like adidas and New Era in the past year, Tadashi and his brainchild aren’t slowing down anytime soon. Nested inside a concrete warehouse building, just around the corner from their new concept space, Bristol’s HQ is as stripped down and intentionally constructed as their signature sweatpants. We sat down with Luke to talk inspiration, personal space, and how many times he dunked last week. (Note: This interview has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity)

LIZZIE KASSAB, STOCKX: Obviously you’ve had a busy couple of weeks – you just had the concept space open, your New Era stuff is out, a collaboration with adidas – can you give us a quick rundown of where we’re at right now? What is this space that we’re in?

LUKE TADASHI: So you guys are in our HQ, our studio – this is where we come day-to-day to create, work, almost live out of essentially – hence the couches, ha – but we try to make it as comfortable as possible. The team is really Jake, myself, and MAASAI. Jake runs marketing and operations, MAASAI has just honestly been my best friend since I was a kid and helps with everything – he runs social media for us and does PR as well.

LIZZIE: So this is the dream team?

LT: Yes, this is definitely the dream team. I think the kind of ironic part is like – we were always together. In the past I had gone through other iterations of the team, and had kind of tried to choose people based on qualifications, but it’s funny it kind of organically evolved to this place where now it’s really just my closest friends and I working together. I think that actually we’ve found the most success with that. Jake is my younger brother’s best friend, so I’ve known him since I was like 13, 14, and MAASAI and I have been friends since we were in elementary school.

LIZZIE: It’s so interesting how that happens. Even if you end up gravitating towards other people in the industry as you change and grow, everyone goes back to their hometown heroes, the people who know you the best and can understand your direction without you having to explain, if that makes sense.

LT: Exactly. I feel like I’m very specific about my vision and what I want to communicate with the brand, so it’s nice to not have to communicate every little thing to them. They get it because they were along for the ride the whole way.

LIZZIE: How was the opening of the concept space?

LT: The opening was great – technically we’re still not open every day but the launch for the Adidas x Bristol collab was really great. There were like 500 people at that space.

ARI NONAHAL, STOCKX: ::laughing:: We were living through social media.

LT: That was fun – Swaggy P pulled up. We had Comfort LA come – they’re friends of ours. Another guy on our team, Rashad, was there – he does some of the more basketball community-oriented aspects of what we do . Our friends DJ’d, obviously people were able to come in and play basketball. New York Sunshine provided the hoop, and it’s an amazing piece of art – it’s this steel, shot-up backboard. It was the first time people really got to experience what the brand feels like in a physical sense. The major touch-points have been social media, web, retailers when we’ve had stockists and stuff, but this was really like the first thing that was just truly ours, so I think it was just really special.

LIZZIE: From the outside at least, it feels like so much of Bristol in general feels very constructed – well, de-constructed and constructed. Your seam work, etc – everything feels like it’s a layer on top of a layer, etc.

LT: Oh, man, I really appreciate that.

LIZZIE: So much of that feels like such intentional de-construction, re-construction – how does that translate, especially into your new concept space? Do you find that you approached building that space out in the same way that you’d construct a new garment?

LT: That’s actually an interesting question – I haven’t really thought of it on that level before, but for the concept center, my thing was that I really wanted people to walk in and not necessarily be there to just shop. I wanted them to have a sense of community when they walked in. I guess you could say that, in a sense, we were deconstructing a retail space. But I didn’t go into it with that intention, I really just wanted people to walk in and kinda feel at home in this place where you can shoot around on a basketball court, hopefully at some point there will be a treat component, so they can just come in and really sit down and enjoy that and socialize, so that there’s genuine human to human connection. The next part of that is obviously the clothing, but I think another way in which we’re carrying that stuff out is like this AmaLou rehearsal tonight, we’re bringing in artists and collaborators that we really just wanna work with and giving them a space to sort-of create and we can support their vision kind of together – really just bring our community out.

ARI: So you also have an experience going there.

LT: Yeah, that’s the goal.

LIZZIE: Your HQ space definitely feels very personal – but with the concept center being more of a community space, how does that feel different for you guys? Do you feel like you thrive on the kind of tight, quiet focus here? Or are you getting really recharged by that community aspect and having it be super collaborative over in the concept space?

LT: This is gonna sound funny, but I think that space is really for other people. The intention is to bring people together there and really give the community an experience that I feel is lacking. And by community, it’s not just the Arts District, but it’s LA as a whole, it’s everyone who works our events, they’re from all over Los Angeles. So i’m hoping that it becomes a central hub. For me personally, I’m super introverted. I definitely recharge alone, in quiet places. You know, I can do all that stuff because I have to, and I do love meeting people, but there’s like a point at which I’m just like “I need to get away.” So that is very much what this space is. This is the recharge zone.

LIZZIE: Is this your (Bristol’s) first space here?

LT: Yeah this is our first space ever. We’ve had it for about a year, but last year we were traveling a ton, so it kinda just became like an inventory closet for a while. But Jake started working in June and that was like the biggest help just having someone else on this full time with me, and since then we’ve really made it a priority to get this space together and create an environment that we’re actually happy to come in and work in everyday.

LIZZIE: So how do you guys do that here? How do you actively and intentionally create a space where you can focus and recharge and be your most creative?

LT: I mean, I think this table we’re sitting at right now is a good example – and the two couches. Everything we do is very collaborative, its conversational, it’s back-and-forth, and so we’ll either all be sitting at this table and kind of arguing about what post should go on social media or something, and the pros and cons of that choice, or we’ll all be on the couches on our computers going through content, updating shopify, or we’ll be bringing people into this space as well for personal meetings. This space is meant to feel very intimate, because we all know each other very well.

ARI: It definitely feels home-y in here.

LT: Exactly, it’s like a mix of our dream childhood space and what we actually need to have in order to accomplish some work.

LIZZIE: What was that dream space for you? What was your room like growing up?

LT: I was, and still am, very neat and kinda anal, so my space was very minimal. There wasn’t a lot on the walls, but there was always a mini basketball hoop. I wished there was a real basketball hoop in my room, that would have been really cool. You know, it’s funny, I remember like my carpet – I used to vacuum my carpet almost every day because i was obsessed with how the creases in the carpet would go, the groove-lines. So if that gives you a sense ::laughs:: it almost looked like someone didn’t live in the space sometimes. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve gotten much better about that, so i think that this definitely feels more like a lived-in space.

LIZZIE: So texture and materiality have always been very important to you.

LT: Very much so, yeah. I’ve always derived experience and emotion from my surroundings. I think everybody does, but maybe sometimes we’re just not as conscious as others. I think that was always something that I was really aware of, like “I don’t feel good in this space, oh I feel really good in here, and this is why.”

LIZZIE: In that same way that you feel like your environment is impacting your work, do you feel like the opposite is also true? Do you feel like your work ends up impacting your environment as well?

LT: It’s interesting to think about it in reverse. I definitely feel that when we’re doing more creative work, I feel a little more upbeat and excited and my mood is generally better for sure. And when we’re really in the weeds doing stuff that none of us enjoy, like inventory, transporting fabric, or whatever, it definitely isn’t the same experience. The work and the space definitely inspire each other back and forth.

LIZZIE: You’ve spoken about basketball being a huge influence in your work, was there a pivotal moment where you kind of bridged the gap between sports and athletic wear and high fashion?

LT: I don’t know if there was a moment, I think I kind of gradually grew into it. When I started this I was actually still in college, and at that point it was just like t-shirts – I had no idea what I was trying to say, to be honest. And so I think that this whole journey has been as much about creating a brand and product as it has been about personal self-exploration. Along that path, it sort of forced me to dig into my history and look at the things that were really meaningful and impactful to me as a child, and what came to shape me growing up. Basketball was just one of those things that was always present. I played super competitively growing up, and in very many ways it shaped how I approach problems, how I compete in the real world, how I approach practice and process and perfecting a craft. With that realization, it was really that moment of “this is the DNA, this is what is has to be about.”

LIZZIE: What’s the most meaningful thing in this space? What’s the biggest labor of love?

LT: There’s actually something that has been very informative recently for me, in the last year or so. I only have one copy. My grandfather on my mom’s side – he wrote this autobiography before he passed away, to my mom and his other daughters. He was Japanese and they were American, so there was like this language barrier. This autobiography was the way in which he wanted to contextualize his life for his kids. Reading that was really impactful for me in every aspect – in how I want to approach my life, the values that I hold, to even just an appreciation for aesthetics and the importance of good design. That was all kind of encapsulated in this book. I would say that’s probably the most meaningful thing recently.

LIZZIE: Is it a physical printed piece?

LT: Yeah – it’s actually pretty amazing. He wrote it all in Japanese, because he spoke Japanese. His eldest daughter, my aunt, was the only one who spoke a little of both languages, because she was born there and then came here. At the time he was writing it, she had moved back to Japan, so she was translating the book into English for him. I want to make more copies of it.

LIZZIE: Is that something that you want to get out to more people, outside of your family?

LT: Yeah definitely – I think that the brand is so much a part of me and who I am that it has to be woven in there somewhere – it’s part of the same story. It’s had such a great impact on me this last year that I think I have to do it.

LIZZIE: If you had a “greenroom rider” for your personal space – for when you’re creating, when you’re actually in the weeds getting shit done – what would be on it?

LT: That’s really tough. Obviously my computer, just on a very practical level, that’s what everything is done on these days. It’s funny, we don’t really think about this kind of thing unless we’re forced to. I really feel like I am kind of a minimalist in a sense, so maybe just my computer to really do it. This might sound crazy, but my dog is definitely on that list too – I’m super obsessed with my dog. He’s home to me – he and my girlfriend. So wherever they are, I feel good.

LIZZIE: Are there any personal rituals that are important to you? Either in this space our outside of it?

LT: Just about every Tuesday night, I still play basketball. That’s super important to me – I wish I could play three or four nights a week. It’s definitely both social and stress relief. There’s something very meditative and calming about it to me. The only way that my mind ever really shuts off is if I’m physically forced to do something.

LIZZIE: You touched on this a little bit, but when you’re working – be it a new garment or a new collection – how do you get started? What’s the first thing you do when you’re starting from scratch?

LT: In the last year we’ve been moving away from seasonal collections and more focused on drops – it makes more sense for where we are and where the e-comm world is going. The interesting thing about that for me is that I think it’s allowed me to be a little bit more reactive or impulsive in what I design – in a good way. It allows me to, if i see something that sparks curiosity or i read something or watch a movie and feel inspired, that can immediately prompt me to go into that space. Fabric is always super important to me. I probably spend the most of our time just sourcing the exact weight, hand, feel – everything that i want. It’s been nice to be able to focus more on what is genuinely inspiring to me. There’s tons of time to overthink it, and that’s probably where the deconstructing aspects come in.

LIZZIE: How would you describe where you’re at as an artist and designer now, and where you’re hoping Bristol is heading?

LT: I have a much better handle on what I’m trying to communicate now, and the specific direction that Bristol is heading. In that sense, we’re growing and continuing to get better. Whenever you’re doing something that is a little different, there are certain aspects that fall flat, so hopefully we just have more wins than losses and it doesn’t stop us from trying to produce things that are breaking the mold.

LIZZIE: What has it been like working on Bristol’s first move into sneakers with adidas?

LT: Super exciting – sneakers, for me, was really what started it all. Basketball culture was always tied to sneaker culture. People can make that connection very quickly. I remember when I was in preschool, I saw the Jordan 13’s for the first time – they were a red/white/black colorway. My mom loved those so much that she bought herself a pair – at the time, those were everything. Overtime, it becomes an obsession. You go from Jordans to Kobes, to classic Nikes, to classic adidas.

LIZZIE: Are there any other collabs on the horizon that you can tell us about?

LT: ::looks at Jake:: Can we talk about this? We have more coming with adidas! I can definitely talk about that. In addition to the actual product that is coming together, something we’re exploring with them that I’m really excited about is this idea of physical spaces and creating experiences that aren’t necessarily tied to a product – just a little more impactful. Something that I’m constantly juggling is that I am not a huge fan of the level of consumerism that exists in our culture – but I can’t help but reconcile that with the fact that I’m creating more of it, so hopefully the stuff we are creating is more thoughtful. The thing that really excites me about the partnership with adidas is that there’s an opportunity to do stuff that exists beyond product, and maybe isn’t encouraging someone to have to buy something in order to be a part of it. I don’t know if I can talk about the other ones yet….::laughs::