“Between sovereignty, acceleration and development”

The Berlin label Harlem Soul launched its first ‘Artist Drop’ in November. For this purpose, the brand has brought the Berlin sprayer and artist Jack99 on board.

The artist immortalized a huge graffiti on canvas on the roof of the company headquarters, which now adorns a hoodie from the label as a backprint. Harlem Soul was founded in 2019 by the parent company Clinton Wholesales-GmbH, based in Berlin-Hoppegarten. During the pandemic, the brand was largely “on standby,” said marketing project manager Peter Erlach in an interview with FashionUnited. The artist collaboration now means a “restart” for the young streetwear label.

The label offers a women’s and men’s collection as well as a unisex collection, which differs from the regular ready-to-wear collections through double sizes and wide, oversized cuts. In addition to the regular seasons, the brand plans to launch a limited ‘Artist Drop’ twice a year.

It started with the joint four-piece collection with Jack99. Two hoodies and two T-shirts from the unisex collection have been decorated with the sprayer’s art. The artist tagged the Harlem Soul slogan “Creativity knows no bounds” on the back of a white T-shirt, and the brand’s spray-painted logo is emblazoned on the chest of the collection’s second hoodie. All parts of the capsule are limited to 100 pieces.

The collaboration with Berlin artists should reflect the basic idea of ​​the brand: “Harlem Soul has its roots in Berlin and reflects life in the metropolises, the everyday life of big city life between sovereignty, acceleration and development,” is how Erlach describes the brand. “As fashion for creative people – united in diversity, progress and sustainability.”

Harlem Soul currently sells its clothing through its own online shop and German online marketplaces such as Zalando, AboutYou and Otto. Even though the label has a stationary sales area at its headquarters in Hoppegarten, the majority of sales take place online. Delivery is currently only available within Germany, but this will be expanded internationally in the future. The brand’s production facilities are located in Turkey, all other corporate areas from marketing to logistics and shipping are handled from the parent company’s European headquarters.

Future plans and growth

In the coming year, the brand wants to focus primarily on stationary retail, expanding its presence there and securing a place on the shelves of retail chains that stand for streetwear and urban styles. But the brand is not only planning to boost its growth in this area, another focus is on social media channels: As a young brand, it is particularly relevant to generate reach through as many channels as possible, says Erlach. However, it is important to the project manager to “remain authentic and grow meaningfully”.

The three collections for the SS24 season are already hanging on clothes rails at the headquarters. The coming season was designed by a designer duo – but here too, changes are coming next year: “We are strengthening the design area to bring in new impulses,” says Erlach. He can’t reveal any more details yet.

The new season women’s and men’s collection includes sweatshirts and jackets with matching short and long sweatpants, T-shirts, cardigans and tank tops for women. Some pieces appear with large prints, others are minimalist and only have a logo. The unisex collection also includes hoodies and T-shirts and is rounded off by a denim jacket, bomber jackets, caps and socks. The color palette ranges from various earth tones to summery pastel tones in yellow and blue and a bright orange. In addition to the casual sweat items, the label also has jeans and jackets in its product portfolio. The issue of sustainability is not the focus of the streetwear brand, but is “considered as a matter of course,” explains Erlach. Many of the products are GOTS certified and made from a mix of recycled polyester and organic cotton.