Recently I was approached on Twitter by a local Leicester clothing brand called Shebangs. After having a chat via Twitter message they told me they liked my blog, the style, the way it's wrote and the content. As they liked the blog and what I represent within the posts I write, they wanted to work with me on a blog post and help spread the word of Shebangs. So they kindly sent me a t-shirt and a bradge! Also because I am local, they got a member of their team to send these wonderful gifts out to me within an hour, which was a great surprise to me!
Firstly I will tell you all about my personal views on the tee, the brand itself and my overall view of my experience with Shebangs. Then I will go on to the interview I had with Chris, a member of the Shebangs team. I shall also be showing some pictures taken of me wearing the gifted tee.
Let's talk about the quality of the t-shirt firstly. This item is so soft and a great material, not too thin and not too heavy, so it is great for an all year round look. Also the print on the side isn't that horrid print that as soon as you put it on it starts to crack, and we all have all brought one of those before, right? I have gave this t-shirt two days of wear so far to test it out, even had it in a back pack, still the print is on and it doesn't crease!! The creators of these tees have really thought of every little detail within the design. With a small square shaped tag of their "#!" sign and their own person tag inside at the back of the neck. I really enjoy these little details as I can tell it is well thought out and a lot of care has been put into creating their line. Just to let you know too, I personally chose a Men's top as I always feel they fit me better and I feel more comfortable wearing them with leggins.
Now let's go onto the brand itself. After having many chats with Chris about the brand, I love what they stand for as a brand. I also love their enthusiasm on working with local bands, writers artists and anything in between. Let's go back to what they stand for as a brand, they don't want to influence you in the way you wear their clothes or what style of clothing you should be buying for the next season. Be who and what you want to be, they do not judge you, they just want you to enjoy wearing their clothes without having a label above your head.
My overall experience while working with Shebangs has been noting but a positive experience. It is a pleasure to be sharing their brand with you guys. Such a friendly bunch and really down to earth and just doing what they enjoy. As they are so passionate about their brand I am 100% confident that their quality of products and service will be kept up. Like I said, they are a friendly bunch so go ahead and send them a tweet!
Shall we now check out the interview I had over e-mail with Chris?
Q. Where did the name "Shebangs" come from, and what does it mean?
A. We liked Shebangs because it was, at first, meaningless enough to put our own stamp on it, whilst at the same time intriguing enough to spark interest- something you need online. From this blank canvas we've been creating media from Interviews with up-and-coming musicians to undiscovered filmmakers and writers. The history of the word shebang is from meanings depending on which country you are from a Shebang can be anything from a shack, to a car or a reference to a programming paradigm used by computer programmers, however none of these things are not the meaning for our brands name. Shebangs as a brand is about people: The artists, their followers and people who try their best to succeed.
Q. How long have you been a brand for now?
A. The concept behind Shebangs started last year and was influenced greatly by an Erasmus exchange to Germany which involved backpacking around Europe.
The recent clothing line itself is very fresh, having gone online only two weeks ago and has already spread from Leicester to around the world. Its scary how quick things can spread, but also at the same time great to know that what we stand for (celebrating people) is a universal which knows no borders.
Q. What message do you want Shebangs to give to people?
A. The world is a big place and the more we explore the more variety to life we see: Whether this be music variety, perceptions of fashion or opposing views. It's so rewarding to experience the world but have to be willing to face the risks, and challenge perceptions of how things 'should' be.
Doing so opens up experience and makes life more exciting. We don't tell our followers how to wear our clothing or prescribe a certain image because that's not what is important.
What is important is the message of self expression and being apart of a brand that respects this, we feel so many other brands have taken the route of imposing an image onto their customers rather than allowing them to be expressive in their own right. When our customers wear Shebangs its because they see us recording their favourite unsigned artist or because they can relate to our Escape blog which features relatable content and not just emotional porn or 'click bait'.
That's why we interview all sorts of people from musicians, to writers and creatives. It supports the artist in spreading material which would otherwise get lost in the mainstream noise, and gives a platform to the smaller creatives who otherwise might not get heard.
Q. Any new ideas coming up for Shebangs?
A. Yes. It's really exciting, we're working on something super awesome to help boost the Leicester music scene (starting in Leicester, expanding thereafter). Our passion is supporting creatives and we think we've come up with an exciting opportunity for fans to see their favourite artists in a way that helps promote them fairly and ethically.
We're still thrashing out the details on this so sorry for the lack of detail. Check back soon at Shebangs.co soon. Though we're pretty certain you'll hear about it around Leicester before long. Watch this space!
Q. What made you start up a clothing company?
A. Clothing has always been used as a medium for expression, but what Shebangs is doing is combining this with media (interviews and recordings of everyday people doing what they love). Because of this, we see ourselves more of a media company with substance rather than just 'a company that sells clothes.
We believe you have to stand for something, have a reasoning behind it, and more importantly show that you mean it. That's why we're taking the time to find unsigned artists, writers and creatives. Not because they have a large following but because they're good at what they do and should get the exposure they deserve.
I really hoped you enjoyed this kind of blog post today. A little different from my usual but I thoroughly enjoyed it all. If you would like to check out Shebangs all links will be below. Also I do hope we can all help to spread the word about Shebangs in some way. They also have their very own blog over at their website.
Website - http://www.shebangs.co/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/ShebangsCo
Iinstagram - https://instagram.com/shebangsco/
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