Andrew
Listen, young shopper: There will come a time when you must recognize that if you do not break free from the endless cycle of consumerism that has grabbed ahold of you, the consequences will be dire. That the more you give in to the urge to own a piece of the next big thing, the harder it will become to control. That if you don’t pause soon to consider why you choose to fill the emptiness inside of you with new material possessions—instead of looking within your soul for a source of light—by the time you do, it may be too late.
Yes, that time will come—but not today, Satan, because I have a bunch of new stuff to show you from five emerging designers, and you wouldn’t be wrong you if you wanted to buy a piece from them all.
Complex has a long tradition of shining a light on brands to know before they blow up (you’re welcome), but this assortment is particularly strong, since there is truly a little something for everyone. From the next big skate shop brand, to Japanese design innovation and Berlin club kids making waves in Paris, we’ve got you covered.
All kidding aside, these five labels are all in the early days of what, if they continue to play their cards right, just may be the type of upward trajectory that takes them from insider favorites to bonafide must-have-at-all-costs status. And it’s always cool to say you knew about them before everybody else.
So look out below for these five brands to know, but exercise restraint as you fill your shopping cart; after all, you can’t take your worldly possessions with you when you move on to the next spiritual realm.
JK, guys! Go HAM. You only live once, so you may as well look good while you do.
Doublet
A list of celebrities who’ve been spotted wearing pieces from Doublet, the latest must-know label to emerge from Tokyo’s ever-innovative fashion scene, includes Swae Lee, Lil Uzi Vert, Ty Dolla Sign, Kendall Jenner, Mykki Blanco, and, frequently, Travis Scott, who has integrated pieces into his stage wardrobe when he performs on several recent occasions. The appeal for performers and Jenners who like to stand out is obvious: Doublet doesn’t do subtlety.
Designer Masayuki Ino—shortlisted for the LVMH Prize in 2018—began his fashion career by using disparate scraps of leather to piece together belts and bags. That scrappy mentality remained when he founded Doublet in 2012. His work often lifts ideas from other designers, combines them with subverted corporate logos or splits and stitches two garments down the middle to make one. Already, Doublet has developed what may become their signature motif: sweatshirts and tees featuring embroidered phrases or photos that devolve into loose threads hanging in a thick fringe. (L.A. retailer 424 got their own exclusive riff on the design and Doublet implemented it on checkerboard slip-ons, too.) Like most Doublet product, these pieces are artfully messy, fairly referential, pretty fun, and very loud. Expect more celebs and civilians who fit that description to get on board soon.
Andrew
Not every skate shop has their own in-house collection or has aspirations to become the next name du jour to cross over into wider fashion world success—nor should they. But, for some, like Miami’s Andrew, a higher mainstream profile may be inevitable. Andrew already stands out for being a skate shop in a town that isn’t littered with them, particularly after longtime local favorite MIA Skate Shop closed in 2017. That’s significant. Despite warnings that the entire city will one day go Atlantis on us thanks to global warming, Miami continues to pull in a tastemaking crowd all year round, supplemented by events like Art Basel and shopping destinations like The Webster, Kith Miami, and Alchemist. It’s a place influential people go and when they go home, they may take some Andrew with them. A recent Andrew co-sign from Virgil Abloh, who has been spotted in the shop’s gear, doesn’t hurt, either.
As of now, Andrew merch drops consist mostly of pieces featuring different iterations of the brand’s logo—one standout is done in the font of Camel cigs. That’s just enough to get the name out. I don’t know if Andrew wants to court the fashion crowd, but the fashion crowd will likely want to court them.
Matthew Adams Dolan
Rihanna has never steered you wrong before, and she’s not about to start now. The flawless singer was early on the Matthew Adams Dolan train, folding his oversized denim jacket into her wardrobe before he even had a proper brand. But that was back in 2015. By the following year, the Massachusetts-born, Sydney-bred, New York-based Dolan had established a full-fledged business, which now includes a men’s collection that he shows alongside his women’s line during New York Fashion Week. And, as Rih foretold, it’s good.
The denim is still there (and the denim jackets are still big), but Dolan has taken his designs further, exploring the type of ‘80s and ‘90s American prep staples that inspired the Ralph Lauren-obsessed Lo Lifes—he referenced their photos while designing his Spring 2018 collection—and, the following season, making a pretty solid case for wearing a slouchy suit with Reeboks wherever you go. With recognition from the LVMH Prize and consistently glowing reviews from the fashion press, Rihanna is officially no longer the only one singing Dolan’s praises.
Martine Ali
If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that ‘90s nostalgia is showing no signs of slowing down, so you might as well get a wallet chain. No? Not sold? Well, allow me to point you toward the woman making the most compelling argument for keeping your personal effects clipped to your belt loop: Martine Ali. The Brooklyn-based designer—a favorite of Kendrick Lamar and Offset—has successfully done what few before her have actually managed to do, which is make silver wallet chains seem cool and wearable and like the no-brainer we should all already own.
If you’re not convinced, Ali has plenty of other pieces that are less of an acquired taste, too. They are all crafted in New York, primarily from sterling or heirloom silver. She’s got your earrings, your keychains, your Goldlink-approved necklaces, and your Vogue-sanctioned bracelets. And, because she works primarily in silver—as opposed to pricier gold or platinum—the pieces are all relatively affordable, as these things go. So, if you are in the market for, say, a wallet chain at around $250, you can indulge in the best, free of shoppers remorse. Indulging in a little ‘90s cosplay has never been so economically sound.
GmbH
Where my Central European social market economy heads at? This one’s for you. GmbH, for those not up to speed with foreign business acronyms, is an abbreviation used in Germany to identify a limited liability company (aka one that is privately held). This has little to do with why the Berlin-based label that’s adopted those initials as its name is one worth watching, but some extra background information never hurt anybody, right? What you do need to know is that since Benjamin Alexander Huseby and Serhat Isik founded GmbH in 2016, they’ve been churning out Patagonia-esque fleece, PVC pants, and elevated Helly Hansen puffers alongside pieces that reference classic workwear uniforms and even a bit of suiting here and there. A community of enthusiastic fashion world fans have taken notice, lending the label big time “next big thing” vibes.
The feeling of community extends to the internal workings of the label, too; Huseby and Isik have emphasized that GmbH is a collective—a chosen family of sorts—born from Berlin’s infamous after-hours scene, but now working together creatively in the daylight, too. The GmbH hive has already carved out a place for themselves during Paris Fashion Week and can be found at the types of stores where labels go to blow up: Dover Street Market, Très Bien, Voo Store, and SSENSE, among others. In other words, GmbH has enough in place already to make both club kids and businesspeople take note—and they’re only just beginning.