Why bring back the hoodies?

You may have noticed over the last few weeks that Andy has been talking about the relaunch of the Unconventionall hoodie collection.?

If you haven’t been following him for more than a couple of years, you may also wonder what he is banging on about and why it’s called a relaunch when you don’t even remember the first one.?

Let me explain.?

Where it began

At the back end of 2020, Andy was a bored employee, working out of the family's spare room and looking for any excuse to grow the Unconventionall brand through the power of social media.?

He had about 6k followers and made quite a name for himself with a collection of sketch-style videos that no one else was creating at the time. Now they are a dime a dozen on TikTok but back in the day, he was a trendsetter.?

“I’ll set up a YouTube channel,” he thought, without having any idea of how much time and effort one takes to get off the ground and sustain. 10 videos in, he gave up, but not before something positive developed from the process.?

“Andy, I see you’re wearing an Unconventionall hoodie in your videos. Where can I get one of those?”

He’d been chopping the long-form videos up and sharing the clips on LinkedIn for maximum exposure. Plus, he had zero game on YouTube and was feeling quite lonely so LinkedIn was his safe space.?

“They are just the hoodies I had done for my videos”, he said.?

“I don’t sell them.”

The lightbulb moment

Over the next 2 weeks, 4 more people messaged Andy to ask about buying an Unconventionall hoodie which was nice but left him with a decision to make. Does he go through the hassle of getting them done as a one-off order or stick to his guns and say no?

There were no guns. There was no sticking.?

4 orders were taken and after a week or so, the hoodies arrived. At this point, the garment being used was not something Andy had specifically chosen, but people loved it nonetheless. For them, it was more about representing the brand than anything else.?

Over the coming weeks, those 4 people shared their new favourite hoodie on their LinkedIn feeds and guess what?

Another 20 people messaged Andy asking to buy one.

“Linz, we could just go balls deep here and start an Unconventionall clothing line. There is clearly a demand for it.”

Cogs started to grind. Ideas started to form.?

“You could give a percentage of the profits to charity as part of the process”, she said.?

Unconventional Apparel was born.?

Why did we sell so many hoodies?

The world of Autism inspires the Unconventionall brand and represents a time when behaviours are embraced and understood, no matter how off the beaten track they seem.?

There are so many people in the UK and globally, who desperately want to be themselves, but have never felt brave enough to unleash their brilliance on the world. People who don’t conform to societal norms or have children who are struggling with the constraints of traditional everyday life.?

These people (Andy included) long for a community of comrades that truly ‘get them’ for who they are and what they can bring. The Unconventionall brand represents that societal shift that we all want to see, offering people something to stand by and giving them the confidence to stand up and be counted.?

The people who bought Unconventionall hoodies believed in a world where those who live in the shadows would be free to step into the light and show the world just what a difference they can make.?

If only people would embrace them.?

We sold hundreds of hoodies. In reality, with huge investments and a very clear plan, millions would buy into the Unconventionall vision.?

What now?

After a 2-year break building Think Unconventionall, we are ready to re-introduce the hoodies back into the mix under the banner ‘Wear Unconventionall’.?

The message at the core of the brand hasn’t changed, however this time, instead of us guessing which designs people would like and having them made, you as the customer will choose your hoodie and we will print it on demand.?

Same incredibly high-quality garment with the design of your choice.??

Our goal is to re-connect with an audience that has become a little distant during our B2B years, whilst building a new community, full of people who champion the need for change in a society designed to see outsiders fail.?

In 2021, Andy pulled on a hoodie for a YouTube video that generated a handful of views and took far too long to create and edit.?

The result was a network of thousands and a community of incredible human beings all with a desire to own a small slice of the Unconventionall brand.?

We hope you’ll join the party when the new hoodies drop in March.?Check out the shop page here and pick your favourite for when the store officially opens.

Stay Unconventionall.?