74
NOVEMBER 2012
WWW.TOMIMAGAZINE.COM
Everyday when you put on clothes, you are
wearing art. A designers vision that you fell in
love with in a store window. That particular
piece of clothing spoke to you. Not literally.
But ‘it’ did say
this is me
.
This is who I am
.
When I put this on I feel good
.
I feel confi-
dent. The world needs to recognize
.
The same way you feel inspired so does
the designer. Out and about, living, designers
too see something that gives them an idea. A
thought that leads them straight to the draw-
ing board. “Inspiration is the very first thing
that comes to mind” - says Nathaniel Willis III.
Founder and CEO of Flaucy Inc., a neo-urban
apparel enterprise. “I try to design things that
are very inspirational in some type of way
whether it inspires me or others. Inspiration is
the first key before anything.”
The consumer falling oh so deep in love
with a product isn’t exactly genuine. Marketing
and mass appeal research are a big part of
product development. Designers spend a lot of
time processing what an audience may be
‘
thinking’ at the point-of-purchase. “I look at it
from a consumer standpoint. I’m a consumer
first so I put my mind into what would the
consumer think? How would they want to
look? What will inspire the consumer? I want
to make products that are inspirational. I want
to make products that are aspirational. And
then I also want to make it attainable. I have
to think of great concepts while I’m designing.
Meaning, if I’m shopping, what do I see in the
market? What stands out in the market? Col-
or, design, concept, new body type? What will
set myself and the brand a part from every-
thing else? If I go shopping in a mall and I’m
in a store that has tons of T-Shirt brands, how
does one brand stick out from all the rest?
That’s where I start. And I also think of how
not to put something out in the market that
doesn’t look like everything else. I’m trying to
be a trailblazer. Not a biter: where we copy
your styles or redeveloping them. We’re not re
-
inventing the wheel, we’re just putting rims
on it. We’re supposed to set the brand a part
from everything else that looks the same.”
Every designer worth their salt wants
to make money. Otherwise you’re just Demi
Moore in dappled light making pottery. Gaug-
ing the market to determine a products ability
to turn a profit is an essential part of the
brands ultimate financial success. “Obviously
that is the gamble that everyone has to take
whenever they throw product out there” - says
Nathanial. “First of all, you’ve got to start off
with feedback. You get feedback from focus
groups. You get feedback from yourself. I
wear the product before I put it in the market.
Whether it’s a retailer or an average person
walking down the street, I look at their eye
contact. I look at their reaction. Are they look-
ing at me or my shirt? If they’re looking at my
shirt first then I know I’ve got something go-
ing. Or if they stop me in the street and ask
where’d I get that shirt from? That just gives
me confidence that I’m on the right track. I
kind of test the market subliminally before I
go and put the product into production. I do it
a number of ways. I do it on a street level but
I also have buyers and contacts that I can
bounce things off of because they see product
all day from other different brands. So if I
send them a snapshot of what I’m working on
IMAGE
DESIGNED
TO WIN
N
ATHANIAL WILLIS
III
Nathaniel Willis III
Founder and CEO
WWW.FLAUCY.COM
link
link