Two Los Angeles based streetwear labels, come together for a one day collection hosted at Undefeated in Los Angeles on Saturday, Nov. 17.
Born x Raised and Babylon push the boundaries of skate fashion and come together to bring Los Angeles a thriving skateboarding community. This project is to go beyond the typical hype of skate clothing and to create a warming environment for skaters alike.
The brand Babylon is owned by Lee Spielman and Garrett Stevenson who are the founders of the punk band Trash Talk. Spielman and Garrett have led the brand to huge success since 2015 with opening their own storefront right off of Highland in Hollywood.
Born x Raised has been owned by Spanto since 2013 in Venice, who comes from a hispanic background and shows his roots through the brand along with the organic feel of skate wear.
The pop-up started right away on Saturday morning around 11 a.m., lasting until the sun went down in order to finally shut down for a small music set by the rap group Shoreline Mafia.
While driving around the block to find parking, you couldn’t help but notice as you drive by the store the huge crowd waiting outside just to get their hands on the clothing.
While walking up to the store for a spot after taking a couple of photos of the outdoor madness, I notice that most people are hanging out in the front skateboarding taking videos. Many of them are chatting with the workers at the Stussy store located right next to the shop who were just watching from their work.
The line and everyone on the block seemed to be all connected by one thing: the Los Angeles skating community.
The line seemed long, but quickly moved as I was talking to the couple waiting in front of me who were so thrilled to finally get their chance to buy some items on the new line of Babylon and Born x Raised collaboration.
As the line finally draws to a close, we enter the store- it’s a small but open space for the clothing that hangs on one wire for customers and fans to look through quickly as everyone scrambles to find something to purchase.
As you step in, the right side of the wall is a breathtaking mural representing the new logo for the collab of both brands with a rattlesnake. To the right is a bright sign displaying both brand names. The pop-up consisted of a small space to make purchases in the front while still creating a comfy enough space for everyone to look through quickly.
In total, everyone spent maybe 20 minutes at the most in the store just looking around. Some were merely hanging out while trying to take a couple photos, and others were grabbing their hands on any shirt or jacket they could find. The Fall 2018 collection for the brands consisted of t-shirts, hoodies, and sweatpants that combine the visions of both brands.
A short and sweet pop-up of two companies that define the Los Angeles skate streetwear made us remember why people picked up skating in the first place- to draw a sense of community, family, culture and a skating foundation all in one.
