This Is Not About Bravery
Tuesday, 17th of January 2022
Grown into a Household name brand, The Hundreds is known as one of the pioneers of Streetwear culture and known for their ever-so-stellar collaborations, their People Over Products mentality and their very own iconic mascot the Adam Bomb. From the early 2000s to today, The Hundreds has made its name in the streetwear scene and now can be spotted all around the world. One of The Hundreds’ co-founders, Bobby Hundreds, has made his way to Jakarta for Urban Sneaker Society 2022 to launch the Ageless Galaxy x The Hundreds collection.
Bobby, with his partner Ben, started The Hundreds in 2003 which is now known as one of the classical streetwear brands. Being in this industry for almost two decades, the brand has evolved into a household name with added elements from food festivals to digital collectibles. “This brand is really the history of our friendship and our relationship also reflective of our life experiences and just our viewpoint on culture and that’s evolved” is how Bobby described The Hundreds. 
Approaching its 20th anniversary, The Hundreds is still at a stage of learning and reinventing every day, especially being in a trend-based market where the goalpost is constantly evolving and changing. “Streetwear is very much driven by the youth and young people” Bobby explained “So it’s so important for us to remember that and recall on it, re-emphasize it, and let people know that this isn’t just a fly-by-night project, we aren’t just here for a moment and capitalizing on a market trend. We’re building a brand, we’re building a real story here and we’re going to be telling it for the rest of our lives.”
Building a brand and its legacy has its challenges, especially being in this game for 20 years, there are various challenges from recessions to the pandemic. When asked about these challenges that the brand has overcome, Bobby explained how “Challenges are very vivid and real, but in hindsight, most of those challenges were really positive and became learning moments and opportunities of great growth for the company and brand.”
Known for taking the leap and being ahead, Bobby has been constantly inspired throughout the years by youth, artists, and entrepreneurs who are going out there and pursuing their dream, especially in this industry. “These are the risks, the bravery and the courage that I think creators embark on every single day when they put their work out there, they’re sharing it with the rest of the world and it’s honestly very brave” Bobby expressed.
When writing his memoir ‘This Is Not a T-Shirt’, Bobby faced the question of why he leapt into the streetwear industry. It was always about connecting his art to product designs, but there was something more behind it, it was actually the people and their stories. Bobby expressed how he’s fascinated by other designers and artists that have assembled the space, and how trends come and go but if you stick to the stories and people, it will always stay relevant. Knowing there’s a story behind a product, creates a bond and it will feel different and more alive.
“If we never forget the people, if we don’t neglect that part of it and we’re always mindful and remember to go back to that and it’s not just about the product but about putting people together through the product. Then I think the brand will forever be relevant.”
Collaborating is one of the ways how The Hundreds become a storyteller, working with small-independent brands to well-known brands is how they share the story of like-minded people coming together to share their passion for streetwear and art. The Hundreds' most recent drop is a collaboration with Pokemon and it has been the most anticipated collaboration for them. Pokemon has been near and dear to many people of many generations because it has a touch of nostalgia and familiarity. Bobby explained how The Hundreds are the same, being in this industry for almost 20 years, they’ve touched many people from different generations and backgrounds, “That’s a really interesting story for me to tell that I want to align my brand with, I want people to look at our brand like a Pokemon.”
Other than the Pokemon collaboration, The Hundreds also collaborated with Ageless Galaxy for Urban Sneakers Society 2022. “We like working with up-and-coming independent streetwear brands because it’s so essential to the DNA of what The Hundreds represents.” Working alongside brands like Ageless Galaxy is also a way to connect with like-minded people even if they’re halfway across the world and coming from totally different backgrounds. From doing Zoom calls and emailing back and forth to now experiencing the launch of this collaboration in Jakarta together, is all one big awesome story to tell and it will live on forever.
THE LOOP is Ageless Galaxy’s media division platform to spotlight the people, the stories, and the mentality to strive at all costs. Through exploring and discovering, Ageless Galaxy dedicates a platform to share a mentality and a passion for growth and greatness through storytelling and writing. All about showing much love to anything and anyone that’s changing the game. So if you know, you know.
