Start your own f*cking brand

The story of Nudie Jeans is probably a story of freedom and self-discovery before anything else. There’s a strong “On The Road” vibe reading between the lines of Maria Erixon’s self biography. Something that Jack Kerouac could have written if, instead of travelling around the states, had decided to start a successful denim brand that could disrupt the industry and raise a middle finger to the rest of the world.

That’s the spirit behind Nudie Jeans, started as a wild ride and quickly become one of the most iconic Scandinavian brands of jeans. If you have ever walked through the streets of Stockholm or Gothenburg you would have probably recognized that thread wave embroidery, Nudie’s signature, on the back pocket of all the jeans around you. Or you have probably spotted the little shops that offer to repair your denim, reversing the concept of “quick and disposable” of the nearby H&M by introducing a whole new attitude to the clothes: something that is completely yours and you own till the very end. Not something designed to be used a few times and then thrown away, but a feature of your personality, especially when worn for a long time — a second skin.

I’m talking about Stockholm because Nudie Jeans is a brand authentically Swedish. The attention to social issues and environmental impact of the industry are distint trait of the swedish approach to life and business. And even more, if there’s a place in the world where a clothing line could emerge focusing only around jeans and their nobility, then that place is probably Gothenburg. The cozy little city in the West Side of the the scandinavian peninsula facing the Skagerrak and barely an hour of distance from Borås, nordic capital of textile industry, is also home of a vibrant thrift store community and independent music scene. All the elements that came to form the DNA of Nudie and shaped its vision from the very start.

And you can really feel the streets and vibe of Gothenburg from Maria Erixon’s memories. Familiar places that suddenly reveal a double meaning, as if the city hides a rebellious spirit beyond the thin layer of stillness and composure. A city that keeps changing every day, yet is capable to stay authentic and genuine. There’s a lot of Gothenburg behind Nudie’s dry jeans and you can feel it under the texture.

The red line that underscore Maria Erixon’s book is also passion. It all started as a passion project, between her and her boyfriend Joakim Levin and throughout the years, despite the success, it has never failed to be so. For years the style and organization kept being totally anarchical and caothic. At the beginning all the employees were all friends and people who decided to embrace the spirit of Nudie as a lifestyle. No hiring process or formal interview, only truly passionate people came to be part of the company and fell in love with it. Especially at the beginning it was

“as being like a raft pushed out to sea and how the survival of the company”

to quote again Maria’s words: “It was entirely down to the willingness for all hands to be on deck whenever a task needed addressing, whatever it was.”

Nudie is a company that since the very beginning embraced a mission of authenticity and respect, respect to the people and environment, as one of the first companies to set the trend for a more self-conscious approach to fashion that would be copied and adopted only later by the industry. It teaches respect for the products, too. I talked about the thrift shop culture in Sweden and this is an aspects that reflects to the jeans too, considered not just a piece of casual garment but a living elements that grow and mature with the years, like aged fine wine. In fact, clothes can tell a story too.

With her book, Maria Erixon teaches us to embrace the unknown and the adventure. The writing is raw, honest, never hiding the difficulties and the mistakes she had to overcome in growing her company. And is probably this honesty that makes Nudie’s evolution such a compelling story. Beyond the hardship what really emerges in a portrait of the happiness, the friendship, the fights and reconciliations of an atypical company that has chosen fashion as a form of anarchic expression and never apologized for it. Dry and raw as 100% cotton jeans.

Maria Erixon testimonial is an esortation to trust your intutition and don’t be afraid to follow your destiny till the very end. Believe in your idea and start your own f*cking brand, the world needs it.

Start your own f*cking brand. Mondial, 2019