Hometown Heroes: The Best Fashion Brands, Dealers, and Stores from Around the World
As Substack's hardest working fashion writer, I put together a list of ~110 must-watch, must-visit, and/or must-follow fashion creatives, shops, and brands.
Hi friends!
I posted to the Pair of Kings podcast story the other week asking our listeners and followers to submit their favorite brands or stores with the only caveat being that those suggestions had to be local to them.
I had over 100 people write in! It’s super exciting to see so much interaction on a prompt like this. Answers ranged from a 6-shop/designer submission in Lima, Peru to self-promotion (which I’ll always respect). I’ve done a cursory check on all of these brands for you to ensure I’m not advocating for a dropshipping-powered-Amazon-brand, and ended up with a list of 110 for you all.
One Size Fits All is free, and I intend to keep it that way. I’ve done a bunch of work on this list: please share it. These creatives deserve to do well.
I’m also looking for anyone who’s interested in contributing to One Size Fits All. I’d love to have consistent content coming out of my Substack — reach out if you’d be interested in writing.
Why do this? Why put in the effort?
I think it’s wonderful to see who, what, and where people are fans of outside of the all-black-everything or vintage-Carhartt-jacket scene lockstep of the Lower East Side, Bushwick, or Chinatown/Two Bridges social scenes.
It’s a funny “grass is greener” scenario. While talking with people from other cities, countries, and/or continents, I get excited to learn about what they’re doing and how they’re finding ways to engage with fashion. I want to engage the house music scene in Detroit (and the varsity/satin baseball jackets), the Afrikaans punk scene in South Africa, or the incredible vintage culture in Paris.
Maybe not Paris. The French scare me.
As I said earlier, these creatives deserve more publicity. I think the current fashion publication landscape does a horrible job of looking outside the monocultures of certain cities (New York is diverse, but is predominantly ruled by a group of a few prominent monocultures) and realizing it can make the unfamiliar engaging, enticing, and exciting. My hope with this article is to get at least a few people excited about something new. Let’s see what I can do, shall we?
Let’s start with a few of my favorites. There’s a searchable list below that’s organized by city, region, country, and description. If there’s a website, it’s linked, and all Instagrams are linked. Go and explore! Message the creators! Engage! Form a community!
Oh, and a quick note: I didn’t ask for anything from these brands and none of this is paid endorsement. This is all community-sourced. Thank you again to everyone who helped out.
The World of Outlaws (@theworldofoutlaws)
Vancouver, BC | Canada
If you google the brand, you'll be misled by a Facebook-shirt-style biker dropshipping brand by the same name. Don’t worry: if you dig deeper, you'll find the actual brand, making some genuinely exciting leather jackets, waxed pants, and great-looking bombers. Despite only having only 6,000 followers on Instagram, it appears like the Canada-based brand is punching way above its weight. I wasn't aware of this brand at all before writing this article, but I will be keeping an eye on them.
Kluane Mountaineering (@klaunemountaineering)
Edmonton, AB | Canada
According to some Canadians — more specifically, Albertans — Kluane Mountaineering is one of Edmonton's best kept secrets. The tight-knit team makes parkas and sleeping bags that are meant for the roughest environments in the world. All of their jackets are completely custom: you can literally make whatever you like. The team encourages you to give them a ring and discuss what you want (which I absolutely love! Talk to the people who make your clothes!). As a cherry on top, everything is produced in Canada, and prices are kept reasonable by the business operating primarily as a D2C brand.
Ulysse Poulin (@ulysse_poulin)
Montreal, QC | Canada
I liked Ulysse Poulin from the second I saw their Instagram. Imagine if Studio Trigger and/or Sunrise (the people behind Gundam) found out about object dyeing and started making bags, hats, gloves, and pants. Pretty great, no? I’ll be totally honest here. I’m not sure how ordering or manufacturing works for Ulysse, so I’m not sure if any of the insanely impressive items (like a pair of plush robot gauntlets) are purchasable, but they’re a fun creator to follow and cheer on.
A.V. Beamon (@avbeamon)
Austin, TX | USA
Texan clothing designer making upcycled shirts, funky pants, and gorgeous chain-stitched jackets but excelling in the selvedge denim sphere. Imagine my surprise when I found out that he’d already made a pair of pants for my friend Bailey.
Isabella Charles (@isabella_______charles)
Brisbane, QLD | Australia
Have you ever come across something special? Finding Isabella Charles (thanks you a recommendation from a writer-in, Joe) was like being in the room with the person who made the first peanut butter and jelly or something.
Isabella Charles just finished her first collection, and I'm already impressed. The collection isn’t only technically sound: the photography is good, the styling is great (thanks to a very talented stylist, Kieran Lopes) and the ethos of the brand is clearly communicated. The SS25 collection is characterized by beautiful drapery, meticulous construction, and design language inspired by the best of Ann D. and Rick without being derivative. I’m serious when I say that Isabella Charles may be my favorite find of this entire Substack exercise.
Song for the Mute (@songforthemute)
Sydney, QLD | Australia
Australian brand telling a longform, non-continuous-yet-intertwined story through clothing. Now, SFtM is not a small brand: I’ve been aware of them for years. That being said, they meet all of the criteria for this article, so here they are! Despite their incumbent status, I haven't had the chance to try any of the stuff on in person. I'm particularly a fan of their relaxed-fit suit that they released with their most recent collection. Adding this one to the list of things to actively pursue.
Empath LA (@empath_official)
Los Angeles, CA | USA
Womenswear label Empath LA by Emily Arakawa produces small batches of '90s and early '00s-inspired clothing that simultaneously look modern and retro. I particularly love the emphasis on deadstock fabric and ethical production, particularly with a focus on women-owned facilities.
Gnuhr Studios (@gnuhr_studio)
Portland, OR | USA
Bailey Goldberg was literally just showing me a pair of gnuhr's shorts the other day. Safe to say that if he's on it, it's worth paying attention to. There's no shortage of cool outdoor gear, but gnuhr still finds a way to stand out with unique, unconventional gear that looks like it's from another planet.
Also, it’s pronounced “nur”. It took me about 20 minutes to figure it out. No, I’m not proud of it.
Sebastian Granda/Sastre (@sastre.pe)
Lima | Peru
Suiting and menswear straight from Lima, Peru. Cuts are clean, lines are sharp, and pants are flowy while still complimenting the body: everything you could want in a suit.
I’d like to take a second to thank Sergio Olave, who wrote in with a crazy good group of Peruvian designers. Articles like this wouldn’t be possible (or interesting!) without passionate, engaged people from all over the world. Thank you!
Noir Kennedy (@noirkennedyofficiel)
Paris | France
Hedi's favorite vintage store and collector. Serena DeLeon (who recommended the spot for this list) found out about it while working for him. The best place for '60s-'80s rare punk mixed with JPG. The store is mecca for the rock scene of Paris, and the owner is an icon and a design team favorite.
Those are my picks! There are 100+ other stores, creators, and collectors down here for you to peruse. There’s a write-up for every one. That’s not a joke.
Enjoy it! Subscribe! Share the list! I’ll see you soon with another article.
I’m realizing that Substack doesn’t let me link spreadsheets (with embedded links). I made a Google Sheet with all of the information available here, and have a visualization below. I’m sorry that this website doesn’t like spreadsheet nerds (like me).