Interview: Mike Sulaka of STROKE
They're kind of a big deal.
For more information about STROKE, see here.
SHEI: What started your interest in street wear and fashion?
Mike: Well, I’ve always been really into fashion since I’ve been growing up. Street wear specifically, I started getting into near the end of my high school years. It all goes hand in hand with the music –we’re all big hip-hop fans. That’s why you see a lot of hip hop influences in our designs. That’s how we really get a lot of the inspiration for our tees.
S: Who is your favorite designer, right now?
M: Some of our favorite brands in the game are Crooks and Castles, Rogue Status, and also I’m a big fan of Ten Deep. We look to see what they’re doing at all times. They’re kind of our competition, but they’re also brands we look up to.
S: Of all your designs, do you have a favorite?
M: My favorite design would have to be the Dead Presidents tee. I just feel like it represents what we’re all about. It’s a statement, it’s a bold design, it’s something you have to have confidence to wear.
S: What inspired you to create it?
M: It comes from the line “I’m all for presidents that represent me,” by Jay-Z. The track is called “Dead Presidents II,” talking about money, of course. We took that line and played around with it, and took our interpretation, of course. It’s a classic hip-hop song. His album is considered a classic in the hip-hop industry.
S: In general, how is your clothing inspired?
M: It all starts with a vision. We’re always looking for different sources of inspiration. Our line is basically a cultivation of our interest and passions and basically our shirts are a medium to express those interests. We consider our clothing our wearable art. When people are wearing our clothing, it’s kind of like our interest in the clothing and design. We’ll take a lot of hip-hop influence. We’ll take a line or graphic that makes a statement. We’ll play with that.
S: How did you guys meet? How do you divide the workload?
M: We met freshman year, I think, probably within the first couple weeks of school. We both rushed Phi Psi, where we got to know each other. We’re both creative individuals, and it just clicked. We had this idea and we just ran with it.
S: Give us a little background on the company.
M: The concept was put together in June of 2008. We officially launched in April of 2009. We’re currently in the top three boutiques in Michigan: Motivation, Burn Rubber, and Caruso Caruso. We’re looking to expand throughout the Midwest. We’re very selective with the boutiques we allow to carry our brand – they have to all be premium street wear boutiques. It’s not just a t-shirt company, it’s a brand. We try to make it really personal with our customers. We keep it exclusive to 50 fifty pieces a design.
S: How do you want people to feel when they wear your designs?
M: The type of people we want wearing our products are just like us. They have confidence in themselves and confident of our product. All our pieces have bold statements on it, and if people aren’t comfortable wearing it, we don’t want them wearing it. We want people who have a little swagger in their step. We support other people pursuing their passions, whether it be music or school or fashion. If you have passion about what you do, we want you wearing our clothing.
S: When you’re coming up with shirt concepts, what kind of music do you listen to?
M: I would have to say are of course, Biggie, Jay-Z, Kanye West (he’s a big trendsetter in the fashion industry), and the up and coming artists, like Big Sean and Mike Posner who are playing in our concert on Friday. We want to be able to showcase talent that’s on the rise. We feel like our brand is on the rise, and we want to support other people in other industries. Also, Fabulous.
S: Do you plan on expanding the brand at all in the near future?
M: This fall, actually, we’re expanding into long sleeves (for the winter, for the holidays) and hoodies as well. We also have a jacket in development, and some jackets in well. We also have about 10 tees in development, so be on the lookout as well. Also, we plan on expanding into other states, through a sort of grassroots movement. All of our next line is going to be of the highest quality – we wouldn’t put out anything we wouldn’t wear ourselves. The shirts are going to be slim cut, the hoodies will be lined, and the jackets zippers and buttons are all going to be custom. We’re very detail oriented.
S: You guys are both currently students at the University of Michigan. What are you plans for Stroke post-graduation?
M: Well, right now we’re just taking it one day at a time. I guess you can say we’re on a ride and we’ll just see where it takes us. I still plan on going to law school. Stroke is something we’re very passionate about, but school is still number one. Though during the summer time, and when there’s time during school, stroke is number one. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.
