No inflated prices. No high-profile showrooms. No celebrity sponsorships. No pop-ups. No marketing hype.
Tucked away in a warehouse space in Los Angeles, premium streetwear brand OtherLinks is quietly leading a retail rebellion.
The company’s founder, Laure-Cecile Lafond-Fenonjoie (LCLF) has some bold ideas for the direction that streetwear can move in, using a direct-to-consumer (D2C) model that cuts out the middleman as well as the high premiums that consumers end up paying for retail spaces.
In the direct-to-consumer model, companies manufacture and ship products directly to buyers and sell at a lower cost. In comparison, the standard retail model has fashions going through many mediums before it eventually reaches consumers, with watered-down, made by risk-averse brands. The model also allows brands like OtherLinks to experiment more freely with their designs and collections, as they can respond quickly to consumer behaviors and demands. By using the D2C model, OtherLinks isn’t simply competing with other streetwear labels like Comme Des Garçons and Supreme in terms of the product; they’re competing more efficiently and effectively in their practices as well.
OtherLinks uses this model to reach an even broader base of customers who are wild for avant-garde collections of streetwear staples. From their online store, they can serve fashionable clientele who reside all over the world.
The model is a benefit to both the consumer and the company’s bottom line. It also forges a much more substantial connection with customers. The quick turnaround makes it essential to listen to the consumer base, (what they have to say matters.) All OtherLinks, social media channels are open to accepting suggestions and feedback from customers. In fact, ‘customer’ is an outdated term for wearers of OtherLinks apparel who are considered ‘Brand Actors’ for their participation in shaping the company’s direction.
This unique approach is directly inspired from street performance. OtherLinks designs their clothing to be worn and seen in the urban spaces that we share with others.
“When you’re in the streets, you have the ability to change what you see and how you participate in the community.”
Sweaters to full tracksuits are made from premium, hand-spun Mongolian wool and offered at reasonable price points (in large part thanks to the D2C model). The brand also partners with up-and-coming street artists whose works appear on a range of t-shirts. They promote the work of these partnered artists on their website and are continually looking for more talents to work with and lend their platform. Partnering with artists not only injects fresh creativity into their designs but also opens up OtherLinks to other perspectives of what kind of items that true street artists prefer.
OtherLinks sells exclusively from their website to their target customers who do their shopping almost exclusively online and seek the instant gratification of seeing, buying, and receiving with speed, and effectively cuts out all of the noise.
The upside on the company’s margins is reason enough to adopt the model exclusively. Under one roof at OtherLinks, you’ll find design, sales, web development, and marketing personnel dedicated to providing fashionistas with a higher level of streetwear attire. Their size and setup allow them to move fast – a new design can arrive at the warehouse, be photographed, and be online and on sale in a matter of hours.
