VAULTSessions | MAY 2015: KNOWLITA NEW YORK
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For the first part of an ongoing series, “VAULTSessions”, we will be Interviewing the heads of the brands we stock in our store, to give you a chance to get to know our brands more. To kick off the “Sessions” series, we have sat down and interviewed Quincy Moore, Creative Director and Co-Founder of New York-based brand, Knowlita.
Knowlita is also one of the main brands we stock in our store, to shop Knowlita, please click here
To view the “New York or Taipei” Editorial, please click here and scroll down or view here in our blog.
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1. Could you tell us a little about yourself, KNOWLITA, and what you do there?
My name is Quincy Moore. I'm the founder, owner and creative director of KNOWLITA, which I run with my girlfriend LJ out of our studio on Lafayette Street in SoHo. KNOWLITA was born because I was searching for community when I moved to New York. It exists now as a lifestyle brand that produces art, clothing and accessories, both personal items and stuff for the home. The future is diverse, but our focus at present is on our unisex ready-to-wear lines for summer and fall 2015, as well as our newspaper, which is called NEW YORK OR NOWHERE, launching in August.
2. What are your major inspirations?
My inspirations are, first and foremost, my friends and family. After that, conceptually speaking, I'm inspired by hustle, being able to continue doing what I love do to, and working as hard as I can to refine my own taste. Otherwise,Virgil Abloh, Nicholas Cage, Ronnie Fieg, the artist J.R., Richard Prince, Curtis Kulig, Maxwell Osborne, Daniel Arsham, and photographer Steven Siegel, are some of the people whose work I admire.
3. What do you carry with you at all times? What items can you not do without?
iPhone 6, half-zip perforated black leather COMME des GARÇONS wallet; Broome & Mercer watch; HAN sunglasses; chapstick; lighter; our SMOKES cigarette case, packed with Marlboros; my white Achilles low Common Projects; and our NEW YORK OR NOWHERE crewneck.
4. How would you define your personal style?
My personal style is very simple, and consists of mostly black, white, and various shades of denim. Lately I've been focused on being as comfortable as possible at all times, so that means a lot of joggers, sweatshirts, and Uniqlo jeans, which I've recently switched to after years of wearing only ACNE and APC ones. Raw denim sucks, if we're being honest, especially when it's hot. Otherwise, you'll usually find me in a KNOWLITA top and a pair of Common Projects.
5. What are your personal plans, and your plans for KNOWLITA?
My personal plans are to continue to hustle as hard as I can so that I can keep working for myself. Being able to do what I want whenever I want is very important to me. My plans for KNOWLITA are at once concrete and very much still evolving. I'm striving for it to have relevance in an over-saturated scene, while simultaneously trying to build it into a sustainable, multi-faceted business that will allow me (personally) and us (the brand) to jump from project to project, creating top-notch product and content in whatever form that takes. Next we're producing clothes, everything from scratch, because it's something I've always wanted to learn how to do. If people like it, we'll make more. If they don't, we might make more anyway, but we're also working on candles, and neon signs, and continuing to grow our original print art selection. We're still small, but the people that follow the brand are passionate about what we're building, which is something I think we can scale as long as we keep making good shit.
6. Any words for Taiwanese fans of Knowlita?
Taiwanese fans of KNOWLITA... thank you for your support! We appreciate very much that our niche brand has found a customer base in such a distant part of the world. If you keep wearing it, we'll keep making it available to you. And we look forward to visiting you soon!
Interview: Ryan Maeland | Photography: Courtesy of Knowlita
