We sat down with designer and entrepreneur Luke George to discuss his up-and-coming brand, Neww Creation, and the influences behind his latest collection. The 24-year old creative director started his label in May of 2016 with an appreciation for thrifting and handmade production. Since then we have seen an awesome offering of incredible artistry. From hand-painted pants to deconstructed denim, this emerging new talent is working with a mission in mind. Read on to find out how he believes streetwear can be more than just about fashion and what he’s planning on bringing to the table.

1. When was the start of your interest in fashion?

I had always been into style and fashion growing up, always looking more at what I could never afford. Then a point came about four or five years ago when I was living in Atlanta. I was tired of spending so much for just one piece of clothing and came to the realization that I could probably make it myself. So I went out and discovered that all my friends thrifted. We went to this small mom-and-pop shop and I found this extra large cream-coloured sweater for a dollar. At that point I had never really purchased anything from a thrift store but I knew I had to have it. So I took it home and I literally just deconstructed it. I pulled it apart and put it back together and I just distressed it. A short time after, I wore it out to a small event and everyone started asking about it. They all thought it was a piece from the Yeezy collection, and I’m like ‘Nah nah, I only paid a buck for this thing! Like this is only a dollar!’

I even remember being offered a pair of Nike Roshes and eighty bucks for my sweater but I couldn’t let it go. I still have it to this day and it’s one of my favourite pieces. After that I started working with bleach. A few of my friend’s are now calling me the bleach god. Most of my pants I design are painted in bleach with a Q-Tip. The process takes like an hour and it’s more of an appropriation to me, like taking a pair of Dickies or Tees and putting my own spin on it. Most of our stuff is worked on in bleach but now we’re getting more into prints. The turning point was when I knew I could make something that was mine and own it. And not only own it but share it, so that anyone can wear what I create and carry the piece’s story forward. I fell in love with fashion and the idea of taking old things and bringing them back to life, which is how my brand got its name, Neww Creation.

2. What are the themes that shaped NEWW CREATION?

The themes behind Neww Creation are very biblical. It’s about what was once living is now dead and now has a new life. All my flannels are thrift, and it’s cool because they all tell a story. We don’t know how much music this shirt has heard or how many places it has been. I think vintage clothing is essentially like a fly on the wall. We don’t know all the experiences it has had or the people who wore it. It’s about history. I just love how I can take a worn out piece and give it a whole new story alongside the story it already has to tell. I started looking into more and more brands and designers and I realized that a lot of these companies lack heart and that sense of community or purpose. I’ve always been into brands like Pyrex and the Hundreds and I loved it, but where’s the heart behind it? Sometime around 2010 I started noticing more of Supreme. I had the realization that they are a true community and I mess with that.

My brand’s logo is an ‘OX’ smiley face, the ‘O’ simply meaning that, ‘You are alive or that you have life, this incredible gift.’ The X means that you’re dead to the things that almost overtake you, when you were no longer in control. The bottom ‘smiley face’ symbolizes happiness and the message to just ‘be happy.’ So the heart of my brand is to get into a community where we can invest in the youth and culture, where we can create and share ideas and help people find their true happiness. It’s “Neww Creation,” the old is dead and the new is living. Let’s get rid of all the trash that you’ve dealt with and give you a platform to create and invest in who you were called to be. At the end of the day, we just wanna take care of people. One day, I’d like to be able to open up my home to young creatives who don’t have a place to live and say, “Hey, this is you man, like this is you, you want a place to sell? Alright, let’s do it.” Just taking care of youth and anyone who needs to feel accepted. I want them to feel loved and valued. The mission statement for my brand is not about where you’ve been or where you are right now, It’s about where you are going.

3. What was your inspiration for your most recent drop?

The process of life. I like to use the caterpillar as an analogy for my inspiration on this one. You have the beginning of this life where you’re eating everything, you’re taking it all in, you’re trying to get a feel for what is really going on around you. You’re moving slowly, at the pace that you can physically only move at. Then comes this season of the cocoon, which I think sucks, like this whole metamorphosis. A process of cold, of darkness and emptiness. You feel so alone and you have no one to share that with. So the only thing you can do is to think and pray, to listen to what is going on around you even though you have no input because you are limited to this cocoon, totally immobilized. Like life just sucks sometimes but if you don’t rush it and you don’t interrupt the process, it can be beautiful. If we don’t move too much and just listen and obey what creation is offering us, the process is just incredible and you become a butterfly. I also wanted to create something where I could say, ‘Screw you and what you like, I’m gonna make what I love.’ I wanted to wear something that was mine, regardless of what someone else thought about it. Like who cares? I wanna wear a butterfly on my shirt, I’m gonna wear it.

4. How do you feel about the concept of trends and how much do they impact your work?

I think trends are great because they move culture! Like the chunky dad sneaker; I love that because it pushed the envelope and it worked! I think at the beginning I was so worried about catching a wave and then I found myself creating and searching on Instagram. I was watching Virgil release the same concept as me except no one had seen mine. I was working with traffic cones, I’m working with paint, I’m working with reflective 3M textiles and all these patterns. Like I was on that wave and yet no one cared. I just literally unfollowed everyone who I’ve gained influence from; people like Rhuigi Villaseñor (Rhude Clothing), 424’s Guillermo Andrade, Jeff Staple, Virgil and Jerry Lorenzo. I’ve tried to jump on everything that Lorenzo does, I watch a lot of his stuff, however I don’t follow him. With him it’s not just about clothing, I love his artwork too. His work is about people, it’s a movement, it’s culture, It’s love, it’s god. Like that’s what it’s about and I finally get to see someone who has art behind what they do.

The only person I follow right now is Guillermo from 424 and some smaller individuals. A local based brand called PromiseLand and just some cool stuff that not everyone is seeing. That way I don’t feel like I’m missing out as much because I see that we’re all on the same journey. But when it comes to trends; I love it when something takes off and I love to see people move it. I hate it when I’ve started something that I feel like I’ve only seen in my studio or on my outfit but then I’ll see it on a page with 300,000 likes and I’m like ‘Yo, I started wearing Virgil’s laces as a belt when the shoe was released and now you’re doing it in your runway?’ So I try not to pay attention to trends as much anymore. I’ve learnt to wear what I love and if it doesn’t catch on I’m okay with that.

5. What is the biggest risk you’ve taken?

Most recently, I would say coming to LA. I’ve left a stable position out in Atlanta working with what I really love and value; people and young adults. I left it to pursue this dream wholeheartedly. It’s a huge risk. The last collection I did left me with only eighty-seven cents in my bank account once I produced it. I was literally just broke, living with my dad and his wife. It’s great but it’s tough going from living on my own for four years to living under someone else’s rules again. But this is probably the biggest risk; moving back out here with no connections, no community, no support, no love… Moving away from my culture, from what I know as normal and from what is comfortable and convenient. It’s even harder when you’re constantly expected to fall into stereotypes that society and your own community pushes onto you.

In my community I was expected to go into construction and that’s it. No offense to anyone but it’s not a glamorous life at all, it’s hard, but it’s what we do and now that I’m here pushing the envelope for my culture to say, ‘No, I’m trying to gain a consumer and build a community and culture for everyone to experience and enjoy,’ it makes it that much more important for me being here. I’m trying to build a legacy so that when I die I can leave something behind that’s tangible. It’s not, ‘Oh yeah he worked his whole life and that’s it, no, I worked my butt off my whole life but I’ve achieved something more than that.’ I wanna leave something behind for my children. So at the moment my biggest risk is this; driving to LA, ditching work to say, ‘No this means more,’ just following my dream.

6. Which designers or brands do you like or look to for inspiration?

Currently, someone I vibe with is Asspizza. So Asspizza is this young kid from New York and he’s all around like the Spaghetti Boys. His stuff doesn’t have a lot of heart behind what he does. The message is like; ‘all for nothing, and “F”-life’ and that kind of stuff. I’m not so much on that but I’m inspired by his ability to draw a crowd. He literally has a cult following. Like he shows up in Soho and says, ‘Meet-up at 8pm,’ and ends up shutting down Soho. People get arrested, like he gets arrested for the amount of people that show up. He was out here in LA and said, ‘Yo, show up at this location at this time with all your old bedsheets’ and he just created beautiful apparel, he just takes them and cuts and sews. He’ll do stuff like buying Off-White Tims and just paints on em or cuts up box logos and making triple box logo hoodies and has everyone sign them. Everything he does is all hand made which I love. I look at his stuff and I like what he's doing and so I think if I can get out there and speak positivity into these kids from that kind of a platform, that’s just awesome.

So Asspizza… I also love Tyler The Creator and his music, Frank, Steve Lacy, I really mess with that. In terms of high end brands and designers, I love Heron Preston. I like Virgil, like of course Virgil. He’s like on a new level, just his story alone is incredible and it just makes me think who’s next? I love his stuff, I already said Lorenzo and Guillermo. I love Saint Laurent, all that they do. Their stuff is beautiful and then some Ralph Lauren and just so much more. Anyone who is producing anything that they’re putting their heart into and succeeding at, I just love it. I Like VLONE, I love Asap Bari and all that he does, like the whole pop-up shop method going from Cape Town South Africa to LA to Cleveland. I just really admire anyone who is making a movement in or for culture.

7. Do you have a daily routine in your work day or do you prefer mixing up your schedule?

My daily routine depends on where I’m working with construction, which is tough because its location changes a lot, so it’s different daily. But every morning, something I’ve lived by, is letting my knees hit the floor before my feet do. So in my morning I get out of bed and my first five to ten minutes are given to god. I just say, ‘Whatever you want today, let’s move, give me favor and traffic and align me with people.’ Like I wanna meet someone every day that I’ve never met before and hit it off like I’ve known them my whole life, like this. Other than that I read often. I read the bible often, a few articles and some books here and there.

I’m currently reading a book called “The 4:8 Principle” by Tommy Newberry, which is kind of about choosing joy through everything that you encounter. For example, it could be cloudy today but my job is to see that the sun is behind the clouds even when I don’t want to. I try and get into my studio four out of seven nights a week, just to work on something, even if it’s just making something for myself just to wear. My schedule is a bit all over the place right now. I love the inconvenience of life but I also love to be prepared, so I always just try to sink my feet into everything throughout the week so that if something comes up I’m ready for it.

8. How much of an effect has social media had on the fashion industry and especially up-and-coming brands like yourself? How do you see this changing in the near future? And do you think platforms like Instagram will eventually be replaced?

I think social media is the biggest game changer this industry has ever seen, it goes beyond just fashion. People are getting famous for the most ridiculous things, like I could eat a lime and film myself and if the video is funny it can go viral and I’m famous for it. As good as it can be sometimes, it takes me down. Throughout my week I probably delete the Instagram app a few times. Like last week I deleted it for five days. I don’t let it get a hold of me, because we live in a generation now where we base our success on how many likes we have or a blue verification badge. It’s about status, and there are people in the world who have done far more meaningful things and who will never receive a badge for that. I mean it’s just wild because if I don’t wear this verification badge I am unvalued to a community on social media, I think it’s just unhealthy. Like why is it that if I walk into a store and if I don’t carry this badge you don’t value me as much as someone who does? I think it really just takes people out when in the beginning of life we’ve already been given the verification badge of life itself, like we’re living! Of course we carry value and we don’t need a little blue checkmark to prove it.

So I think social media can be great, however I think it’s also ruining culture. Brick and mortar is no longer valued as much as an Instagram profile, because if i want it, I can just find it online and order it to my house the same day. That convenience is great and all but you end up losing the experience of walking into a store and interacting with the real world around you. Even interacting with clothes now, like you’re gonna buy something just to take a picture in it? No! That’s crazy, get it because you love it. Like of course I have to use social media, my skills on there suck, and I don’t want it to matter to me but it does. It matters far too much which I believe is unhealthy and I don’t know what’s next but I hope that the negative side of it all comes to an end so that this face-to-face experience matters more. I want to meet my customer, I want to know their story and where they come from and why they like my work. The thing about online is that we lose that valuable connection and human experience. I think it’s done well for the popular culture but it’s also gotten to a point where it could ruin it. It’s tough.

9. What’s next for Neww Creation?

Well hopefully this pop-up shop I’m working on in July. I would host it and plan to have the whole thing being about defeating our demons which are the mind games. I’ve been working on this piece now that just says, ‘screw these mind games.’ The whole effect of like, ‘Who cares if I wanna drink ice tea but it’s not cool.’ I shouldn’t be insecure because I want ice tea. I shouldn’t be afraid that I wanna wear that shirt. I shouldn’t have to look in my closet and feel insecure about what’s there or what’s not there. I think there’s so much fear of being accepted that we no longer accept ourselves. So with the pop-up we would host a segment on just defeating your demons and a conversation about the collection and about where I’ve been and where we’re going as a community. With this pop-up I’m hoping to bring light to the self-awareness of loving who you were created to be, not who you think you are, but who you were created to be. We so often find ourselves confused about who we are but we are not looking to who originally created us. Like if I bought a car and something is wrong with it I’m not gonna bring it to a random stranger, I’m gonna take it to the dealership, to the person who built it. So if something is wrong with my soul I need to access where it came from, whether it’s god, the universe or whatever you believe in.

You need to ask yourself if you’re tapping into who you are called to be. I don’t push my relationship with god on anyone or the effect of my spirituality, but if it’s mine, I’m gonna claim it. It’s okay for me to be Buddhist, but is it not okay for me to love Jesus? You know what I mean? Like what’s the difference? If you wanna believe in that of course you can and I’ll believe in this. Everyone should believe in whatever brings them joy. I’m not pushing my beliefs on anyone but my goal is to show people that this is who you were created by, whether it’s god, the universe or whatever, so let’s access it and if it doesn’t work for you, then okay, you didn’t lose or waste anything but at least you tried. The end goal for Neww Creation is to open up a Round-Two-like site where we’ll sell from. Like if you walk into the shop we would be able to offer an after-school program to young kids in the community and say, ‘Hey you wanna create something? Let’s see if it sells. Here, we want you to paint this Jordan 1, bring it back, put it on the shelf and we’ll sell it for you.’ I’d love to be able to just kind of hear someone’s story instead of just saying, ‘Are you buying something? Then get out.’ Like no, ask em, ‘Where are you from? What do you do? A true community of people and I think that’s what the consumer needs, not wants, needs. They need it, whether they realize it or not. Like, we didn’t want an Off-White collaboration with Nike, we needed it and now it’s shifted everything. I think it’s necessary. So that’s our goal, that’s what’s next.

10. Any advice you can give to others trying to start a brand and break into the industry?

Don’t do it unless your heart is fully in it. Unless you really care and you wanna make a difference, don’t do it because it’ll destroy you otherwise. I’m not even in it, really, I haven’t even scratched the surface yet. But where I’ve been and what I’ve been through, if my heart wasn’t connected to a movement or a foundation I would have already given up. So, One: If there’s no heart, back out. Two: If you’re just gonna regurgitate what has already been created, there’s no point. It’s challenging but if you can’t do what you love, and bring something different to the table, it’s just not worth it. So go for it, try it, but make sure you’re rooted in something. If you have like a back up plan I think you kind of have to wipe it off the table otherwise you’ll never be fully invested in it and that’s what I’m learning right now. Like, I wanna quit my job because if I don’t I’ll always be standing on something else. Of course you have to be smart and have an income coming from somewhere, but there comes a point where if you don’t truly believe in yourself, then no one else will and you can’t give up if your heart is fully in it.

The new collection offers thoughtfully crafted hand-painted pants alongside a range of tees that feature striking graphics and meaningful messages. With an inspiring mission statement and a creative strength behind it, Neww Creation and its Creative Director are well-positioned to make a concrete place for themselves in the world of fashion. Check out the brand and its founder on Instagram @newwcreation and @LG2391. You can shop their latest collection at www.newwcreation.bigcartel.com/ and become a part of the Neww Creation community. We’re certainly looking forward to seeing what they do next.

By Max Daly, Founder

www.instagram.com/maximilliondaly

Luke George, Designer Of Neww Creation, Talks Streetwear And The Importance Of Building A Community.